Export Market Potential of Bamboo and Rattan Products

Abstract

At present hard-wood logs and finished products are scarce. Products made of bamboo and rattan, in the form of basketwork, wickerwork, furnitures and others are produced to take the place of these hard-woof products. Those kinds of product become popular exporting commodities in the world market. So the feasibility study of the potential of export market for bamboo/rattan products is deemed necessitated in order to understand the existing situation, manufacturing structure, exporting, problems, and obstacles if any. The factors impacting the change or expansion in Thailand’s and World export market will also be analysed and policy guidelines and measures for expanding export of the main products recommended. The study utilized secondary international trade data and gathers primary data from 16 exporters and 30 non-exporting producers. The period studied spans between 1977 and 1987. The study finds bamboo/rattan products to have great potential for exporting both in Thailand and on World market. Rattan furniture is found to have good exporting prospect for Thailand, but the scarcity of its raw material will become a big problem, and without proper rectification, the export will come to a halt in 1992. Apart from that, the other problems Thailand is now experiencing, gathered from interviewing the exporters, are: low quality of raw materials, low standard of product, unpopular product design, poor packing, low level of government support, red tape and complicated export procedures, high tax burden, etc. In order to enhance the prospect of exporting in the future , the followings are recommended : promoting the production of raw materials, selection good species of bamboo and rattan for cultivation, imposing strict control of product standards, redesigning products which better correspond to the need of foreign market, and implifying export procedures. If the above recommendations are all implemented, Thailand’s export market will be more promistng, particularly in EEC, U.S.A., and Japan.