Across the Causeway, Malaysia’s creamy sweet bananas are winners

Malaysian bananas are preferred down south, and a quick check by Singapore's The Straits Times (ST) confirms this after doing a blind taste test of bananas and pineapples on its food experts.

After sampling bananas from Malaysia and the Philippines, a food critic with the daily concluded that bananas across the Causeway were "creamy and sweet" while those from the Philippines "tasted very tangy".

The verdict reflects the increasing popularity of Malaysian fruits among Singaporeans, who bought 6% more every year for the last three years, as reported by the paper.

Singapore's Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority said Malaysian fruits, some 50 types of them, account for 35% of the island's total fruit imports.

Watermelon is Singaporeans' top favourite, followed by papaya, durian, banana and pineapple, the daily said.

The reason is obvious, as food consultant Violet Oon tells ST, in the case of the Malaysian bananas which beat their rivals from the Philippines.

Philippine bananas had to be plucked raw so they could make it to Singapore, but no such concerns for Malaysian bananas which is a road trip away.

"Our customers like Malaysian fruit because they are fresher. They also say they can taste a difference in the texture, especially the durian," Woo Jin Shun, who manages a fruit stall in Geyland, told ST.

Further milking Singaporeans' love for Malaysian fruits is the Agrobazaar Malaysia near Beach Road, which was opened last week by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak and his Singapore counterpart Lee Hsien Loong, offering fruits and groceries fresh from farms in Malaysia.

Still, when it comes to pineapples, Singaporeans preferred the ones from the Philippines, because while Malaysia's are juicy, they are "not juicy enough", ST quoted its food critic as saying. – September 3, 2014.