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The Agronomy and Economy of Important Tree Crops of the Developing World

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Industrial tree crops contribute substantially to the economy of many developing
countries on the Asian, African, and Latin American continents. With the World
Trade Organization (WTO) substantially focusing on agriculture, the commercial
aspects of growing these crops assume considerable economic significance. Within
the developing world, there are countries whose sole economic sustenance depends
on these crops. Even within the geographical boundary of a country, there are states
whose economy is exclusively linked to certain crops. For instance, within India,
arecanut, coconut, and rubber contribute substantially to the economy of the State of
Kerala in Southern India. Within the Asian continent, oil palm contributes substantially
to the economy of Malaysia and Indonesia.

Palm oil, a cheap source of cooking oil, is fast replacing fossil fuel as “green
fuel” from which diesel is extracted. Currently, while a ton of crude oil costs around
US$600 (though the price surge seems unstoppable as this book is being written),
palm oil is quoted at more than US$800 a ton. The global commercial impact of
these developments can well be imagined. With global warming becoming a very
serious issue of human survival, as has recently been amply demonstrated in the
Copenhagen Summit on climate change, with fossil fuel consumption considered the
main culprit, there is an ever-growing need for green fuel. Palm oil fits the bill.
Within the African continent, tea, coffee, and cocoa contribute substantially to
the economy of countries like Kenya, and The Republic of Cameroon. On the Latin
American continent, rubber is a very valuable foreign export. India grows some of these
crops that contribute substantially to the country’s economy. The ministry of commerce
under the Government of India deals with several aspects, and there are commodity
boards like the Coconut Board, the Rubber Board, the Tea and Coffee Boards, and
others that coordinate research, development, and commerce in these crops. The Rubber
Board in India has played a very effective role in the research, marketing, and development
of natural rubber. Historically, tea, coffee, and rubber were raised as “plantation
crops” on the Asian and African continents by the colonial powers. One can see
very large estates, running to hundreds of acres, of these crops in the countries on these
continents. For instance, in India, huge estates of tea exist in Northeastern India and of
rubber in the State of Kerala to the south. And most of these estates were controlled by
the colonial powers, primarily the British. With the political changes that took place
in these continents starting late 1950s and early 1960s and the emergence of independence
from the colonial powers that followed, the pattern of ownership changed
to native hands. Simultaneously a large number of small holders came into existence.
This has also happened with arecanut, coconut, and rubber in Kerala.

Arecanut is a masticatory nut that is paired with “betel leaf” (an annual twiner)
and tobacco along with lime (CaO), which gives a red color to the saliva, for the
practice of “chewing,” a popular habit in many parts of India and Pakistan. In fact,
an important market for arecanut from India is Pakistan. In addition, the dried nut is
processed into a scented end-product known locally as Supari, which is very popular
both in India and Pakistan.
Coconut is known as Kalpavriksha, a term derived from the ancient Indian language
Sanskrit meaning “Heaven’s Tree.” Coconut provides materials for culinary
purposes from its endocarp (the grated pulp), which is essential in South Indian food
preparations, especially those in Kerala. The edible oil—most of the cooking in
Kerala is done in coconut oil, which has a high percentage of unsaturated fats, now
considered “unhealthy” by the medical fraternity, though the opinion is divided—has
a large market. The oil extracted from the shell is an industrial lubricant. The tender
coconut water is a highly nutritive and invaluable health drink. It can even be used to
culture cells.
Tea and coffee are beverage crops. Cocoa is not only a beverage crop, but is the
main source for chocolate manufacture. Cashew is turning out to be a very important
industrial tree crop of India. A highly nutritive nut, free of cholesterol, it has a global
market and finds its use in bakery, sweet (particularly Oriental type) preparation,
and the cashew nut shell oil (CSL) finds its use in many industrial purposes. Of late,
its false fruit is increasingly used in the production of ethanol, another green fuel.
In rural India, the false fruit goes into the manufacture of illicit alcohol. Wattle
produces the bark from which tannin is extracted for tannery industry.

In summary, the book is an invaluable compendium of scientific and developmental
information and that would serve a large audience of academics, researchers,
developmental policymakers, and the millions of students of agriculture from the
developing world.

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Informasi Detail

Judul Seri

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No. Panggil

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Penerbit

New York : Elsevier Inc.., 2010

Deskripsi Fisik

vi, 351 Hlm.

Bahasa

English

ISBN/ISSN

978-0-123-84677-8

Klasifikasi

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Tipe Isi

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Tipe Media

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Tipe Pembawa

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Edisi

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Subjek

PERTANIAN.

Info Detail Spesifik

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Pernyataan Tanggungjawab

agus

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