Sustainable rattan used amid design revival
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Natural rattan belongs to the design classics and it is making a comeback in design circles. Unfortunately, conventional forestry practices may damage tropical forests when the rattan is harvested.
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Rattan home accessories [WWF] |
![Rattan home accessories [WWF]](http://images.china.cn/attachement/jpg/site1007/20110214/0014222d98500ec2d15703.jpg "Rattan home accessories [WWF]")
To avoid this forest destruction, World Wildlife Fund has set up a European Union funded programme for sustainable production and processing of rattan in the Mekong region. An innovative collection for rattan home accessories is being showcased this week at the international design fair Ambiente in Frankfurt/Main.
WWF is working with Swedish designers, graduates from Lund University, in cooperation with local companies, to develop rattan products that are suitable for the international market. These products range from doormats made of rattan waste to foldable baskets, and a unique rattan lounge chair.
An analysis of global trade in rattan
In addition, the WWF has analysed the worldwide trade flows of rattan. The key points of a scientific study launched today include: between 2006 and 2008, global trade declined by 26% due to dwindling rattan resources and forest loss. Indonesia is the most important exporting country in the world, with a market share of 80%.
The major buyers are the EU and China. Vietnam plays an essential role for the EU market, exporting mainly to Germany and France. Vietnam is also a major importing country – the suppliers are Laos, India, Cambodia, and the Philippines.
What is rattan?
Rattan species are members of the palm family and grow climbing and winding themselves around other vegetation and some varieties can grow to lengths of more than one hundred metres.
"Forests with such a wide variety of flora and fauna, which have disappeared in other regions of the world, still exist in the Mekong region," said Thibault Ledecq, WWF Sustainable Rattan Project Manager.
"More than 1,000 new animal and plant species have been discovered in the Mekong region in the last ten years alone." But many of these rattan resources are being overexploited, leading to a decline of many rattan species, prompting WWF to create the Sustainable Rattan Programme in Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam five years ago.
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