Fact Sheet: Rubber

Local Name: Balete

Description

Hevea brasiliensis, the rubber tree or Pará rubber tree, is a medium to large tropical tree in the
Euphorbiaceae (spurge family) native to South America (the Brazilian and Bolivian region covering Amazon
and Orinoco river basins), which produces a milky sap (latex) that is the primary source of natural rubber.
Although some wild-grown trees are still tapped for their sap, most commercial production now comes
from rubber tree plantations in southern and southeastern Asia (including Indonesia, Malaysia, and Sri
Lanka), as well as western Africa.
Other species that contain latex that may be used for natural rubber production include gutta-percha
(Palaquium gutta), rubber fig (Ficus elastica), and Panama rubber tree (Castilla elastica), although none are
used to the same extent as H. brasiliensis.
The rubber tree may grow to 30 m (100 ft) or more where it occurs in the wild, although plantation trees
generally reach heights of around 17 m (60 ft). The thick, leathery leaves, up to 60 cm (24 in) long, are
compound, with 3 elliptic leaflets, each with entire (unserrated) margins and prominent secondary veins.
The inflorescence is a many-flowered panicle (a much-branched cluster), up to 16 cm (6.5 in) long, with a
small white petal-less female flower in the center, surrounded by small 5-lobed or dissected male flowers.
The fruit is a large ellipsoidal capsule, usually 3-valved and 5 to 6 cm in diameter (2 to 2.5 in), containing
gray-brown, flattened ellipsoidal seeds.
The sap, which can be harvested from the inner bark when the tree reaches 6 or 7 years, is obtained by
tapping—cutting the bark and letting the sap drip out, then coagulated. Amazonian natives had long used
the rubber that naturally forms from the latex, including to make balls used in early games, but the
untreated rubber would become soft and sticky in the heat, and brittle in the cold. This problem was
remedied by the chemical process known as vulcanization, developed by Charles Goodyear in the 1840s,
which allows rubber to remain firm but flexible in all temperatures. Vulcanization allowed natural rubber
products to become commercially successful, and promoted commercial plantations in tropical areas in
Asia and Africa.

In 2010, 11 countries accounted for 92% of global production of natural rubber from H. brasiliensis:
Cambodia; China; India, Indonesia; Malaysia; Papua New Guinea; Philippines; Singapore; Sri Lanka;
Thailand; and Vietnam. Natural rubber is not produced in significant amounts in its native South America,
because trees there are widely affected by South American leaf blight, caused by the fungus Microcyclus
ulei (Ascomycota).

Synthetic rubber, which is processed from petroleum and was developed during the 1920s through 1940s,
now makes up roughly 70% of the rubber manufactured worldwide, but natural rubber continues to have
important uses in manufacturing and textiles.

(ANRPC 2012, Bailey et al. 1976, Encyclopedia Britannica 1993, Flora of China 2008, Wikipedia 2012)

 Rubber grows best at tropical places with temperatures ranging from 20- 28°C and aw well distributed
annual rainfall.
 It grows on almost all types of soil provided that the drainage is adequate.
  Mature rubber trees are usually 20-30 meters high, with graceful upwards-extending branches and a
relatively slim trunk.
 Depending on conditions, the rubber would usually take 5-6 years to reach ‘maturity’ when tappers
could start collecting the latex or the milky sap.
 Yield is around 1-1.8 t/ha/year dry rubber

