THAILAND

INTRODUCTION

Main non-wood forest products

The most important NWFP of Thailand are bamboo, rattan, lac, honey, gums and resins, spices and medicinal plants. Other NWFP include food and bark for tanning and dyeing.

General information

In Thailand, NWFP are defined as all products from the forest, excluding wood and other intangible products (Subansenee 1995). Management of NWFP has its legal framework in the Forest Act B.E. 2484 (1941), the Royal Decree (1987) and the Forest Regulation (1989). NWFP are divided into two categories: protected and non-protected NWFP. Neither category may be collected in conservation forests. Protected NWFP may be collected or harvested in small amounts for subsistence needs.

Protected NWFP include wild orchids; aromatic wood (Dracaena loureirei Gaegnep), agarwood (Aquilaria sp.), drumm (Mansonia gagei) and sappan (Caesalpinia sappan Linn.); charcoal; yang oil (gurjan); some barks, including Castanopsis spp., Walsura spp., Hopea spp., Cotylelobium melanoxylon Pierre, Persea spp., Litsea spp, Shorea spp., Artocarpus spp., Cinnamomum spp. and Platycerium spp.; gums and resin, including gutta percha, Pentace spp., jelutong, lacquer resin, and oleoresin; some palm leaves and some ferns, including Platycerium spp. and Osmunda spp.; rattans; and talipot (Corypha umbraculiferra) (Subansenee 1994; 1995).

Timber harvesting in the natural forest has been banned since 1989 and the forest products at present are mainly of the non-wood variety. However, there is no resource management. In particular, bamboo, rattan, gum and resin, edible insects and mushrooms are becoming scarce in the forest.

The Workshop on Promotion of Tropical NWFP in Thailand in 1999 made a decision to concentrate support on four NWFP: bamboo, rattan, sugar palm (Arenga pinnata), medicinal plants and spices.

Table 1. NWFP exports from Thailand, 1990 to 1999 (million US$)

Item	1990		1991		1992		1993		1994
Item	kg	US$	kg	US$	kg	US$	kg	US$	kg	US$
Lac Bamboo Gum Rattan (raw cane) Rattan furniture Natural honey Resins Spices	4 683 905 567 023 1 499 628 289 3 058 014 2 431 646 120 30 704	2.45 0.03 0.23 0.003 6.22 0.69 0.09	3 606 212 1 076 422 1 841 450 6 524 2 254 075 1 205 772 - 26 311	2.23 0.03 0.28 0.02 4.72 0.38 - 0.03	2 600 388 655 891 1 391 300 4 316 1 634 880 2 406 596 - 12 649	2.74 0.05 0.22 0.01 3.76 0.72 - 0.02	2 892 907 1 030 328 1 475 334 2 537 1 099,785 2 108 249 - 23 012	4.75 0.07 0.24 0.01 2.21 0.63 - 0.03	5 559 837 351 506 1 370 103 724 901 022 1 894 423 24 000 8 322	7.84 0.06 0.32 0.004 1.95 0.60 0.01 0.02
Total	12 271 329	9.71	10 016 766	7.69	8 706 020	7.52	8 632 152	7.94	10 109 937	10.8

Item	1995		1996		1997		1998		1999
Item	kg	US$	kg	US$	kg	US$	kg	US$	kg	US$
Lac Bamboo Gum Rattan (raw cane) Rattan furniture Natural honey Resins Spices	2 123 753 183 060 1 112 246 389 724 549 1 908 476 7 100 26 712	3.53 0.03 0.21 0.0042 1.57 0.65 0.0016 0.07	2 164 735 248 138 1 019 760 1 726 709 846 2 655 865 2 756 103 935	2.95 0.01 0.21 0.04 1.47 0.98 0.03 0.21	2 588 399 88 704 1 462 435 28 018 534 797 1 671 963 800 120 007	4.16 0.02 0.77 0.04 1.13 0.86 0.001 0.23	2 632 055 282 209 1 253 425 - 327 358 1 995 897 110 225 109 071	2.95 0.01 0.36 - 0.84 0.73 0.23 0.27	3 722 902 122 810 1 837 630 36 011 493 852 1 053 103 65 025 83 680	4.30 0.05 0.94 0.02 1.33 0.61 0.13 0.20
Total	4 376 285	6.07	6 906 761	5.90	6 407 306	7.21	6 710 240	5.39	7 415 013	7.58

* US$1.00 = 45 baht

Source: Royal Forest Department (undated)

The uses of NWFP are widespread especially in rural areas of the country and people collect bamboo, rattan, gum and resin, lac and many others for extra income. It is difficult to obtain data on the actual production of NWFP, because most harvesting is done illegally. Since agricultural lands are very limited, many villagers depend on NWFP gathering (e.g. bamboo, mushrooms, edible and medicinal plants and sugar palm). NWFP in Thailand serve as food and as a source of income and also provide rural employment and foreign exchange.

