THE Department of Agriculture said that the Philippines’s export of durian to China is still “promising,” despite problems with Beijing over the issue of the West Philippine Sea.

Department of Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel made the remark when asked if the country’s export deals with Beijing were affected by the  maritime tensions between the two countries.

Presently, Manila and Beijing are in a tussle over theWest Philippine Sea ownership with both claiming overlapping territories.

“We have been shipping out durian to China and it looks promising,” he said.

“Ang food worldwide is still short. I don’t think it really has an impact as of the moment,” he added.

It will be recalled that Manila started exporting durian to China in March 2023, some 2 months after President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.’s state visit.

During the said visit, the Philippines sealed a $2-billion fruit export deal with China, with around 54,000 metric tons of durian expected to be shipped.

Meanwhile, some 9,000 direct jobs and over 1,000 indirect jobs are expected to be generated by the agreement

However, months into the durian shipment, the Philippines and China had figured in several maritime incidents as Beijing continued to claim portions of the West Philippine Sea.

Manila in turn filed various and numerous diplomatic protests, and also called Beijing for using military-grade lasers and water cannons against Filipino-manned vessels sailing within the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone.