DESCRIPTION AND USESThe term copal applies to a large group of resins characterized by their hardness and relatively high melting point. They are soluble in alcohol. Up until the 1940s, or thereabouts, they were among the best of the natural resins for use in varnish and paint manufacture, and traded in very large volumes. In the oil-soluble form they were also used in the manufacture of linoleum. Copal has been produced from a large number of different tree species from many parts of the world - Africa, Asia and South America. Today, most copal of commerce originates from Agathis species of Southeast Asia: the Malay and Indonesian archipelagos in particular and, to a lesser extent, the Philippines.
Today, the major use of copal is as a varnish for wood and paper. It still finds use in road-marking paints, where the capacity of the resin to prevent bleed-through of road-making materials is beneficial, and there are numerous other, minor uses.
Until the decline in demand for copals brought about by the use of synthetic resins for varnish and paint manufacture, much of the copal was collected in the fossilized or semi-fossilized form. Nowadays, most of it is collected by tapping the living tree. Furthermore, many of the trees which are now tapped have been planted, and there is no longer dependence on the wild forest.
Historical introductionHistorically, the copals have been classified according to their geographical origin:
- Congo copal. In the 1920s, 1930s and 1940s, the quantity of copal produced from the former Belgian Congo (now Zaire) far exceeded that from any other region of the world. From 20 tonnes in 1900, production rose to 12 000 tonnes in 1923 and 23 000 tonnes in 1936. The resin was all of the fossilized type, having fallen to the ground from the tree where it was produced as a result of natural exudation or from accidental injury. In many cases, the trees were no longer standing and the resin was recovered from below the surface of the earth, where it was located by exploratory prodding with a stick. The very hard, acidic materials were traditionally converted into oil-soluble forms for use in varnishes by a process known as "running" (subjecting them to high temperature heat treatment).
- West African copals. These were collected and exported in moderate amounts before Congo copal became so important. Again, most of the resin was fossilized, and the copals were known in the trade by their country or place of origin, e.g., Sierra Leone, Cameroon, Angola and Accra copals.
- East African copal. This was produced mainly in Tanzania and Kenya and was collected either in semi-fossilized form (from the soil below the tree where it fell), fossilized form (from the soil where the tree no longer existed), or by tapping the living tree.
- South American copals. Brazilian copal is the best known and is still produced to a very small extent today, where it is known as jutaicica. It is usually collected as a semi-fossilized resin.
- East Indian and Manila copal. These were copals produced from what is now Indonesia and nearby islands, and the Philippines. The term Manila copal arose from the time when Manila was the main port of export. Total production from this region in some years during the early part of the century reached 15 000 tonnes; then, the copal was collected both in the semi-fossilized form and by tapping. Today, this is the most important copal-producing region of the world and all of it is produced by tapping.
WORLD SUPPLY AND DEMAND TRENDS
MarketsExports of copal from Indonesia and the Philippines for the period 1988-93, and their destinations, are given in Tables 17 and 18, respectively.
Total exports from Indonesia and the Philippines averaged about 2 300 tonnes annually during 1988-93. Most Indonesian copal (and some Filipino) is shipped via Singapore but Germany, which also imports directly from Indonesia, is a major onward destination and the most important in Europe. India and Japan import modest quantities directly from Indonesia. China (Taiwan) is the biggest importer of copal from the Philippines.
Imports of copal and damar into Japan during 1985-87 are shown in Table 19, although it is not possible to separate the two commodities. After 1987, copal and damar are not separated from "Natural gums, resins, gum-resins and balsams, n.e.s.". Combined imports of copal and damar averaged just over 400 tonnes/year in 1985-87.
Photo N.5 :Cleaning and sorting copal, Java, Indonesia. (Photo: J.J.W. Coppen)
Supply sourcesIndonesia is by far the biggest producer and exporter of copal. After the fall in exports in 1989 from almost 2 500 tonnes the previous year (Table 17), levels have been remarkably constant at about 1 850 tonnes/year.
The Philippines is the second biggest producer of copal; exports during 1988?93 averaged about 350 tonnes/year with no clear trend.
In 1982, Sarawak exported just over 50 tonnes of copal; Malaysian exports since then record only very small quantities of copal.
Papua New Guinea has been a small producer and exporter in the past but the present scale of production from this source (if any), and other islands of the Pacific, is not known.
Quality and pricesThe quality of copal which is collected is very variable, depending inherently on the species from which it is obtained (which may affect its solubility properties) and the manner in which it is collected: whether by tapping or by picking from the ground in a fossilized form. After cleaning (removing pieces of bark and other foreign matter), different grades of copal in trade are distinguished by their hardness, colour and size of the pieces, as well as the state of cleanliness. Pale, clean pieces, with good solubility in alcohol, are the best quality.
Present (mid-1995), indicative prices for some Indonesian copal grades shipped from Singapore (CIF London) are:
|"Clean scraped chips"|
|"Medium scraped chips"|
Prices have been fairly stable in recent years.
Botanical names (present day Asia/Pacific copals)
Family Araucariaceae: Agathis spp.
The taxonomy of Agathis has been, and still is, confused and in the past, numerous different species names have been cited as the source of copal; the most common one has been A. alba. In some cases, even now, plantation trees, grown and tapped in Indonesia, are referred to simply as "Agathis spp.", with no attempt to give a full name.
WHITMORE (1977, 1980) and de LAUBENFELS (1989) recognize more than a dozen species of Agathis - which extend from peninsular Malaysia, across the Malay and Indonesian archipelagos to islands in the Pacific (as far east as Fiji), and south to the coastal regions of Queensland, Australia, and New Zealand - although the authors differ on some points. They agree that the natural stands on Peninsular Malaysia, Sumatra and Borneo which are sources of copal are those which should be designated A. borneensis Warb., but trees in the Philippines and Sulawesi are considered to be A. dammara(Lamb.) Richard by Whitmore and A. philippinensis Warb./A. celebica (Koord.) Warb. by de Laubenfels. Other copal producers include A. labillardieri Warb.
The identity of the extensive plantation Agathis which are tapped on Java is not known (to the present author) and to avoid confusion no species name is attached to Agathis hereafter in this discussion.
Historical copals(N.B. The genera given below all belong to the family Leguminosae. However, the species listed are those attributed by HOWES (1949); their current acceptance in terms of botanical nomenclature is not known and some of the names may be obsolete.)
Mainly or entirely from Copaifera demeusei.
West African copals
Copaifera copallifera, C. demeusei, C. mopane.
East African copal
Almost entirely from Trachylobium verrucosum.
South American copals
Various Hymenaea spp., especially H. courbaril L.
Description and distribution (Asia/Pacific copals)
Agathis is the most tropical of all conifers. The copal-yielding species are very tall trees, up to 60 m high, often with a near-cylindrical bole. However, there can be some variation in the characters of the living tree, as well as the ecological conditions under which it occurs. It is grown widely as a timber tree on Java (over 100 000 ha) and other parts of Indonesia.
The distribution of Agathis has been discussed above.
Nowadays, most copal, at least that intended for international markets, is obtained by tapping the tree, rather than collecting fossilized resin from the ground. In the tree, the resin resides in the living inner bark of the trunk and tapping involves making incisions into the bark and collecting the exudate. Fresh cuts are made at suitable intervals - a few days or a week or more - gradually moving up the tree. The size and shape of the cuts, the extent to which they might penetrate the wood, and their frequency of application have changed over the years and still vary according to the country or region in which tapping is undertaken, or the traditions of the communities involved.
Present practice on Java is for the tapper to return to the tree to make fresh incisions every 3?4 days; up to four or more small tin cups may be in place at different points on the tree at any one time, depending on the size of the tree. In the Philippines, research has been undertaken using tapping methods very similar to those used in tapping pine trees (involving use of sulphuric acid as a chemical stimulant), but it is not known whether such methods are used commercially.
Collected resin is cleaned by sieving and hand picking to remove foreign matter, and packed in sacks for transfer to points of sale, either nationally or internationally.
YieldsResin yields are very variable and depend on a large number of factors: genetic, environmental and practical (i.e., method of tapping used). Annual yields of 16-20 kg have been reported from good trees in the Philippines and Papua New Guinea, while average yields have been variously estimated at 2 kg or as much as 10-12 kg. Recent tapping trials at three sites in the Philippines resulted in average annual yields of 1.2 kg, 3.7 kg and 5.6 kg/tree.
Recent research in Indonesia and the Philippines has shown that thick-barked Agathis yields significantly more resin than thin-barked trees (in one study in Indonesia, almost nine times as much), and that tapping in the morning and at the side of the tree which maximizes the length of time that sunlight falls on it is beneficial to resin yields.
VALUE-ADDED PROCESSINGNo further processing is carried out until the copal is formulated for use by the end-user; this may involve heat treatment, dissolution in a suitable solvent and/or chemical processing. The latter may be carried out by a specialist chemical processor and usually involves preparation of copal esters to neutralize the natural acidity of copal and render it oil-soluble.
PRODUCTS OTHER THAN RESINAgathis produces a high class, much valued, utility timber and it is grown widely as a timber tree. In Malaysia, it is the most important commercial softwood, and it is also widely planted in Indonesia.
DEVELOPMENTAL POTENTIALResin-yielding Agathis are planted for timber, rather than as a source of resin, and tapping of plantation trees is therefore a secondary activity to that of timber production. The proportion of planted trees which are tapped commercially is not known, but it is probable that it is a relatively small proportion and that copal production from such sources could be increased significantly if demand and the economics of production were favourable.
By nature, the trees are very large and there is little scope for agroforestry-type interventions. However, taking into account the fact that there is a steady demand for copal, that some copal will continue to be obtained from wild sources, and that importers are always prepared to consider new, reliable sources of supply, there may be some opportunities for new producers - perhaps for some of the Pacific islands where cooperatives can be organized.
SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHYANON. (1962) Almaciga Resin. FPRI Technical Note No. 35. 4pp. Laguna, the Philippines: Forest Products Research and Industries Development Commission.
BILLING, H.J. (1944) Congo Copal. The Oil and Colour Trades Journal, 3(Nov), 666-668.
BOWEN, M.R. and WHITMORE, T.C. (1980) The tropical conifer Agathis as a potential plantation tree. Paper presented at IUFRO Symposium and Workshop on Genetic Improvement and Productivity of Fast-growing Tree Species, Sao Paulo, Brazil, August 1980.
BOWEN, M.R. and WHITMORE, T.C. (1980) A Second Look at Agathis. Occasional Paper No. 13. 19 pp. Oxford: Commonwealth [now Oxford] Forestry Institute, University of Oxford.
CONELLY, W.T. (1985) Copal and rattan collecting in the Philippines. Economic Botany, 39(1), 39-46.
GONZALES, E.V. and ABEJO, F.G. (1978) Properties of Manila copal (almaciga) resin from 15 different localities in the Philippines. Forpride Digest, 7(1), 68-69.
GONZALES, L.L., CRUZ, V.C. and URIARTE, M.T. (1986) Effects of seasonal variation and sulphuric acid treatment on the resin yield of almaciga (Manila copal). Sylvatrop, 11(1-2), 43-54.
HALOS, S.C. (1983) Factors affecting quality and quantity of almaciga resin. National Research Council of the Philippines Research Bulletin, 38(1), 70-113.
HARRISON-SMITH (1941) Kauri gum. New Zealand Journal of Forestry, 4, 284-292.
HOWES, F.N. (1949) The copals. pp 93-103. In Vegetable Gums and Resins. 188 pp. Waltham, USA: Chronica Botanica.
De LAUBENFELS, D.J. (1989) Agathis. pp 429-442. In Flora Malesiana, Series I, Vol. 10. Dordrecht, The Netherlands: Kluwer Academic Publishers.
ORDINARIO, F.F. and TONGACAN, A.L. (1979) The influence of diameter and sulphuric acid on the resin yield of almaciga (Agathis philippinensis Warb.). Forpride Digest, 8(2), 21-34.
RIYANTO, T.W. (1980) [Small notes on copal resin] (in Indonesian). Duta Rimba, 6(42), 23-28.
SAULEI, S.M. and ARUGA, J.A. (1994) The status and prospects of non-timber forest products development in Papua New Guinea. Commonwealth Forestry Review, 73(2), 97-105.
SOENARNO, M.M.I. (1987) Copal production on Agathis spp of varying bark thicknesses, West Java. Duta Rimba, 13(Mar/Apr), 3-6.
SOENARNO, M.M.I. and BASARI, Z. (1984) [Study on the improvement of copal tapping procedure at Sukabumi Forest District, Java, Indonesia] (in Indonesian). Jurnal Penelitian Hasil Hutan, 1(3), 34-38.
SUMANTRI, I. (1991) [Relation between tree diameter and copal production during tapping of Agathis spp] (in Indonesian). Duta Rimba, 17(135-136), 42-45.
SUMANTRI, I. and DULSALAM (1991) [Manipulation of tapping design to increase resin yield of Agathis] (in Indonesian). Jurnal Penelitian Hasil Hutan, 9(1), 1-4.
SUMANTRI, I. and SASTRODIMEDJO, S. (1976) [Tapping Trials of Agathis Hamii M. Dr. in South Sulawesi] (in Indonesian, English summary). Report No. 58. Bogor, Indonesia: Forest Products Research Institute.
TONGACAN, A.L. and ORDINARIO, F.F. (1974) Tapping of almaciga resin. The Philippine Lumberman, 20(12), 18-19, 22-23, 25.
WHITMORE, T.C. (1977) A First Look at Agathis. Tropical Forestry Paper No. 11. 54pp. Oxford: Commonwealth [now Oxford] Forestry Institute, University of Oxford.
WHITMORE, T.C. (1980) Utilization, potential and conservation of Agathis, a genus of tropical Asian conifers. Economic Botany, 34(1), 1-12.
WHITMORE, T.C. (1980) A monograph of Agathis. Plant Systematics and Evolution, 135, 41-69.
Table 17. Copal: exports from Indonesia, and destinations, 1988?93
|Of which to :|
Table 18. Manila copal: exports from the Philippines, and destinations, 1988-93
|Of which to :|
Table 19. Copal and damar: imports into Japan, and sources, 1985-87
|Of which to :|
DESCRIPTION AND USES
"Damar" (sometimes spelled dammar) is a Malay word meaning resin or torch made from resin. Although, today, the word is used in a more restrictive sense, it is still applied as a collective term to a great variety of hard resins. Damars of international commerce come from the dipterocarp forests of Southeast Asia, mainly from Indonesia. Damar from the sal tree is produced in India. Production is mainly by tapping living trees, although some is still collected from the ground in fossilized form.
Damars are solid resins, generally less hard and durable than the copals, and white to yellow in colour. They are distinguished from copal by their solubility in hydrocarbon-type solvents and drying oils. Like copals, however, their main use is still in the manufacture of paper or wood varnishes and lacquers, and some paints, although consumption has inevitably declined over the years with the widespread use of synthetic materials. They used to be an important ingredient in many types of cellulose lacquers, imparting gloss and adhesive qualities and preventing after-yellowing. Nowadays, they find particular use as a varnish for the fine arts.
Miscellaneous minor uses include the manufacture of inks, polishes, water-resistant coatings and injection moulding materials. A little is used in foods as a clouding or glazing agent. In the countries where damars are produced, they find local use for caulking boats and baskets. In India, sal damar is widely used as an incense and in the indigenous system of medicine.
WORLD SUPPLY AND DEMAND TRENDS
MarketsInterpretation of trade statistics for damar is made more hazardous than usual by the use of different terms for resins which are, nevertheless, damars of one type or another. Examination of Indonesian trade statistics reveals three different damars: "Gum damar", "Mata kucing" and "Batu". Mata kucing ("cat's eye") is a term applied to the crystalline damar resin (usually in the form of round balls) obtained from certain of the dipterocarp species. Batu ("stone") refers to the opaque, stone or pebble-shaped damar collected from the ground.
Indonesian exports of the three types of damar for 1988-93, and their destinations, are given in Tables 20a, 20b and 20c. Average annual exports have been approximately 2 000 tonnes (gum damar), 6 300 tonnes (Batu) and 3 200 tonnes (Mata kucing), making about 11 500 tonnes in total. There is some year-to-year fluctuation, but nothing that indicates a downward trend.
Exports of damar from Thailand for the period 1988-93, and destinations, are shown in Table 21. Exports have averaged approximately 1 800 tonnes/year, with a slight downward trend.
Considering Indonesian and Thai exports with smaller amounts from other countries, total international trade in damar might approach 15 000 tonnes/year.
Most Indonesian damar is exported to Singapore from where it is re-exported to consumer countries. Of those other countries which import directly from Indonesia, Germany is a major destination, particularly of batu (taking about 2 000 tonnes in each of 1992 and 1993). Other Southeast Asian countries such as China (Taiwan) and Malaysia import significant quantities, as does India. India is the biggest market for Thai damar and in recent years has taken all, or almost all, of Thailand's exports, around 1 500-2 000 tonnes/year.
Except for 1989, Japanese imports have been limited to "gum damar", usually about 100-140 tonnes annually. Combined imports of copal and damar for 1985-87 have been given earlier (Table 19).
Indian consumption of damar from indigenous sources is believed to be substantial but cannot be quantified.
Photo N.6 : A damar (Shorea javaica) garden in southern Sumatra, Indonesia, First
cuts for tapping are made when the tree is about 20 years old. (Photo: Mien Kaomini)
Photo N.7 :Tapper climbs the tree supported by a rattan belt to collect the solidified
exudated (damar) and to refresh the cuts, Sumatra, Indonesia. ( Photo: H. de Foresta)
Supply sourcesIndonesia is by far the major source of internationally traded damar. Export statistics are not easily accessible for some of the other countries known to produce damar, but of these, Viet Nam, Laos and Cambodia have exported variable quantities. De BEER (1993) has estimated Laotian production of damar at 500-1 000 tonnes/year and states that most is exported to Thailand; a proportion of Thai exports may therefore simply be re-exports of damar from Laos. Malaysia exports small quantities of damar but the larger level of imports make it a net importer.
Quality and pricesAs would be expected for a commodity of such diverse origins, damar is of extremely variable quality. Colours range from very pale grades to those which are grey-black. Physical form and size varies from large irregular lumps or smaller globular lumps to small chips and dust. In past years, damars of recognized quality were usually identified by the port at which cleaning and grading took place and from where they were dispatched, or their geographical origin (e.g., Pontianak and Batavia), and this is still often the case today (e.g., Palembang).
There is an FAO specification for damar which gives a number of limits for such things as arsenic, lead and heavy metal content.
Illustrative of current (mid?1995) prices (CIF London) are the following for grades A-C of Palembang damar:
The lower end of each range is the discounted price for larger (container load) lots. Dealers in London state that prices have been very stable over recent years.
Shorea spp. (including S. javanica K. & V. [Sumatra], S. lamellata Foxw. [Malaysia, Sumatra, Borneo], S. virescens Parijs [Borneo, the Philippines], S. retinodes Sloot. [Sumatra], S. guiso (Blco) Bl. [Thailand, Malaysia, Sumatra, Borneo, the Philippines] and S. robusta Gaertn. f. [India]).
Hopea spp. (including H. dryobalanoides Miq. [Malaysia, Sumatra, Borneo] and H. celebica Burck. [Sulawesi]).
Vatica spp. (including V. rassak (Korth.) Bl. [Borneo, the Philippines, Sulawesi, New Guinea]).
Family Burseraceae: Canarium spp.
Description and distributionTrees of the family Dipterocarpaceae are medium to very large trees, widespread and of very great importance as a source of tropical hardwood throughout the Indian and Southeast Asian regions, including the Malay and Indonesian archipelagos. A large number of species from several genera have been tapped for resin at one time or another, and where the resin which is collected is used locally this is still probably true. The number of species which yield resin which eventually enters world trade is smaller but the identity of the botanical source is usually lost as the damar passes through the various stages of sale.
Shorea robusta is tapped in India. Wild trees of various Shorea and Hopea species are tapped in Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and Viet Nam. Although many dipterocarps flower and fruit very irregularly (which has hampered attempts to cultivate them) damar is collected from certain species which have been successfully planted by local people in Indonesia: S. javanica and H. dryobalanoides in Sumatra and Vatica rassak in Kalimantan, Sulawesi and Maluku.
Canarium spp. also yield a dammar-type resin, which is occasionally collected although it is not believed to be an important item of commerce.
COLLECTION/PRIMARY PROCESSINGTORQUEBIAU (1984) gives a good description of tapping cultivated S. javanica in Sumatra. Traditional methods of tapping trees to obtain damar (whether wild or cultivated trees) involve removal of wood from the stem. Cuts made into the trunk have a triangular form but become circular with age and are arranged in vertical rows around the trunk. The first cuts are made when the tree is approximately 25 cm in diameter (about 20 years old). The cut is several centimetres wide at first, but becomes enlarged at every tapping and eventually becomes a hole of 15?20 cm in depth and width. The average number of holes for a tree about 30 m high and 60?80 cm diameter is 9?11 in each of 4?5 vertical rows. For the higher holes, the tapper climbs the tree supported by a rattan belt and using the lower holes as footholds.
The exuded resin is allowed to dry on the tree before it is collected; resin which forms hard drops becomes "mata kucing". The frequency with which the tree is visited to refreshen the cut varies from once a week to once a month, depending on how far the tree is from the village. Tapping can continue for 30 years.
In India, tapping involves removing narrow strips of bark from the tree. The resin which exudes solidifies and darkens on drying and is then removed from the tree. Tapping is repeated several times a year.
YieldsWhen tapped once a month in the manner described above, a fully productive tree has been stated to yield about 4 kg of damar at each tapping, i.e., about 48 kg/year. However, there is known to be genotypic (tree-to-tree) variation in yields and some trees may only be tapped every 3 months because of poor yields. In other cases, if the resin from a good-yielding tree is not collected for 6 months it may completely fill the hole in the tree (10-15 cm wide and deep).
Resin production is reported to fall markedly when the tree is flowering and fruiting, and only reaches previous levels a year later.
Photo N.8 : A Shorea Javanica tree in later stages of tapping, Sumatra, Indonesia
Tapping continues for a period of about 30 years. ( Photo: Mien Kaomini)
VALUE-ADDED PROCESSINGSo-called "dewaxed" damar is prepared by dissolving damar in a hydrocarbon solvent and precipitating and removing a high-melting, resinous fraction. The remaining soluble fraction is then more compatible with the cellulose component of cellulose lacquers.
PRODUCTS OTHER THAN RESINDamar-producing trees are also highly valued for timber, and felling them for sawtimber or the manufacture of value-added wood products is usually the primary activity. Some local use is made of the fruits.
In India, an oil is distilled from the resin which is used for fragrance and medicinal purposes. The seeds of sal furnish a fatty oil and the residual cake can be used as an animal feed.
DEVELOPMENTAL POTENTIALThe "kebun damar" (damar gardens) of S. javanica in Lampung, southern Sumatra, are an example of how, over many years, communities have developed a traditional cultivation system which is now regarded as a model of agroforestry technique. Rain-fed rice is grown for one or two years and then coffee, pepper or some other crop is planted, together with Shorea and other useful trees such as cloves. While the damar trees are reaching the age at which they can first be tapped (15-20 years), other products can be harvested to provide cash income to the farmers. The whole system converts one of a shifting cultivation to a permanent, sustainable, productive land-use system.
Much is still to be learnt about the biology and silviculture of S. javanica but valuable knowledge and experience has already been gained and research is still in progress through BIOTROP in Bogor, Indonesia. It is hoped that the successful development of plantations of S. javanica will encourage the use of other dipterocarps and native trees for plantation forestry. There is much potential, therefore, for the agroforestry approach to damar production, not only in Indonesia but in other countries, and the important question may then be that of the market and how much damar it can absorb.