PLANTS AND PLANT PRODUCTS

Food

There are over 500 species of edible forest plants sold in Thai markets. They include fruits, nuts, leaves, bark and shoots. In the rainy season in northeast Thailand, food from forests can account for half of the food consumed by some rural villagers. Edible products also bring extra income (Subansenee 1995). Edible plants include cashew (Anacardium occidentalis), Madras thorn (Pithecellobium dulce), jackfruit (Artocarpus heterophyllus) and neem (Azedirachta indica).

Mushrooms are found in forests throughout the country. Some favourite mushroom varieties are Termitomyces sp. and Russula delica, sold for B80 to 120/kg (US$3.20 to 4.80/kg). Many edible mushrooms also act as an ectomycorrhiza, helping trees to take up phosphorus. Thus, mushrooms can be both a cash crop, and a means of improving tree growth in plantations (Subansenee 1995).

Edible bamboo shoots are popular in both fresh and preserved food (Subansenee 1995). Bamboo species for shoot production include pai tong (Dendrocalamus asper), pai bongyai (D. brandisii), pai sangdoi (D. strictus), pai wan (Bambusa sp.), pai seesuk (B. blumeana), pai pa (B. bambos), pai ruak (Thyrsostachys siamensis), pai ruakdam (T. oliveri) and pai rai (Gigantochloa albociliata). Shoot harvesting occurs from May to October (the rainy season). In bamboo plantations, Dendrocalamus asper plants of one to two years can give five or six shoots each year. About 20 percent of the shoot production is consumed fresh, while 80 percent is processed for canning (Subansenee 1995).

Table 2. Area and yields of Dendrocalamus asper (pai tong) plantations

Area and yield

1990

1991

1992

1993

1994

Total area (rai)

Shoot yield, kg/rai

Shoot production, MT

Culm yield, kg/rai

Culm production, MT

180 155

1 309

131 490

3 850

497 840

236 426

1 312

172 805

3 855

612 720

344 296

1 338

206 678

3 848

767 480

391 499

1 343

259 614

3 852

997 310

424 169

1 353

300 518

3 858

1 121 071

Source: Pungbun Na Ayudhya (2000)

Table 3. Values of Dendrocalamus asper (pai tong) shoot exports (in million baht)

Item

1990

1991

1992

1993

1994

Steamed canned shoots

Dried shoots

Fresh shoots

693.1

3.6

3.1

1 421.2

4.2

3.0

956.0

4.7

3.0

1 124.7

7.5

1.6

1 110.9

6.2

2.0

Total

699.8

1 428.4

961.6

1 133.8

1 119.1

Source: Pungbun Na Ayudhya (2000)

In northeast Thailand, people in some provinces eat rattan fruits and shoots. Normally, they collect the rattan from the wild but farmers are now starting to plant rattan for shoots. The most popular species is vaiyai (Calamus siamensis) (Subansenee 1995).

Calamus viminalis also produces edible shoots. Consumption of rattan shoots is the best alternative utilization of rattan in Thailand. Edible rattan shoots increase farmers’ incentives to establish rattan plantations. Instead of waiting for cane production for over six to seven years, farmers can manage early utilization of rattan shoots within the second year of cultivation. Rattan shoots have now become a popular dish in Thailand, especially in the north and northeast, as well as in Lao PDR and Viet Nam.

Sugar palm (Arenga pinnata) is a multipurpose species. It is known mainly for its sap for sugar making and as a provider of edible starch from the trunk. The fruit cooked in syrup is a favourite Thai dessert. Sugar palm fruit is one of the most important edible plants but is becoming very rare due to unsustainable harvesting. Thailand has to import the products from other countries.

