Philippines expects its rubber industry to improve market share

ERJ staff report (BC)

Quezon City - The Philippines government is confident that the country will soon capitalise on the growing demand for rubber, as the country's production is expected to grow by 3.7 percent in the next ten years.

“We need to take advantage of the present opportunity in rubber and note that the Asia-Pacific is expected to continue to have the lion's share of production,” agriculture secretary Proceso J. Alcala said in a statement issued by the Philippines Information Agency.

The agriculture chief added that the region is projected to account for 90% of the world's rubber production in 2013, with Thailand and Indonesia producing almost 60% of natural rubber.

The Philippines contributes a little over 1% of world production, with most coming from small farm owners with only 3 to 10 hectares of land.

“Although our share is very small at the moment, I am confident that we can become a major player soon because of our vast land area available for production, and the technical expertise available to our rubber planters,” Alcala concluded.