1. Read both the growth story and the competitive reality
DITP’s market report, published on 11 June 2026, estimates that China’s frozen-fruit market could reach RMB 58.73 billion in 2026. It describes B2B as 68.7% of the market and B2C as 31.3%, showing that the opportunity extends beyond supermarket fruit packs to ingredients for beverages, bakeries, restaurants, food manufacturers and dessert brands.
Trade data require careful interpretation. Citing Global Trade Atlas, DITP reports that China imported US$478.98 million and 71,937.16 tonnes of HS 081190 products from Thailand in 2025, down 26.12% and 24.95% respectively. Value in January–April 2026 was down 56.10% year on year. Because HS 081190 includes multiple frozen fruits and nuts, it is a category-level signal rather than a pure frozen-durian statistic.
2. Design the job the product must do
B2B buyers purchase process performance as well as taste. A beverage chain may need pulp that blends consistently and supports a target cost per cup. A bakery may prioritise flavour concentration, moisture and behaviour during baking. A restaurant or dessert factory may require defined piece size and thawing time. The use case should therefore come first, followed by cultivar, maturity, cut format, pack size and thawing method.
B2C value is different: convenience, portion size, cleanliness, thawing guidance and the experience after opening. One pack for every channel is likely to misalign both cost and quality with the real job.
3. The cold chain is part of product quality
Codex CXC 8-1976 provides a code of practice for processing and handling quick-frozen foods, covering raw-material preparation, freezing, storage, transport, distribution and temperature monitoring. Its central logic is continuous quality management across the chain, not inspection only at the factory gate.
Commercial specifications should therefore define measurable control points such as pre-freezing quality, freezing process, lot information, pack integrity, temperature records and post-thaw acceptance criteria. Shelf life, temperature and performance claims must come from testing of the actual product and process rather than from generic industry figures.
4. A lower-risk market pilot
A disciplined pilot starts with one channel and one use case—for example, a beverage ingredient or a single-serve consumer cup. Two or three specifications can then be tested with real users under blind conditions, measuring flavour, post-thaw texture, preparation time, yield loss and cost per serving, alongside a trial shipment on the intended route.
Only after a specification wins should the team scale product documentation, thawing instructions, pack format and lot-level traceability. This turns a broad market opportunity into a proposition a buyer can evaluate without investing or making claims before evidence exists.
- Choose one customer group and one use problem
- Define specifications and post-thaw acceptance criteria
- Test product, shipment and cost per unit of use
- Confirm destination rules and documents with the importer
