MRC Elevated Malaysian Rubber Industry Beyond Rubber Gloves
Malaysia’s rubber quality is towering amongst the competition perhaps because the country had a head start in the industry being among the first nations in the world to start a rubber plantation in 1896.
However, what got the country recognised was not only for the variety of trees that could grow healthily in the unique soil but also the research and development aspects involved in the industry. Malaysia is among the leading nations in the field of R&D and has been innovating technology in rubber for more than 75 years. In fact, some of the key solutions in rubber technology is from the country, for instance, the seismic rubber bearings dampener used for bridges and buildings to absorb vibration from the earthquake is a proud innovation from our local scientist. Japan is a big importer of these contraptions!
Riding on the heels of this successful milestone is what sets the country’s rubber products apart from the others. Emphasising quality, the number one rubber product export which happens to be medical gloves is also riding on the coattails of the country’s legacy- research and development and quality rubber.
Ensuring this standard is maintained and working tirelessly in elevating the Made in Malaysian Rubber story to every part of the world has been mandated to Malaysian Rubber Council (MRC) by the Ministry of Plantation Industries and Commodities.
Among them is the establishment of the Global Funding for Rubber Innovation (GFRI), for researchers from universities, research institutions and industry players to embark on new technology and innovation that will facilitate the advancement of the rubber industry.
Shedding some light on these initiatives and the role MRC will be playing moving forward, caught up with the busy Chief Executive Officer of Malaysian Rubber Council, Hizwan Ahmad who had just returned from promoting Malaysian rubber industry and products in Dubai.
Before the interview could formally begin, Hizwan was elated to share MRC’s accomplishment which includes impressive opportunities to expand rubber products to the Middle East.
The newly minted CEO was energetic in sharing the role he is embracing as top honcho at MRC. Accustomed to challenges in his previous position, he started the interview proudly declaring “MRC contributes greatly to the coffers of the nation, the demand for high-quality rubber products has been increasing and we are not stopping there.” the statement set the tone for the interview session.
Return of Rubber
In the last 2 decades, the rubber industry is transitioning to the higher value manufactured products with downstream exports contributing to 84.4% of total industry exports (rubber and rubber products) in 2020, as compared to 48.9% in 2010.
The export of rubber and rubber products grew at a CAGR of 18.2% for the last 5 years (2016 – 2020), reaching RM48.5 billion in 2020.
The overall industry export increased tremendously by 46.3%, equivalent to RM71 billion last year, in comparison to RM48.5 billion of the same period in 2020.
So how well is Malaysia performing on the overall industry? MRC shared some statistics on export, according to Hizwan, rubber products export increased 50.6%, or about RM61.7billion in 2021, as compared to almost RM41 billion of the same corresponding period in 2020.
“The Latex goods sector remained the largest contributor at 91.9% of rubber products exports in 2021. Rubber gloves remain the highest contributor with export revenue of almost RM54.8 billion, an increase of approximately 55.4% from the previous year,” he said.
“I have to stress the importance of latex goods to Malaysia and how it had ensured the consistency in delivering the best quality,” the CEO added.
Hizwan said that the United States remains the largest market for Malaysian rubber products with a total export of RM22.9 billion in 2021, an increase of 76.5% as compared to the same period in 2020.
He said other key markets have also recorded an encouraging increase in export growth on a year-on-year (YoY) basis, namely Canada by 70.1%, Germany (57.9%), Netherlands (57%), Brazil (52.8%), and Japan (40.5%).
Hizwan said that the Malaysian medical gloves made up a lion’s share of 61.3% of the latex goods sector, which is roughly equivalent to RM24.6 billion. “Now that as most countries are ramping up their vaccination programme, large-scale vaccine deployment is increasing the need for medical gloves such as examination gloves,” he said.
Beyond healthcare
The spectacular success of the industry did not happen by accident but through the various initiatives of the Malaysian Rubber Board (MRB) another agency under the MPIC, notably on the diligent development, a better and newer species of the rubber for producing the “best latex and the best trees” which also makes Malaysian made gloves not only superior but among the best in the world.
This is achieved, with the enhancement and empowerment of the country’s historical research and development in rubber, global marketing & promotional efforts by MRC which constantly aims to increase usage of rubber products in fields beyond healthcare. The work doesn’t stop here, despite Malaysian being the world’s number one in glove production the competition is not very far, Thailand, Vietnam, and China are serious contenders eyeing a piece of the pie. On this Hizwan states “We can’t be complacent with whatever we have now as the neighbouring competitors are catching up.”
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