Dunlop under Sumitomo Rubber Industries has announced that it has signed a joint research agreement in Thailand as a project under the Hevea Research Platform in Partnership (HRPP), an international platform for natural rubber research. The other parties to the agreement are the Rubber Authority of Thailand (RAOT), the French Agricultural Research Centre for International Development (CIRAD) and Thailand’s Khon Kaen University and Kasetsart University.
This research project will investigate the effects of “low-frequency tapping systems,” which involves reduced frequency at which the raw material for natural rubber (i.e., latex) is collected (i.e., tapped) from rubber trees, on the quality and internal structure of natural rubber. It will also analyse the challenges faced by rubber farmers in adopting the systems, as well as the factors that could facilitate such adoption. Through this work, we will accelerate efforts toward sustainable natural rubber procurement.
The natural rubber industry in Southeast Asia faces challenges not only from fluctuating rubber prices but also from climate change and labour shortages. In Thailand, in particular, the shortage of workers who tap rubber trees to collect latex has become increasingly severe, with smallholder farmers growing more dependent on an aging workforce and migrant workers. The low-frequency tapping system is a method that reduces the frequency at which latex, the raw material for natural rubber, is collected (tapped) from rubber trees. Because it saves the labour required for tapping operations, it is expected to help address labour shortages in natural rubber-producing regions.
Studies have shown that, by using a plant growth regulator that stimulates latex production, tapping once every three days can achieve effective results in terms of productivity and rubber quality compared with the conventional practice of tapping once every two days. The findings from this research have been published in two peer-reviewed journal articles.
Research is also underway on tapping once every four, six, and ten days; however, the quality and properties of the natural rubber produced under these tapping frequencies have not yet been fully elucidated. Further investigation is also needed into challenges associated with the adoption of such systems, including changes in cost and labour burden for rubber farmers and factors that could facilitate their adoption.
This project will investigate how varying tapping frequencies under the low-frequency tapping system affect the quality and internal structure of natural rubber, as well as the socioeconomic aspects associated with the adoption of such systems.
Thus, the research and development will focus improving productivity and improving working conditions (including at natural rubber processing facilities).