Hanoi (VNA) – Vietnam’s rubber wood and rubber wood products areexported to over 100 nations and territories, said To Xuan Phuc, a seniorpolicy analyst from Forest Trends, a US-based non-profit organisation.

Each year, Vietnam earns from 1.7-1.8 billion USD fromexporting rubber wood and products, accounting for over 20 percent of the totalexport value of the timber sector. Rubber wood and products are also one of themost important exported commodities of the rubber sector.

Rubber wood is playing an increasingly essential role inboth rubber and timber sectors. In recent years, the rubber sector has suppliedaround 4.5-5 million cu.m of wood with a clear source of origin, as they comefrom over 25-year-old rubber trees which have low latex productivity.

Vietnam now has around 970,000 hectares of rubber trees, ofwhich an average 25,000 hectares produce over 4.5 million cu.m of wood eachyear. Almost all wood exploited belongs to subsidiaries of the Vietnam RubberGroup, which makes Vietnamese rubber wood easily receive Forest StewardshipCouncil (FSC)’s sustainable timber certificate.

Wood with FSC certification will help expand Vietnam’sexport of rubber wood and rubber wood products, Phuc affirmed.

However, to that end, the rubber sector should have aspecific strategy, in which the Vietnam Rubber Group plays the most importantrole, he added.-VNA