Research needsApart from the need to acquire more detailed information on the markets for damar (countries or regions which are important consumers, end uses, customer requirements in terms of quality, etc.), other areas of research (in addition to continued research on silvicultural aspects) should include:
- Improved tapping methodology. The use of chemical stimulants to promote resin flow has already recently been investigated (MESSER, 1990) but the research should be extended. There would be much to be gained if less severe methods of tapping, i.e., ones which did not involve removal of so much wood, could be developed.
- Screening of wild trees to identify superior planting stock. Gains in productivity could be made by identifying high-yielding trees and transferring their progeny to the nursery.
SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHYANON. (1959) Dewaxed damar - a review. Paint, Oil and Colour Journal, 11(Sep), 215-218.
ANON. (1973) Damar. FPRI Technical Note No. 136. 3pp. Laguna, the Philippines: Forest Products Research and Industries Development Commission.
De FORESTA, H. and MICHON, G. (1994) Agroforests in Sumatra - where ecology meets economy. Agroforestry Today, 6(4), 12?13.
FAO (1992) Dammar gum [published in FAO Food and Nutrition Paper 31/2, 1984]. p 475. In Compendium of Food Additive Specifications. FAO Food and Nutrition Paper 52 (Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives. Combined Specifications from 1st through the 37th Meetings, 1956-1990). Rome: Food and Agriculture Organization.
GIANNO, R. (1986) The exploitation of resinous products in a lowland Malayan forest. Wallaceana, (43), 3-6.
JAFARSIDIK, J. (1987) [Damar resin-producing tree species and their distribution in Indonesia] (in Indonesian, English summary). Duta Rimba, 13(Mar/Apr), 7-11.
JAFARSIDIK, Y.S. (1982) [Resin-producing tree species in Sumatra] (in Indonesian, English summary). Duta Rimba, 8(54), 36-37.
MESSER, A.C. (1990) Traditional and chemical techniques for stimulation of Shorea javanica (Dipterocarpaceae) resin exudation in Sumatra. Economic Botany, 44(4), 463-469.
SOESILOTOMO, P.S. (1992) [Damar tree breeding [for increased resin production] in Probolinggo Forest District] (in Indonesian). Duta Rimba, 18(143), 42-46.
TORQUEBIAU, E.F. (1984) Man-made dipterocarp forest in Sumatra [including Shorea javanica tapped for resin]. Agroforestry Systems, 2(2), 103-127.
TORQUEBIAU, E.F. (1987) Multidisciplinary research on Shorea javanica. I. Introduction. BIOTROPIA, 1(1), 42-45.
Table 20a. Damara: exports from Indonesia, and destinations, 1988-93
|Of which to :|
|Korea, Rep. Of|
Note: a : Classified as "Gum damar"
Table 20b. Damara (batu): exports from Indonesia, and destinations, 1988-93
|Of which to :|
Note: a : Classified as "Resin: Batu"
Table 20c. Damara (mata kucing): exports from Indonesia, and destinations, 1988-93
|Of which to :|
|Korea, Rep. Of|
Note: a : Classified as "Resin: Mata kucing"
Table 21. Damar: exports from Thailand, and destinations, 1988-93
|Of which to :|
DESCRIPTION AND USESAlthough usually termed a gum, mastic is a hard resin, produced by tapping the stem bark of the small tree Pistacia lentiscus, which is cultivated on the Greek islands of Chios.
Mastic is produced in the form of small tears, pale yellow in colour, clear and glassy in nature and liable to fracture. Its age-long use in Arab countries has been for chewing, where it sweetens the breath and helps preserve the teeth and gums. Its aromatic properties also make it suitable as a flavouring agent for alcoholic beverages. In the past it was also used in the manufacture of high-grade varnishes for paintings, and for medicinal purposes.
An essential oil can be distilled from the gum and finds some use for fragrance and flavouring purposes.
WORLD SUPPLY AND DEMAND TRENDS
MarketsSince Greece is by far the most important source of internationally traded mastic, production in Chios is also a fair measure of world demand. In the mid-1940s, annual production was around 300 tonnes. Greek sources estimated production at about 250 tonnes and 200 tonnes in 1961 and 1963, respectively. In 1975, production was put at 300 tonnes. Demand appears, therefore, to have been maintained at around 200-300 tonnes annually for some time. Recent figures are not known.
Apart from the Middle Eastern countries, where mastic is used for chewing, the United States and Europe also import it. In the United States and Europe, part of the mastic is distilled to produce essential oil.
Supply sourcesGreece is by far the most important (and may well be the only) source of mastic of commerce. Production levels have been indicated above. Countries such as Algeria and Morocco have offered occasional, small quantities in the past.
Quality and pricesThere are a number of different grades of mastic corresponding to degrees of cleanliness and size and shape of the tears. Exuded resin that has not been allowed to drop to the ground before collection and has formed perfect tears is the best quality and fetches the highest price.
An illustrative price for small quantities of No. 1 small tears (mid-1995, CIF London) is US$ 60/kg. Discounts are available for larger quantities. There has been a steady upward trend in prices in recent years.
