Bridgestone To Study NR Harvesting In Indonesia

Bridgestone Corp. is exploring joint research projects with Japanese and Indonesian technology partners to develop bioscience-based methods to increase the production yield of natural rubber cultivation.
Bridgestone and the two research bodies—National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST) and the Indonesian Agency for the Assessment and Application of Technology (BPPT - Badan Pengkajian dan Penerapan Teknologi)—are working out the details of the joint research contract that will clarify the role of each party, the tire maker said at a joint press conference in Jakarta.
Bridgestone, which owns two natural rubber (NR) plantations in Indonesia covering nearly 60,000 acres, said its participation in the projects will help foster development of the country’s NR industry in Indonesia, the world’s largest NR producer.
The project—BPPT-AIST-Bridgestone Para Rubber Tree Project—will focus on developing molecular breeding technology to increase the production of latex, Bridgestone said.
The BPPT is a non-departmental government agency under the coordination of the Indonesian Ministry of Research and Technology responsible for government initiatives in the fields of technology assessment and application.
Bridgestone has worked with the BPPT for the past eight years on a number of research projects, including one recently to research measures to prevent disease in Para rubber trees.
The AIST is one of Japan’s largest public research institutions, supporting various industries by conducting research in six diverse fields: environment and energy; life science and biotechnology; information technology and electronics; nanotechnology; materials and manufacturing; metrology and measurement science; and geological survey and applied geoscience.
Bridgestone already is participating in a joint project with the World Agroforestry Centre, which is working to provide small-scale farmers in Sumatra, where Bridgestone has a subsidiary, information and guidance on the cultivation of rubber trees. The parties also will conduct joint research intended to help stabilize the region’s agricultural rubber industry into the future.
Bridgestone’s rubber plantations in Indonesia employ 6,800 workers.
(Tire Business, February 24, 2011)