PUTRAJAYA: Following a bigger global demand for rubber wood-based furniture, worth RM10 billion, the Malaysian government will embark on a massive replanting exercise for rubber trees.
Announcing the revival of the Malaysian rubber industry, Plantation Industries and Commodities Minister Datuk Seri Mah Siew Keong said this move is set to benefit 450,000 smallholders in the country.
"Our furniture industry needs more rubber wood. The export of our rubber wood-based furniture is worth RM10 billion.
"Replanting the rubber trees will help our smallholders with old rubber trees,"Mah told reporters during a press briefing in his office this evening.
The government will set aside a budget for the replanting programme and the Rubber Industry Smallholders Development Authority (RISDA) has been tasked with applying for the allocation from the Ministry of Finance.
However, he declined to reveal the number.
Mah however did share that 21,000 hectares of rubber trees have been replanted last year.
"But for the first half of this year, only 16,000 hectares of rubber trees have been replanted."
Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia currently produce about 60 per cent of the global rubber output, estimated to be more than 12.7 million tonnes.