Source: http://eol.org/pages/1142979/overview

Varieties/Clones of Rubber in the Philippines

Clone Source Bush Immature Stage Mature Stage Dry

Nursery Rubber
Yield
kg/ha/yr.
RRIM 600 Light green leaves, Slow growing with less Many average size 2,102.54
(Rb-99- convex, obovate, vigour and erect, branches grow
01)CLASS I leaflets are smooth stem. Conical straight upward.
separated, slightly storey, is open with Leader is lost. Many
glossy. well arranged petioles. light laterals are not
Leaf stories are far shed, resulting to a
separated but some congested crown.
are continuous Canopy is dense and
particularly on short light green. Late self-
stalks. Late branching pruning occurs but in
occurs at this stage exposed areas light
and these are branches may appear
alternately placed but drooping.
they appear clustered.
RRIM Long, oval, boat- Broad open storey on Low fan-shaped crown 1,645.40
712CLASS II shaped, dark green thick petioles. Long of average density.
leaves. Leaflets are internodes. Stem is Flat clustered
separated (RRIM dark brown with quite branches are later
605 type). prominent leafscars. self-pruned leaving
Colletotrichum leaf Flat branching with bumpy scars. Leader
disease incidence regular clusters. gives way to crooked,
is moderate. Leader is present but average size, and
later dissolved due to leaning branches.
forking at the upper Renewed bark is
region. knobby and girthing
rate is average. Latex
is yellow.
RRIM Leaves are Leaning, soft stem Dense conical canopy
901CLASS II obovate, tapering with average vigour. with light branches
towards the base, Early pruning is that are later self-
and wider towards necessary to balance pruned leaving a high
the apex with dark conical canopy of set crown. Good vigor
green wavy leaf average density. but with lesser girth
margin. Broad Branches are well- increment after
 leaves are arranged (PB 5/51 tapping. Canopy is
touching while type) with a persistent healthy and balanced.
smaller leaves are leader. Lower Bark of average
separated. branches are drooping thickness is sensitive
and picks up vigour to wounding but
after three (3) years renewed after some
resulting in high time.
percentage of
tappability.

PB 217 Light green, Erect and slightly Balanced conical fan- 2,161.17
(Rb 99- obovate V-shaped ‘bent”, and dark shaped crown with
04)CLASS I leaflets are brown in colour with regular flat clustered
touching each smooth leafscars. light branches. Same
other. Close Branches are flat (PB sized branches are few
stories and 5/5 type) with regular and acute-angled to
sometime petioles clusters. Leader is the leader. Crown is
are short and maintained. high set, light and
clustered. wind resistant. Latex is
pale yellow.
PB 235 Dark green, Vigorous clone with Vigorous tree with 2,241.74
(Rb 99- elliptical boat- broad well-separated semi-erect branches.
02)CLASS II shaped leaves with stories. Petioles are Conical crown with
sharp tips. Leaflets thick and light colored. leader maintained up
are touching each The stems are slightly to maturity. Light
other. Older leaves crooked and knobby laterals are self-
located at the with prominent pruned, resulting in
lower portion of leafscars. Flat clear straight trunk
the plant are branches curve that produces good
convex. upward. Few timber. Latex is pale
yellow.
PB 260 Dark green, broad, Close conical stories. Conical crown is high- 2,370.00
oval, and boat- Petioles are thick and set. Early self-pruning
shaped leaves. well clustered. Smooth occurs. Some have
Leaflets are straight stem. acute secondary
touching each Clustered flat leader. Erect and
other. Leaf branches along leader. smooth trunk,
margins are wavy. producing good
timber. Thin virgin and
renewable bark. Latex
is pale yellow.
USM 1 Light green, oval- Vigorous clone with Vigorous tree with 2,498.15
(Rb 99-03) shaped leaves with broad dense leaf erect and smooth
separated leaflets. storey. Stem is slightly trunk. Moderate
bent. brown bast incidence.
Early self pruning.
Erect and smooth
trunk.
PB 311CLASS Leaves are light Balanced conical fan- Vigorous tree with 1,590.74
II green, convex, shaped crown with erect, smooth trunk
few heavy same-sized and unbalanced
 obovate and well branches. Crown is branching. Self-
separated. light and wide. pruning occurs early.

RRIM 628 Leaves are light Slow growing with well Branches are average 1,504.60
green, oval-shaped arranged petioles. Leaf in size. Canopy is
and glossy. stories are well dense and light green.
separated. Self-pruning occurs
late.