Botanical nameFamily Anacardiaceae: Pistacia lentiscus L. var. chia
Description and distributionP. lentiscus is an evergreen, shrubby tree which normally grows to a height of about 2-4 m; exceptionally, it may grow to about 5 m. It is slow growing and long lived, and attains its full development at 50-60 years. The natural habit of the plant is bush-like, but under cultivation for mastic gum only one or two shoots are allowed to grow and develop into stems; the mature plant consists of one or two thick, contorted stems with an umbrella-shaped crown.
Other Pistacia species, such as P. vera, yield an exudate resin but P. lentiscus is the only one which is tapped commercially.
P. lentiscus prefers an arid, sub-tropical climate and occurs in coastal Mediterranean regions of both southern Europe and north Africa, and some of the islands in the Mediterranean such as Sicily, Sardinia and Cyprus. However, it is only cultivated for mastic on the Aegean island of Chios, where it occurs as P. lentiscus var. chia; it is often interspersed with olive trees.
COLLECTION/PRIMARY PROCESSINGIn Chios, tapping and collection of the resin is limited to a 3-month period in late summer between July and October. The first light tappings are made when the tree is about six years old. A number of short, shallow incisions are made into the bark of the stem and the main branches. The wounds penetrate a few mm into the bark as far as the cambium; the number of wounds depends on the age and size of the tree. Further cuts are made at approximately one-week intervals. The first tapping period continues for 5-6 weeks and after a further 10 days, during which time the last of the exuded resin dries and solidifies, the first collection is made. This entails picking up pieces of resin that have fallen on the ground as well those adhering to the trunk of the tree. A second tapping and collection is made in the second half of the season.
After collection, the mastic is laid out to dry and foreign matter is removed by a combination of sieving and hand picking. The semi-cleaned resin is then soaked in water which serves to remove most of the adhering dirt and smaller impurities; it also gives the pieces of resin an added lustre.
YieldsThe mastic plant starts yielding reasonable amounts of resin, about 30 g/year, at 10-12 years of age. Yields then gradually increase to about 300-400 g per tree at the age of 50-60 years. Individual trees have been known to yield up to 1 kg under favourable conditions.
VALUE-ADDED PROCESSINGAn essential oil can be produced in 1-3% yield by steam distillation of the resin. Extraction of the resin with a suitable solvent yields a mastic resinoid.
PRODUCTS OTHER THAN RESINNo other products of economic value are obtained from the tree.
DEVELOPMENTAL POTENTIALThe market for mastic is firm but modest. If supplies continue to be available from Chios, then there is unlikely to be much scope for new entrants to the market, whether from wild or cultivated plant sources. Given also that P. lentiscus is slow growing, that the traditional mastic comes from a particular variety that occupies an ecological niche in Chios, and that it is some years before any economic returns are gained from cultivated plants, there is little developmental potential in mastic as far as new producers are concerned.
SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHYCHENOPOULOS, D. (1961) [Pistacia lentiscus and mastic production in Chios] (in Greek). Dasika Chronika, 3(4/5), 140-149.
DAVIDSON, D.F.D. (1948) Report on the gum mastic industry in Chios. Bulletin of the Imperial Institute, 46(2-4), 184-191.
GUENTHER, E. (1952) Oil of mastic. pp 169-170. In The Essential Oils, Vol. 5. New York: Van Nostrand Co.
KATSIOTIS, S, and OIKONOMOU, N.G. (1984) Qualitative and quantitative GLC analysis of the essential oil of Pistacia lentiscus (mastic) from different districts of Chios Island. Pharmkeutikon Deltion Epistemonike Ekdosis, 10(1), 17-28.
MARNER, F.J., FREYER, A. and LEX, J. (1991) Triterpenoids from gum mastic, the resin of Pistacia lentiscus. Phytochemistry, 30(11), 3709-3712.
PAPAGEORGIOU, V.P., MELLIDIS,A.S. and ARGYRIADOU, N. (1991) The chemical composition of the essential oil of mastic gum. Journal of Essential Oil Research, 3, 107-110.
PICCI, V., SCOTTI, A., MARIANI, M. and COLOMBO, E. (1987) Composition of the volatile oil of Pistacia lentiscusL. of Sardinian origin. pp 107-110. In Flavour Science and Technology. Martens, M., Dalen, G.A. and Russwurm, H. (eds.). New York: John Wiley & Sons.
SCRUBIS, B., MARKAKIS, P. and ZABIK, M.J. (1975) Essential oil of mastic gum. International Flavours and Food Additives, 6(6), 349 and 356.
TSITSA, S. (1963) The mastic shrub of Chios. Dasika Chronika, 5(8), 364-366.
DESCRIPTION AND USESThe term "dragon's blood" has been applied since ancient times to the red coloured resin obtained from a large number of plant species of different geographic and botanical origin: from the Middle East, Southeast Asia and South America, and from amongst several different families of plants. The resin of commerce is in the form of powder, granules, sticks or friable lumps with a deep, dull red colour.
