TOKYO – Yokohama Rubber Co. Ltd. teamed with the Rubber Authority of Thailand (RAOT) for a recent gathering to help natural rubber framers improve quality and productivity.
The Tokyo-based company said the seminar included 50 rubber farmers in the Surat Thani Province of Thailand.
The meeting was an outgrowth of a memorandum of understanding Yokohama signed with RAOT last January to provide economic support and traceability for the natural rubber supply chain, the company said.
Along with the seminar, the memorandum provides a program "that seeks to analyze the issues faced by natural rubber farmers in the Surat Thani area," Yokohama said. The company has a natural rubber processing company, Y.T. Rubber Co. Ltd. in the region.
Farmers each received 500 kilograms of fertilizer for participating in the seminar. The company hopes they will participate in future surveys "on its effect on the physical properties and productivity of natural rubber."
Yokohama Rubber Group also is a founding member of the Global Platform for Sustainable Natural Rubber and has developed its own Procurement Policy for Sustainable Natural Rubber. The group is "endeavoring to achieve" Sustainable Development Goals adopted by the United Nations.
Theses efforts include promotion of procurement of sustainable raw materials, including natural rubber, through meetings that allow for the exchange of information with natural rubber suppliers, the company said.
