Thailand's durian growers are turning to Chinese technology to safeguard one of the country's most lucrative exports, adopting smart cameras, sensors and IoT (Internet of Things) systems to monitor crops in real time and improve overall quality.
With China dominating demand and tightening standards, technology is becoming part of the race to keep Thai durian competitive.
Nuttawoot Chanrueng is president of the Chanrueng Community Enterprise, a durian grower based in east Thailand's Chanthaburi. For generations, his family has worked this durian orchard the same way -- watching the sky, feeling the soil, and reading the trees.
That was the orchard he inherited, but it is no longer the one he farms. Over the same trees, Nuttawoot has built another version, one made of cameras, sensors and data.
"We're taking our parents' wisdom. We haven't abandoned them. We are adapting their methods to suit our needs. We observe how they manage things and convert it into clear, numerical data which can all be displayed graphs like this," said Nuttawoot.
And almost everything powering that change comes from China.
"Firstly, it's easily accessible. Secondly, it's inexpensive. Thirdly, it's easy to use, it's simple to understand because it's like they already solved the problems we needed answers to, and we can just take that and use it. We gradually progressed to the next level, and now we're starting to communicate using AI," said Nuttawoot.
IoT and AI help spot problems earlier, and also create something the export market increasingly wants -- more consistency, more traceability and a clearer record of how the large, spiky fruit was grown.
"Knowing the origin of the food, being able to trace it back to its source, knowing how it was grown, knowing its history is a trend I think is happening everywhere in the world. However, right now, China is placing great importance on this. What will ensure growers meet the standards is where technology comes in," said Kloz Hirunburana, chairman of the Commercial Association for Sustainability of Agriculture.
Almost everything Nuttawoot grows is bound for China, which takes more than 90 percent of Thailand's durian exports. In the first half of 2026 alone, shipments were worth nearly 3.8 billion dollars.
Thai durian growers adopt Chinese smart systems to meet rising demand
