ACCORDING to the Perennial Crops Division under the Department of Agriculture (Head Office), plans are currently being implemented to increase the yield of rubber — an industrial crop — to more than 1,000 pounds per acre as a national production target.
Efforts to achieve this target yield of over 1,000 pounds per acre will help boost Myanmar’s overall rubber production and exports, potentially increasing the country’s export earnings by approximately one billion US dollars.
A responsible official from the Perennial Crops Division stated, “We have conducted research and formulated methods that both entrepreneurs and farmers can apply to increase rubber yields. We are also striving to secure a greater share in the global rubber market. In order to raise productivity, replanting new, high-quality and pure varieties to replace old and senile rubber trees in ageing plantations will further enhance yield levels. These high-quality and pure rubber varieties can be obtained not only from the seed production farms under the Perennial Crops Division of the Department of Agriculture but also from licensed private seed producers”.
During the 2024–2025 financial year, the average yield from tappable rubber plantations was 727.48 pounds per acre. At present, in 2025, Myanmar has over 1.5 million acres of rubber plantations, mainly cultivated in Tanintharyi and Bago Regions, and the Mon, Kayin, and Shan States. Currently, about 75 per cent of Myanmar’s rubber exports go to China, while other export destinations include Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam, India, and Japan. — ASH/KNN
