Future prospects of Bamboo farming |

Hey everybody,

        In this context we will give you a brief guide about the Bamboo farming, the future prospects of the Bamboo business and the Bamboo farming.

Bamboo is a typically hardy plant that basically belongs to the family of grasses i.e Poaceae.  Giant bamboo is believed to be the largest member among the grasses  family.
Scientific name to giant Bamboo is  Dendrocalamus giganteus .

Bamboo is  recognized as one of the fastest growing plant globally because of the rhizome-dependent system. This kind of plant can be observed in almost all the continents. And the most amazing thing is that bamboos doesn't require specific conditions for their growth. Their growth is possible in diverse climates and conditions. Bamboo with its graceful form has been an inspiration to artists and poets in many eastern countries. It is considered to bring good luck and prosperity to those who live near it. This is, in fact, a reality as bamboo is now established as an eco- friendly crop with high socio-economic returns.

        This plant is a jack of all trades. From bamboo, almost everything can be made​​.  Because it is superior to all other plants and raw materials. Many people’s experience of bamboo products is limited to sitting on bamboo furniture and matting, using bamboo baskets or using bamboo chop sticks to eat some bamboo shoots. The last 15 years had seen dramatic growth in  the variety of commercial bamboo products such as flooring, lamina ted furniture, building panels, high quality yarn and fabrics, activated carbon and bamboo extracts. The emergence of bamboo as a timber substitute has coincided with a growing demand for timber. Bamboo’s appearance, strength and hardness combined with its rapid growth cycle and capacity for sustainable harvesting make it an increasingly attractive wood substitute. Bamboo is currently mostly used as a wood supplemental or as a wood substitute. That was the most obvious solution because blades can be harvested after maximum of 5 years and the rhizomes automatically grow new stalks. A conifer can only be used after 100 to 110 years of growth and an oak tree needs a minimum of about 80 years. Then trees must be replanted else where.

Many of the Indian farmers are earning Crores of rupees from bamboo farming, there is the wide market potential in bamboo farming. Is does not require the constant watch to look after, do not require the farm operations like Tillages, hoeing, as like of the other crops.

Bamboo successfully grown in the barran land, it does not require the fertilizer does. It grows from its own efforts and you will be get good harvest after 2 years. The Bamboo plant can produce the Bamboo until 7 years of age and you do not require the constant planting till 7 years.

            The market outlook for bamboo is strong. These recent developments have created new opportunities for bamboo markets to be targeted for rural development and poverty reduction. In particular, the emergence of near-source value-adding in modern supply chains increases the sector’s potential economic impact on poor rural communities The feasibility study shows that in Vietnam today, every ton of bamboo used for producing bamboo flooring has almost 5 times the pro-poor financial impact than if it were used to make paper.

             Bamboo supplies 10% of the world’s paper pulp. The cost per metric ton of paper is over 700 US dollar. It can be estimated that a plantation of giant bamboo with 200 bamboo clumps per hectare can give an annual yield of about 2000 poles with biomass of as much as 50 metric tons of bamboo for the manufacture of paper pulp. Fifty metric tons of bamboo can yield 20 metric tons of paper pulp which at a cost of  give a potential income of US $14000 per hectare per year. Bamboo shoots are a nutritious vegetable. India has importing tons of Bamboos every year, from that you can think how Bamboo farming has demand in India. Species suitable for edible shoot production are grown on a plantation scale. Such plantations provide both edible shoots and mature poles for construction and generate an income of over US $50 million per year. Bamboo charcoal and activated carbon are also in high demand. The manufacture of bamboo charcoal is a cottage industry in some parts of Africa. A Study estimates that at present, bamboo markets have a combined annual value of approximately US $7 billion. Traditional products account for almost 95%of this value.

     Newer industries offer growth potential and are expected to rival traditional bamboo-related markets over the medium-term. Markets for bamboo can be grouped into ‘traditional’ and ‘non-traditional’ or ‘emerging’ markets. Demand remains strong in traditional markets such as handicrafts, blinds and bamboo shoots with profitable opportunities despite moderate growth.

          Other traditional markets, such as chopsticks, are highly commoditized with low growth and low-profit margins. Emerging bamboo markets include flooring, building products and laminated furniture. These represent the largest growth opportunities for bamboo. 

           Bamboos have a wide range of demand right from the paper industry to construction. This is because it has strong durability than other timber. Bamboo is a lightweight mater hence is has wide use and demand.
       Strong international demand coupled with China’s export growth and existing bamboo-based industries has produced a growing bamboo sector within wood-based product industries. Supply problems, including the high demand for certified timber, create a positive market outlook for bamboo. Overall prospects for a diversified bamboo sector look strong.

This is all about how a bamboo farming have good future prospects.