Source: https://www.pinoybisnes.com/agri-business/rubber-production-guide/

Uses
 Tires: This one is obvious! Today, automobile tires are made up of 50% natural rubber, and tires
used for aircraft are made out of 100% natural rubber. The reason for this is that the properties
of natural rubber make it optimal for creating “radial” tires, a design which emerged in the
1970’s and is far superior to its predecessor.
 Other Automobile Uses: Natural rubber is used to create seals and various forms of padding for
a number of automobile parts. For example, it pads the brakes and is in the seals of the
windows and windshields.
 Airbags: Rubber is used to produce airbags that protect riders from injury after high-impact
accidents have occurred. Hopefully you will never have to see this for yourself, but it is good to
know that the protection is there.
 Flooring: Many gyms, commercial kitchens, animal shelters, and even playgrounds are choosing
rubber as the material from which to create their flooring. Rubber provides a surface which
prevents fatigue, provides padding, and is both slip-resistant and waterproof. It is easy to
maintain and is long-lasting, making it an ideal option for flooring for those who are mindful of
efficiency and economy.
 Clothing: In its fibrous form, natural rubber forms elastic which is used to produce tight-fitting
and expandable clothing such as wetsuits and cycling shorts.
 Natural Rubber Gaskets: Gaskets are used in between two or more mechanical parts, usually to
prevent leakage or to fill any sort of irregular space between them. Gaskets are an important
part to the performance of any type of machinery.
 Erasers: Joseph Priestly, in 1770, discovered that the product could “rub” away marks made
from pencils on paper, thus giving the material its name and sparking the production of erasers.
 Ancient Uses: Ancient Mesoamerican civilizations used rubber to waterproof shoes and to
create bottles. Not only that, but it was used to create a ball in a game which is very similar to
modern-day basketball, soccer, and football.
 Adhesives and Coatings: In its latex form, rubber can be used as an adhesive or a protective
coating for many surfaces.
 Nozzles: What better way to spray rubber latex than through a nozzle that is also made of
rubber? Creating nozzles with rubber allows for them to spray more substances and are more
durable than other spray nozzles.
 Products Made from a Natural Rubber Sheet: The sheets can be cut and customized into a
number of different products. Hoses, belts, and seals are among these products.
 Ducting: Rubber can be turned into a variety of ducting products.
 Rubber Gloves: This has been and perhaps always will be the preferred method of keeping our
hands safe and sanitary.
  Anti-vibration: Rubber can be turned into pads or mounts for machinery to ensure that
vibration does not affect its performance. It can also be used to produce soundproofing
materials.
 Lining: Rubber is an optimal substance for lining bins, chutes, and mixers that are used
industrially. Its protective qualities such as being water-proof, resilient, and am insulator make
it ideal for these applications.
 Flotation: Rubber produces things such as inner tubes which serve to keep surfaces and even
people afloat. Look no further than your local water park for this, but keep in mind that there
are commercial uses for inner tubes as well!

Source: http://www.rubbercal.com/sheet-rubber/uses-of-natural-rubber/

Production Cycle/Stages Of Harvest

Many plants produce latex, which oozes from cuts and injuries as a milky sap. Special cells called laticifers
produce latex. In general, latexes have a biological function in herbivore defense and/or laticifers are a
dumping ground for metabolic by-products or reservoirs of biosynthetic materials. All latexes are emulsions,
aqueous suspensions of insoluble materials which can include alkaloids, terpenes, resins, phenolics, proteins,
sugars, and long-chain hydrocarbons. Not all latexes are elastic; those that are contain long-chain
hydrocarbons. Some latexes are collected for their resins or their alkaloids (opium).
Rubber is a coagulated, elastic latex. Plants that produce elastic latexes are largely neotropical. Commercial
rubber is produced from latex of Hevea brasiliensis. The water proofing and elastic properties (rubber balls) of
various rubber producing plants were discovered by native American cultures, the Aztecs or earlier
mesoamericans, and South American tribes.
Orginially collected from wild trees in South America, now 90% of rubber production comes from plantations
of rubber trees in Southeast Asia.

 The world natural rubber production reached 8.34 M Mt in 2004 where Thailand (36.33%), Indonesia
(21.49%), Malaysia (11.99%) and India (8.32%)are among the top producers.
 Production in China and Vietnam are also increasing at 0.55 M mt and 0.39 M mt respectively
 The Philippines produced 88,000 Mt dry rubber in 2004, which accounts for 1.06% of world production.
 In terms of area Region IX has the highest share at 40.58% followed by Region 12 (28.73%) and Region
11 (8.35%).
 The total area planted to rubber in the country is 82,314 hectares in 2004 (BAS).
 The recommended clones are RRIM 600 (Rb 99-01), RRIM 712, RRIM 901, PB 217 (Rb 99-02), PB 235
(Rb 99-04). PB 260, USM 1 (Rb 99-03), PB 330, and PB 311.
Global Production Of Rubber
Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia are the largest producers of natural rubber in the world. Figures from
the World Trade organisation posted on www.thailand.com indicate the following worldwide natural rubber
production in 1998.

Country Production (Tons)

Thailand 2,065,000
Indonesia 1,680,000
Malaysia 866,000
India 591,000
China 450,000
Africa 334,000
Vietnam 219,000
Latin America 112,000
Sri Lanka 96,000
Philippines 64,000
Others 113,000
Total 6,590,000

Natural rubber comes from the Havea brasiliensis tree, which grows in tropical regions. They typically reach
20-30 metres in height on rubber plantations, and are able to produce commercial quantities of latex at about
7 years of age, depending on climate and location. Economical life span of a rubber tree is between 10 to 20
years, but may extend past 25 years in the hands of a skilled tapper and bark consumption.

