000			01940nam a2200169Ia 4500
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100			_aSawal Abdul Hamid
245		0	_aRubber as a strategic industry
260			_bProceedings of the International Planters Conference 17-20 May 2000. p.479-490 (Reprint)
520			_aIn the Malaysian context, the NR industry plays a strategic role in its contribution to the countrys export earnings and to the livelihood of a large number of smallholders. In addition to this, the downstream rubber and rubberwood industries depend on the upstream sector for their regular raw material supplies. The value-added downstream industries have charted phenomenal growth in the last decade and are expected to expand further. The R&D infrastructural support for the rubber industry developed over the years has enabled the NR industry to excel in all aspects from the production stage to that of end consumer needs. The true extent of the industrys potentials has yet to be fully exploited in terms of product development and derived earnings. There is still room for the expansion of niche markets for specialty rubbers and for by-products for example, of the transgenic rubber tree, which have not been fully tapped commercially. The establishment of rubber as an environmental-friendly and feasible forest specie has been widely accepted and recommended for reforestation purposes. As Malaysia moves into the next millennium, natural rubber would still remain a strategic crop for its role in both the agricultural and the manufacturing sectors. Cross-industry linkages would provide the basis for the development of a more integrated approach to the modernisation of rubber industry in line with changing consumer demands.
650			_aDownstream industries
650			_aEnvironment-friendly
650			_aNatural rubber
650			_aRubber industry
650			_aStrategic crop
942			_cJS
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