Rubber estate smallholders and rubber tappers may expect better returns for the commodity soon under a new price mechanism set to be implemented by the Malaysian Rubber Board (MRB).
The board will issue a daily price reference for rubber sold at farm level, which is expected to give smallholders and rubber tappers between 20 sen and 30 sen more for every kg.
Plantation Industries and Commodities Minister Datuk Seri Douglas Uggah Embas said this proposal was passed at the Cabinet meeting last Friday,
“We have conducted studies and found that rubber tappers and smallholders now had to go through various layers of dealers.
“(This affected) the profit margin which is seemed to (have) distorted the actual price that the rubber tappers should be getting.
“The price (of rubber) has now dropped to a critical level so we want a remuneration (for smallholders and rubber tappers) that will be able to keep them continuing tapping rubber,” he said after launching the MRB Licensing and Permit Regulations 2014 book here yesterday.
Under the proposed mechanism, smallholder co-operatives are expected to purchase the rubber from estate smallholders and rubber tappers at or better than the reference price listed by the MRB.