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MANILA, Philippines – Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) Secretary Juan Miguel “Mitch” Cuna on Friday announced that the DENR-Ecosystems Research and Development Bureau (DENR-ERDB) is strengthening the decades-old Rattan Gene Bank in Bukidnon to help secure a sustainable supply of quality planting materials for the country’s rattan industry.
Cuna said the move comes amid an 18.1 percent jump in the Value of Production Index for wood, bamboo, cane and rattan articles in April, a surge that has intensified pressure on raw material sources across the archipelago.
The plan, Cuna said, bodes well for the directive of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. to expand livelihood opportunities tied to ecosystem protection, a push that has placed greater attention on nature based industries across the archipelago.
Operated by DENR-ERDB’s Forest and Wetland Research, Development and Extension Center (FWRDEC), the enhanced gene bank will produce quality planting materials that can be used in establishing sustainable rattan plantations, helping strengthen the supply base for furniture makers and handicraft producers while reducing pressure on wild rattan populations.
