Thorny Issue: The Durian Economy and Land Tussle in Pahang

In 2022, Malaysia’s durian exports reached RM1.14 billion (US$258 million), driven mainly by Chinese demand. They surged after a deal allowing Malaysia to export fresh durians to China last year, with exports from 24 August to 31 December totalling RM24.84 million. However, Raub in the state of Pahang — the Musang King capital — has witnessed an escalation of tensions between farmers and the Pahang state government over durian plantations on state land, casting a shadow over the supply of one of the most prized varieties of durian in Malaysia. But there may be hope yet.

Many of the land titles to the legal plots of land on which the durian trees grow were created by the British Government during the Malayan Emergency (1948-1960). The villages of Sungai Ruan and Sungai Klau were established at the outset (1948) and end (1960) of the Emergency. Each household was allocated one plot of land.

However, many Chinese farmers who had fled to the fringes of the Malayan jungles cleared and tilled land outside these legal plots even after the Emergency, giving rise to the disputed farmland. Their argument for working on state land lies in the purported encouragement of an informal agricultural economy in the past, when they claimed to have begun working on the land. In 1974, the Malaysian government established the Green Book Plan, which encouraged citizens across Malaysia to take up short-term gardening or farming for personal consumption or to supplement their household income, leaving these farmers undisturbed for decades.

Area of Encroached State Land (in Blue) in Sungai Ruan and Sungai Klau, in Raub, Pahang

Between March and April 2025, the Pahang State Enforcement Unit conducted enforcement operations against illegal Musang King durian plantations over 202ha of land near Raub, Pahang. The action prompted the “Save the Musang King Alliance” (Samka), which represents the interests of most of the farmers involved, to accuse the Pahang state government of violating the terms of a court order by the Court of Appeal in May 2024 forbidding the felling of trees or destruction of structures. The farmers have filed an appeal against the state government’s decision to issue eviction notices against them, which is pending in court.

Samka said DOA Plantation has been silent on proof of state authorisation, but given their audacious actions, it is likely that this private company has the backing of a powerful entity.

The current stand-off between the Pahang state government and the farmers involves those who have been cultivating durians on state land and excludes those who hold the land titles to their farms. While these farmers claim that they have taken measures to apply for licences and land titles over the decades, the state government has rejected or left these applications pending, leaving these farmers with little recourse to legalise their farms. The main reasons for the long-standing applications are likely due to a sluggish bureaucracy and the government’s stake in a joint venture scheme involving durian plantations on state land.

In 2017, the land where the unlicensed farms are situated was designated to be leased to Royal Pahang Durian Resources PKPP Sdn Bhd, a joint venture between the Royal Pahang Durian Group and the Pahang State Agricultural Development Corporation (PKPP).

The Royal Pahang Durian Group, which is supported by the state government, was given a mandate by the government to enter into contracts with individual farmers so that the farmers would continue working on the land through the joint venture. But accusations of exploitative practices remain. Under the scheme proposed in 2020, farmers working on this land are permitted to sell their produce only to the company at a fixed price while paying a rent of RM14,826 per hectare and additional levies based on the number of durians produced. They are also expected to meet durian production quotas each harvest.

The recent clearing of illegal farms likely serves to pressure the remaining farmers into collectively capitulating to the proposal of working on state land and selling durians exclusively to Royal Pahang Durian Resources. On 18 April 2025, the Pahang Sultan, Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri’ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah, expressed strong disapproval about the slow resolution of the land encroachment issue. On 8 May 2025, he visited the disputed area and expressed shock that 10,521ha of land had been encroached upon.

Since late April, a new player has entered the fray. DOA Plantation Sdn Bhd has been occupying state land and intimidating farmers into giving up control of the land they had been working on. Samka said DOA Plantation has been silent on proof of state authorisation, but given their audacious actions, it is likely that this private company has the backing of a powerful entity.

A few dozen farmers signed contracts with Royal Pahang after a meeting with company representatives on 28 May 2025, as the company promised protection from intimidation and dangled the prospect of legalisation and fairer sale terms. On 29 May 2025, Samka revealed they are considering an out-of-court settlement with Royal Pahang.

With DOA Plantation in the fray, there are increasing signs that Royal Pahang and the farmers are more willing to meet in the middle. As a result, the matter of land encroachment is closer to being resolved. Yet questions, such as the matter of DOA Plantation’s overlapping claim with Royal Pahang over the encroached land, remain unanswered.

If troubles over the state land persist, supply will likely be reduced during the next harvest season, a season that is slated to be adversely affected by the recent heavy rainfall across West Malaysia (which would drive up durian prices).

Yet a pressing question remains: Whose backing does DOA Plantation have, allowing it to seize control of state land while the Pahang state government remains silent? With much shrouded in mystery, the land tussle issue could be seen as symptomatic of a murky power struggle in the upper echelons of Malaysian society.

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