Economics and market potential of bamboo for shoots and engineered products in the Philippines

摘要

Bamboo has been widely used for traditional purposes. Bamboo products are also good substitutes for wood products but they have not been widely accepted. A study was undertaken to determine the potential demand for engineered bamboo and bamboo shoots and to compute the costs and returns of adopting various treatments implemented in the Ilocos Norte, Capiz and Bukidnon sites of the bamboo project funded by the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR).rnBamboo shoot production is not pursued on a large-scale basis in the Philippines as there is no canning factory in the country that can absorb production of this perishable product. Furthermore, the pungent taste and odour of the shoots, availability of other vegetables and relatively low price of alternatives affect the acceptability of this product. Better technologies need to be developed to address the sensory issues if the production and utilisation of shoots are to be promoted. Awareness of the significance of bamboo shoots as an alternative or additional food source must be improved through information campaign drives such as cooking festivals and other extension strategies.rnThe high cost of production and transport impedes the adoption of relevant technologies in the engineered bamboo industry. In addition, competition from China limits local incentive to transform bamboo culms (poles) into engineered products. Nevertheless, potential exists for engineered bamboo products to be accepted in the foreign market. There needs to be an integrated approach to the utilisation of culms to minimise wastage, and linkages throughout the production-consumption chain must be enhanced.rnBenefit-cost analyses showed that, in terms of optimising conditions for clump productivity over a prolonged period, mulching and fertiliser applications could be forgone, but irrigation provided good financial returns at sites where rainfall is a limiting factor. However, optimal management regimes are highly site-dependent.rnTo promote bamboo as a sustainable industry in the Philippines, several sectoral policies that constrain the use of bamboo need to be reviewed.