French tire maker supports Indonesian smallholder farmers to produce natural rubber with a series of sustainable rubber plantation practices and a zero-deforestation program
ndonesian rubber smallholder farmers and their families in Jambi are being taught new techniques for natural rubber production from French tire maker Michelin and German carmaker Porsche.
Both companies cooperated through the Committed Actions for Smallholders Capacity Development (Cascade) project in a series of sustainable rubber plantation practices and a zero-deforestation program launched in 2021.
Michelin East Asia and Oceania President Manuel Fafian said that the company had 3,000 employees in Indonesia who were working to develop the future of sustainable practices for growing natural rubber involving 2 million farmers across the country.
“Indonesia plays a significant role for us because it's a laboratory for innovation in natural rubber practices, either in plantations that we own directly or with our partners,” Fafian said during an Asia Pacific media event on Nov. 20.
In 2015, the French company made a move to develop an ambitious and long-term pilot scheme for sustainable rubber plantations in Sumatra and East Kalimantan. The project was carried out by Royal Lestari Utama (RLU), a joint venture between the French company and Indonesian agribusiness giant Barito Pacific Group.
In 2022, Michelin took over RLU as its subsidiary, according to the company website.
Through the RLU, the French company seeks to create around 8,000 direct and indirect jobs while also improving the living conditions of local communities.
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