The main component of the rubber tree is latex, also called “white gold”, because it is an essential material for many technologies. There isn’t a day that passes that we don’t have contact with products made of rubber in our daily activities.

When the country was reunified in 1975 the total area of rubber trees was only 47,000ha. Most of the rubber trees were old, many factories had been devastated and the machines were damaged and obsolete.

The Government had plans to restore and develop the rubber sector which has experienced great changes since the Vietnam Rubber Corporation was established in 1995 (in April 2007 the Vietnam Rubber Corporation became the Vietnam Rubber Industry Group).

Particularly, the shifting to the market economy has attracted other economic sectors to invest in rubber trees. The rubber sector has become one of the spearhead industries in the national economy, with different forms of businesses, including State-owned (great landowner), local and military rubber companies; joint-venture companies; joint-stock companies and small rubber farms established by individuals.

On its path of development, the Vietnamese rubber sector has paid attention to and made appropriate investment in human resource training. In 1978, the Rubber Mechanical Worker School was established. In January, 2008 it became the Rubber Industrial College and now the College trains 3,500 students a year in 20 related

Specialized scientists at the Vietnam Rubber Research Institute in Binh Duong Province have studied and dealt with issues relating to rubber trees, including new strains, soil classification, farming technique and modern technology in exploiting and processing the latex.

Particularly, in recent years, the Institute has undertaken many projects on waste water treatment and provided advice for the processing plants to build standard treatment systems. Additionally, it has implemented international programmes on producing the products of high economic value.

After many ups and downs, Vietnamese rubber trees have become an important basis for many solutions on hunger elimination and poverty reduction, ecological environment protection and social security.

Progressing with the “white gold”

The main component of the rubber tree is latex, also called “white gold”, because it is an essential material for many technologies. There isn’t a day that passes that we don’t have contact with products made of rubber in our daily activities.

Few people remember the old verses about the wretched life of the mistreated workers at the rubber plantations in the past. Now, coming to the plantations or processing plants, visitors will see brilliant faces of young healthy workers.

Over the past two years, they have had an average monthly income of 4-5 million VND. At some companies, for example Tay Ninh Rubber Company and Phu Rieng Rubber Company, the workers have an income of over six million VND.

Nguyen Hoa Lap at Group 1 of Go Dau Farm in Tay Ninh said happily: “My wife and I are rubber workers and we earn over 10 million VND a month”.

Many families of workers have three motorbikes, including two motorbikes for the couple to go to work and a new stylist motorbike for travel on holidays. Some families have cars.

The production and trade efficiency of the companies have increased steadily, helping improve considerably the welfare of workers. Social assurance, health assurance, sports and artistic activities are maintained regularly, helping stabilize the spiritual and material life of the workers.

The development of rubber trees at small plantations has gradually reduced the difficulties facing many families of ethnic people in sparse and remote areas and brought a better, even affluent life for the locals.

With only a small number of hectares of rubber trees for exploiting latex, the ethnic people can earn hundreds of millions of VND a year by selling the latex to the big companies.

The most impressive story is about billionaire A-ma Ben in Dak Lak. Possessing 85ha of rubber trees, his family earns an average income of 1.5 billion a year. He has created jobs for 57 people, helped 30 households get out of poverty and donated 60 million VND to the local authority and 640m2 of land for building community houses.

Apart from latex, old rubber trees, which are cut down for reforestation, also yield a considerable income. In the past, rubber timber was used as firewood or for making packages. Now it is a precious source of material to produce household utensils and furniture, especially at a time when other species of woods are becoming exhausted. Every year, rubber timber-processing companies earn hundreds of billions of VND, creating jobs for tens of thousands of labourers. Rubber trees are useful in protecting the environment, covering the bare land, fighting against erosion, protecting and maintaining the humidity of the soil and shielding the ecological areas. When the trees shed their leaves, the floor of the rubber forest is covered with a thick layer of leaves, creating a valuable source of organic substance for the soil. Under the canopy of rubber trees, cows and goats are reared, yielding considerable revenue.

Looking to the future

General Director of the Viet Nam Rubber Industry Group Le Quang Thung said: “The focus of the Group in the coming years is to grow and re-cultivate 42,000ha of rubber trees, including 12,000ha in Tay Bac, 10,000ha in Tay Nguyen (the Central Highlands), 10,000ha in Laos and 10,000ha in Cambodia .

The Group strives to increase its plantation’s productivity to two tonnes/ha by 2010. Under its development strategy for 2010, it will build a structure of products, including industrial, agricultural and service products, with rubber as the main product, promote the processing industry and reduce gradually the ratio of exported rubber material.

By 2015, the Group will manage directly 500,000ha of rubber trees (at home and abroad) and develop other multi-purpose areas, with the aim of fully tapping the existing source of materials, increasing the value of products and other advantages”.

In reality, Viet Nam is reducing the ratio of exported rubber as raw material and increasing the products used in the industries and civil services. The products of Ben Thanh Joint-Stock Company in Ho Chi Minh City, such as the force-resistant conveyor belts, driving belts and others earn the company hundreds of billions of VND a year. Many companies inside and outside the Group have made great investment in producing tyres of different categories, sport and medical appliances, etc….

Nguyen Hong Phu, Director of Phu Rieng Company, a strong unit in the Group said: “During the process of development, the Group’s member companies always invest in infrastructure development, creating a new model of modernizing the agriculture in rural areas, forming the socio-economic centres, towns and communal streets in the locality, creating jobs and improving the life of local people, especially ethnic people in remote and border areas. The development of the rubber trees not only serves the socio-economic targets but also has political, security and defence significance”.

His words can be considered as a complete assessment on the potential and prospect of the Vietnamese rubber sector in national renovation process.

Hevea Brasiliensis rubber trees, which originate from Amazon basin, South America have existed in Vietnam since 1897. The man who brought the seeds to Ben Cat in Dong Nai and Suoi Dau Station of Pasteur Institute in Nha Trang to grow was Raul, a French maritime pharmacist. Then, the first rubber plantation with 400 breeding seedlings was established. As of 1920, the rubber area increased to 7,000ha with an output of 3,000 tonnes. The area increased to 138,000ha in 1945 and the highest output reached 77,000 tonnes in 1942.

In 2007, the Vietnamese rubber sector reached a turnover of 15,692.950 billion VND (from rubber, stocks and other services), obtained a profit of 5,201 billion VND and contributed 1,482.398 billion VND to the State budget (Nguyen Hong Phu – Director of Phu Rieng Company). (VNN)