The Lao People’s Democratic Republic (Lao PDR) is a land-locked, mountainous, and forest-rich country in continental Southeast Asia. The Lao forestry sector is one of the main export revenue earners, comprising 40 percent of total export value in 1996. The forest cover has, however, been reduced by excessive shifting cultivation, in which 1.8 million people are engaged. The pressure on forests is also increasing due to the growing demand for forest products in neighbouring countries such as Thailand and Viet Nam.
During 1989-1991, the Lao government with FAO assistance reviewed its forestry sector through the Tropical Forest Action Plan exercise and in 1992 the government adopted a new forestry policy, including the development of non-wood forest products (NWFPs).
In response to the government request, FAO formulated and implemented a project under the Technical Cooperation Programme, “Improved benzoin production (TCP/LAO/6611)”, from 1996 to 1998. Lao or Siam benzoin, a balsamic resin derived from Styrax tonkinensis, is one of the traditional NWFPs that possesses potential for improvement to benefit rural people and enhance high-value, low-volume exports, highlighting the role of NWFPs in poverty alleviation and sustainable management of forests.
This TCP project undertook a series of studies and produced many valuable technical documents, but their distribution was limited. Thus, FAO felt it worthwhile to produce a comprehensive monograph of benzoin based on these documents in order to share the information in a wider arena.
My thanks are due to Dennis Johnson, who edited the original documents, and Masakazu Kashio, FAO Forest Resources Officer, who formulated and backstopped the project, and consolidated the scattered information into this monograph.
I hope that this publication will serve as a useful reference for resource managers and specialists seeking opportunities to improve the management of Styrax species and increase the effective production, processing, marketing and utilization of benzoin.
R.B. Singh
Assistant Director-General and
Regional Representative for
Asia and the Pacific
