Nine Crumb Rubber Manufacturers In Riau Halt Production

Pekanbaru, Riau, Aug 21 (Antara) - Nine of the 15 crumb rubber manufacturers in Riau province have stopped production due to dearth of raw material supplies, according to the local plantation office. "Only six of the 15 crumb rubber producers continue their production, while nine others are still open but have stopped production," Head of the plantation product management and marketing section at the Riau provincial plantation office Ferry HC Ernaputra stated here on Thursday. Currently, the nine crumb rubber producers only bought crude rubber from smallholder growers and sold it back to other producers that were still operating, he reported. "The factories claimed they did not receive adequate raw materials, but they continue to operate," he pointed out. According to data revealed by the plantation office, the province had 500,651 hectares of rubber plantation in 2012. Nearly 96 percent of it is smallholder rubber plantation. Most of the rubber trees were relatively old, so the production continued to fall, he explained. Nearly 25 percent of Riau residents are employed in the rubber plantation sector, he stated. The plantation office had encouraged the local authorities to rejuvenate aging rubber trees. Moreover, it had also spurred the creation of more rubber marketing units as part of its efforts to revitalize the agricultural sector, he added.