Year: 2022 Vol.: 71 No.: 2
Authors: Claire Nova O. Abdulatip and Honey Fe G. Boje
Abstract:
The quality of latex from rubber trees is determined by the amount of Dry Rubber Content (DRC). Mainly, the price of the cup lumps is directly dependent on the DRC, commonly determined through visual observation by rubber dealers. Thus, no standard method is used by rubber buyers in the industry for farm gate determination of cup lump DRC. But the Philippines used a 25% conversion rate from cup lumps to dry rubber; however, other member countries used 50%. Therefore, this paper addresses the conversion rate of dry rubber content of rubber cup lumps in the Philippines. “On-site validation” was conducted by collecting data from selected rubber processing plants in major rubber producing provinces, namely: Zamboanga Sibugay, North Cotabato, and Bukidnon. Secondary data, such as cup lumps and crumb rubber volume from 2017 to 2019, were collected and analyzed using Percentage Ratio Comparison. Results indicated that the DRC of cup lumps to dry rubber was more than 50%.
Keywords: Rubber, Conversion Rate, On-Site Validation