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| ISSUE 101: SEPTEMBER 2026 |  |
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| Sabah International Avocado Forum Opens in Tawau, TFNet and MaSDA Sign MOA | ICOP 2026 unites pineapple experts from Southeast Asia | ||||
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| SIAF 2026 Field Visit Offers Insight into Tawau’s Avocado Industry | TFNet CEO Delivers First Keynote Address at ICOP 2026 on Food Security and Nutrition Security | ||||
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| ICOP 2026 participants explore pineapple farms in Camarines Norte | TFNet CEO explores MAHA expo | ||||
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| Expert Member Peter Johnson visits TFNet to discuss upcoming projects | TFNet and CABI to collaborate on banana webinar | ||||
UPCOMING TFNet ACTIVITIES |
PUBLICATIONS |
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18th TFNet Board of Trustees Meeting Banana Webinar with CABI Study visits with partners |
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| Missed our webinars? You can now watch them in our Youtube channel! | We are looking for contributors to our website and newsletters. Contact us at info@itfnet.org. | ||||
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TROPICAL FRUIT NEWS |
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UK: Gene-edited bananas that don’t go brown could hit supermarkets |  |
ALGERIA: Banana prices triple as government targets market manipulation | ||||
| Gene-edited bananas that keep their freshly peeled colour now one step closer to reaching British shoppers. | Banana prices in Algeria have soared to record levels, reaching as much as 1,500 dinars (around $11.20) per kilogramme in some shops. | ||||||
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GUYANA: Suriname bananas banned |  |
CAMEROON: Sales down sharply at largest banana exporter | ||||
| Guyana has imposed a ban on Suriname-imported bananas citing the country’s sufficient quantities of the fruit to satisfy local demand. | Cameroon’s biggest banana exporter, Compagnie Fruitière subsidiary Plantations du Haut Penja (PHP), saw its total revenue fall by almost a third in 2025. | ||||||
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BANGLADESH: Mango season is stretching into the off-season |  |
PHILIPPINES: First commercial shipment of Carabao mangoes to Canada | ||||
| In Chapainawabganj, one of the country’s major mango-producing districts, markets were still bustling with golden-hued Katimon mangoes. | The Philippines has sent its first commercial shipment of fresh Carabao mangoes to Canada, with one metric tonne of the prized fruit arriving in Vancouver. | ||||||
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THAILAND: Chachoengsao floods threaten mango production |  |
TOGO: Mango output tops 35,000 tons in 2025, but only 15% is exported | ||||
| Prolonged flooding in Chachoengsao province is taking a heavy toll on local agriculture, leaving its famous mango orchards on the brink of dying-off. | Togo’s mango production remained above 35,000 tons in 2025 after declining in 2024. | ||||||
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MALAYSIA: Sarawak gets RM80 mln under 13MP to transform pineapple industry |  |
PHILIPPINES: Del Monte expects to stay profitable amid debt restructuring | ||||
| State Minister of Food Industry, Commodity and Regional Development Dato Sri Dr Stephen Rundi Utom said RM15 million would be provided in the first phase this year. | Philippines Del Monte Pacific Ltd. (DMPL) is expected to remain profitable in fiscal year 2027, relying on its Asian operations and restructuring efforts despite cost pressures and a heavy debt load. | ||||||
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MEXICO: Exports banned for avocados grown in orchards located in deforested areas |  |
NEW ZEALAND: Domestic market opportunity for avocados as production grows | ||||
| Mexico’s Ministry of the Environment and Natural Resources has banned exports of avocados grown in orchards in deforested areas, effective October 1. | The New Zealand avocado industry could add more than NZ$30mn in value to the domestic market if consumption increased by 1kg. | ||||||
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MALAYSIA: Sea trial opens door for durian exports |  |
MALAYSIA: Durian glut carries a wider lesson about growth | ||||
| On Sept 19, a vessel carrying two tonnes of Malaysian-grown durians docked in Dalian, China, after a 12-day sea journey. | The Business Times’ recent piece on the challenges facing Malaysia’s durian industry indicates an issue that extends well beyond agriculture. | ||||||
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VIETNAM: Dragon fruit prices plunge to below 30 cents a kilogram |  |
SOUTH AFRICA: Regulatory barriers and capital costs stall dragon fruit growth | ||||
| Dragon fruit prices at the farm gate in the Central Highlands province of Lam Dong have plunged by 53-90% to VND2,000-7,000 causing grief to farmers. | The global dragon fruit market is experiencing rapid expansion but in South Africa, local producers and plant material suppliers face a contrasting reality. | ||||||
EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES AND LATEST RESEARCH |
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Optimizing the greenhouse solar drying conditions for banana slices using response surface methodology (RSM) HKUAg-functionalized cellulose nanofibril aerogels for ethylene regulation and mechanical protection of bananas |
Developmental biology and substrate preference of the quarantine pest, mango pulp weevil Sternochetus frigidus (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) under laboratory conditions Growing Degree Day Targets for Fruit Development of Australian Mango Cultivars II Harvest Windows |
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Risk assessment of thiamethoxam use in maradol papaya (Carica papaya L.) cultivation Salicylic acid delays postharvest ripening and softening in papaya fruit via CpbHLH106-mediated repression of cell wall disassembly and carotenoid accumulation |
Interactive effects of plantlet height and hydroponic medium characteristics on growth of acclimatised pineapple (Ananas comosus (L.) Merr.) plantlets Assessment of Essential Oils as Biopreservative Agents for Artisanal Pineapple (Ananas comosus) Juice |
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Life cycle assessment of plant tissue culture technology: A case study of avocado propagation methods in Australia Implementing Honey Bee Surveillance for the Detection of Avocado Sunblotch Disease in California |
Genomic characterization of Vietnamese durian cultivar Ri6 (Durio zibethinus): a reference-guided scaffold assembly and curated gene resource Unlocking the potential of wild Rambutan (Nephelium lappaceum L.) germplasm through nutritional, bioactives and antioxidant diversity |
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