An expert in farming, forestry and fisheries techniques says there's huge opportunity in the Pacific to make a quality niche product out of old coconut trees.
Andrew Campbell heads the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research and was a presenter at last month's inaugural Pacific Week of Agriculture.
Last week we heard his views on the agricultural prospects for the region.
He's also very confident about the prospects for broadening returns from fisheries and forestry.
Professor Campbell says his research centre's been looking at new Scandinavian technology which could bring benefits for the region.
Photo: 123rf
Transcript
ANDREW CAMPBELL: It is a technology in terms of a spindle-less lathe, so it is a lathe that can use small diameter timbers, like old coconut palms - of which there are way too many in the Pacific - that are senescent or in poor condition, and you can turn them into a very attractive fine veneer that then can be used for furniture products or attractive timber panelling or whatever. So I think it is about looking for niche Pacific products that can be marketed as such and looking for those market niches where the Pacific has something distinctive to offer and then you can do something really interesting - value added products, so we are looking at this improved wood processing for Pacific timbers being rolled out across a number of countries.
DON WISEMAN: Is this underway anywhere in the Pacific?
AC: Yes it's already underway, I am pretty sure in Vanuatu and also in Fiji, so our forestry programme is looking at extending that work through a number of countries. The fisheries work with pearls, or giant clams as well. Again you can have distinctive products and services that you can market as such. The Pacific won't be able to compete on price against the big boys in the commodity markets, it's about distinctive products that can be viable in the long term from this part of the world.
DW: One of the other things with forestry is there has been some small attempt at plantation forestry in the Pacific, but not a lot of it, yet we know that trees do grow quite quickly and there should be a lot more emphasis shouldn't there?
AC: I'll declare a bias here. I am a forester by training, but I see enormous opportunity. We have achieved very significant gains in sandalwood productivity within Vanuatu, with just good old fashioned selection of the best varieties and then propagating them through them seed orchards and then you find that if you are just collecting seed from the best trees we can get rapid increases in growth rates and in heartwood production which is where the money is. Whitewood is an extraordinary tree. Four or five metres tall in 18 months, these amazing growth rates that you are achieving, and it's good timber. So we think that with species that grow here naturally there is great potential, no doubt about it.
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