KOTTAYAM, India—India is in "urgent need" to increase natural rubber cultivation as demand continues to rise in the country, according to Rubber Board Chairman Sawar Dhanania.
In a press conference Aug. 18, Dhanania warned that the current production levels will not be sufficient to meet the consumer industry's demand as consumption is expected to reach 1.5 million metric tons by 2025-26.
This compares to 1.24 million consumed during the financial year 2021-22, which was up 12.9 percent compared to 1.1 million registered a year before.
During 2021-22, India's NR production improved to 775,000 tons, up 8.4 percent from the 715,000 tons recorded the year before.