It should be noted that latex is different to tree sap.

Source: https://www.azom.com/article.aspx?ArticleID=3580
 Philippine Production
The production of rubber is shown on the data where we can see the changing number of production
of rubber. We gather all the top 5 Regions and Top 5 provinces which is highly rubber producer in the country.
In 2007-2016, we can see how much the rubber production is changing by Region and Province. At times, the
production of rubber amplify and sometimes condensed.

Rubber:Top 5 Producing Regions,2007-2016

Average
2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016
Rubber (cuplump) Growth Rate
PHILIPPINES 404,071.68 411,043.52 390,961.52 395,237.15 425,704.83 442,998.16 444,817.70 453,052.48 398,136.64 362,625.97 -1.01%
..ZAMBOANGA 175,054.38 173,715.12 164,830.11 171,125.68 188,933.99 188,854.67 195,357.03 191,609.82 176,771.93 164,413.87 -0.55%
..SOCCSKSARGEN 157,134.48 164,005.22 152,963.15 149,964.88 158,994.66 169,745.42 172,953.92 173,976.51 126,264.18 102,376.47 -3.93%
..CARAGA 15,420.35 15,540.10 14,686.12 14,618.65 15,247.66 16,610.83 10,030.83 10,509.08 12,006.01 12,845.24 -0.62%
..NORTHERN MINDANAO 10,183.45 10,078.92 10,168.59 10,198.86 10,719.98 10,791.66 11,261.00 11,872.60 12,141.90 12,402.17 2.24%
..DAVAO REGION 16,375.64 16,181.11 15,844.40 15,795.44 16,109.86 16,070.10 8,240.80 10,848.94 11,406.87 11,028.15 -1.90%
Others 29,903.38 31,523.05 32,469.15 33,533.64 35,698.68 40,925.48 46,974.12 54,235.53 59,545.75 59,560.07 8.09%
374,168.30 379,520.47 358,492.37 361,703.51 390,006.15 402,072.68 397,843.58 398,816.95 338,590.89 303,065.90

Source: PSA
The top producing provinces are Zamboanga Sibugay with 362,625.97 followed by North Cotabao with
119,011.33. Basilan which is in the 3rd ranked, recorded significant increase in production with 9.45% from
2007-2016. Zamboanga del Sur with 21,953.44 which is in the 4th ranked followed by Zamboanga del Norte
with 21,433.15 which is contiguous to Zamboanga del Sur.
Rubber:Top 5 Producing Province,2007-2016
Average
2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016
Rubber (cuplump) Growth Rate
PHILIPPINES 404,071.68 411,043.52 390,961.52 395,237.15 425,704.83 442,998.16 444,817.70 453,052.48 398,136.64 362,625.97 -1.01%
....Zamboanga Sibugay 89,516.29 116,598.69 122,142.16 126,915.29 143,143.06 141,419.54 145,744.71 143,084.22 128,280.57 119,011.33 3.80%
....North Cotabato 156,387.83 163,219.94 152,154.23 149,126.30 158,181.15 168,936.12 172,103.02 173,110.31 125,428.27 101,599.09 -3.96%
....Basilan 25,913.76 30,863.79 31,917.51 32,941.03 34,981.24 40,048.10 45,305.34 51,716.00 57,519.00 57,596.50 9.45%
....Zamboanga del Sur 69,289.59 30,518.54 25,684.56 24,871.74 25,601.85 26,048.28 27,744.48 25,775.42 24,900.59 21,953.44 -9.57%
....Zamboanga del Norte 14,527.55 25,049.59 15,398.59 17,700.65 18,432.64 19,460.01 19,912.00 20,668.34 21,485.49 21,433.15 7.60%
Others 48,436.66 44,792.97 43,664.47 43,682.14 45,364.89 47,086.11 34,008.15 38,698.19 40,522.72 41,032.46 -1.15%

Source: PSA
The Top province who produced the highest is Zamboanga Sibugay with 119,011.33 in the year 2016 followed
by North Cotabato with 101,599.09. Basilan which comes 3rd with 57,596.50 which increased than the last year
production. Zamboanga del Sur with 21,433.15 comes 4th followed by Zamboanga del Norte with 21433.15
comes 5th.