Traditionally, dragon's blood has been, and still is, used for medicinal purposes, whatever the source. In the past it has found minor use in coloured varnishes, lacquers and wood stains, although its use for this purpose (other than locally) is now largely confined to very specialized markets, such as violin varnish.
WORLD SUPPLY AND DEMAND TRENDS
MarketsIt is extremely difficult to estimate the size of the market for internationally traded resin, but it is probably not more than a few hundred tonnes annually, and may be much less.
Domestic consumption in those countries where dragon's blood is popular as a traditional medicine is equally difficult to estimate, but demand in countries such as Peru and Ecuador, where Croton is the botanical source, is believed to be significant.
The main source of dragon's blood of commerce is Indonesia, and exports from Indonesia for the period 1988-93 are given in Table 22. Apart from Pakistan in 1991, all recorded exports went to Singapore and Hong Kong, so the final destinations - assuming most is re-exported - are not known.
Supply sourcesIndonesian exports, probably originating in Sumatra, averaged just over 50 tonnes/year during 1988-93, with a peak of almost 90 tonnes in 1991. The scale of domestic consumption is not known so it is not possible to say by how much production might exceed the levels of exports.
Resin from plants growing in Yemen, the Canary Islands and sources in South America are not believed to enter world trade.
Quality and pricesDragon's blood of Indonesian origin is available as sticks ("reed") or cakes ("lump"). In mid-1995, Indonesian dragon's blood was quoted by one London dealer at US$ 60/kg for small quantities (cf US$ 42/kg in 1992). Another dealer quoted US$ 33/kg for No. 1 grade and US$ 5/kg for No. 2 grade, both of Middle Eastern origin.
Daemonorops draco Blume East Indian dragon's blood
D. micranthus Becc.
D. motleyi Becc.
Dracaena cinnabari Balf. f. Socotra dragon's blood
D. draco Canary dragon's blood
Croton draconoides (Muell.) Arg.
C. draco Schlect
C. lechleri L.
C. urucurana Baill.
C. xalapensis H.B.K.
Description and distributionDaemonorops spp. are climbing jungle palms and the source of cane in Southeast Asia. In D. didymophylla, spiny stems bear bunches of scaly fruits which are covered in the red resin. In the past, the main areas of exploitation for resin have been the islands of Sumatra and Borneo, and some parts of Peninsular Malaysia.
Dracaena spp. are mostly trees of the Old World. D. cinnabari is endemic to the island of Socotra, Yemen. D. dracooccurs on the Canary Islands.
Numerous Croton spp. which yield a blood red latex (Sangre de Drago) occur in Mexico, Central America and South America (e.g., Venezuela, Ecuador, Peru, Brazil).
COLLECTION/PRIMARY PROCESSINGDragon's blood resin obtained from Daemonorops is present as a brittle layer on the surface of the immature fruit. After picking, the fruits are dried and placed in bags, which are then beaten to dislodge the resin. The resinous powder thus obtained is then sifted and warmed so that it can be moulded into sticks or formed into irregular shaped lumps.
Resin from Dracaena and Croton is obtained by making incisions into the stem of the plant and collecting the exudate.
YieldsNo information is available on yields of resin from any of the botanical sources.
VALUE-ADDED PROCESSINGNo further processing is carried out until the resin is ready for formulation by the consuming industry.
PRODUCTS OTHER THAN RESINApart from local use as a source of cane in Southeast Asia, no other products of economic value are known to come from the species which yield dragon's blood.
DEVELOPMENTAL POTENTIALUnless some of the traditional medicinal uses of dragon's blood are developed into more widely used products, there appears to be very little developmental potential for the plants or the resins they produce.
SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHYHIMMELREICH, U., MASAOUD, M., ADAM, G. and RIPPERGER, H. (1995) Damalachawin, a triflavonoid of a new structural type from dragon's blood of Dracaena cinnabari. Phytochemistry, 39(4), 949-951.
MILBURN, M. (1984) Dragon's blood in East and West Africa, Arabia and the Canary Islands. Africa, 39(3), 486-493.
PIETERS, L., de BRUYNE, T., MEI, G., LEMIERE, G., VAN DEN BERGHE, D. and VLIETINCK, A.J. (1992) In vitroand in vivo biological activity of South American dragon's blood and its constituents. Planta Medica, 58(7), A582-583.
PIOZZI, F., PASSANNANTI, S. and PATERNOSTRO, M.P. (1974) Diterpenoid resin acids of Daemonorops draco. Phytochemistry, 13, 2231-2233.
RAO, G.S.R., GERHART, M.A., LEE, R.T., MITSCHER, L.A. and DRAKE, S. (1982) Antimicrobial agents from higher plants. Dragon's blood resin. Journal of Natural Products, 45(5), 646-648.
Table 22. Dragon's blood: exports from Indonesia, and destinations, 1988-93
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Source: National statistics
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