Medicines

Over 800 species of medicinal plants are described in Thai traditional recipes. About 400 species are available in traditional drug stores and about 51 species are used in the traditional medicine industry. Some medicinal plants with commercial potential that are used in traditional medicine are Rauvolfia serpentina, Gloriosa superba, Cassia angustifolia, Amomum krervanh, Dioscorea spp., Cartharanthus roscus, Strychnos nux-vomica, Diospyros mollis, Costus speciosus, Derris elliptica, Hydrocarpus anthelmintica, Calophyllum inopyllum and Stemona tuberosa. (Subansenee 1995). Some other medicinals plants are faa thalai chone (Andrographis paniculata), Carpinus viminea, Arcangelisia flava and Tinospora crispa.

Table 4. Exports of medicinal plant products

Year	Export quantity (MT)	Export value (baht)
1988	1 393	66 383 000
1989	3 072	133 369 000
1990	2 210	74 419 000
1991	2 009	103 097 000
1992	3 379	173 394 000

Source: Subansenee (1995)

Some important forest spices are Amomum krervanh (best cardamom), Cinnamomum iners and C. bejolghota. Some cultivated spice trees in the country include Eugenia caryophyllus (clove), Apium graveolens, Cinnamomum verum and Myristica fragrans (nutmeg) (Subansenee 1995).

Table 5. Exports of spices (cinnamon and cinnamon-tree flavours, cloves, nutmeg, mace and cardamom)

Year	Export quantity (MT)	Export value (baht)
1987	183	18 380 000
1988	378	38 347 000
1989	772	54 827 000
1990	846	51 124 000
1991	524	35 378 000
1992	312	34 567 000
1993 (Jan–Nov)	289	35 774 000

Source: Subansenee (1995)

Perfumes and cosmetics

Agarwood (Aquilaria spp.) is a protected NWFP in Thailand. Low-grade material is used to distil the volatile agar attar oil used in the perfume and tobacco industries. High-grade material is exported to Arabian countries where it is used as incense and, when powdered, in the manufacture of joss sticks. The ground wood is also used as a stimulant, a tonic and a sedative. It is an ingredient in several medicinal preparations against rheumatism, body pains and heart palpitations. The price of agarwood can reach almost US$200/kg depending on the wood grade (Subansenee 1995).

Kobuak powder is obtained by grinding the bark of Persea spp. and all parts (except the leaves) of Cinnamomum inners (Sial 1995). Kobuak is used for making joss sticks (Subansenee 1995).

Table 6. Exports of kobuak powder

Year	Export quantity (MT)	Export value (baht)
1988	5 003	47 891 000
1989	4 190	41 134 000
1990	342	3 737 000
1991	4 087	45 059 000
1992	3 882	46 609 000

Source: Subansenee (1995)

Dyeing and tanning

Bark is a source of tannin and natural dye. Some bark is used in medicines or in spices. Permits are required for harvesting some species such as Artocarpus lakoocha, Broussonetia papyrifera, Cinnamomon bejolghota, Shorea floribunda and Pentace burmanica. Subansenee (1995) reports further that permits are required for harvesting the species Castanopsis spp., Lithocarpus spp., Quercus spp., Walsura spp., Hopea spp., Cotylelobium melanoxylon Pierre, Persea spp., Litsea spp., Artocarpus spp., Cinnamomum spp., Shorea spp. and Pentace spp.

The most important natural dyes used in cottage industries in Thailand are annatto tree (Bixa orella L., family Bixaceae) (kum sad, kum fad, kum ngo, sead, or chad); sappan wood or false sandalwood (Caesalpinia sappan Linn., family Caesalpiniaceae) (fang, ngai, or fang som); ebony (Diospyros mollis Griff., family Ebenaceae) (kleu or ma-kleu); gambodge tree (Garcinia hanburyi Hook. F., family Guttiferae) (rong); catechu or cutch tree (Acacia catechu Willd., family Leguminosae) (bae, si-siad khean, si siad leung, or si siad); jack tree (Artocarpus heterophyllus Lamk. A. integrifolia Linn. F. syn., family Moraceae) (ka nun, ma ka nun, mak mea, nun, ka noo, payoisa, or nako); mai luang (Cudrania javanensis Trecul Macrula cochinchiensis Lour syn., family Moraceae) (kae lae, luang, kae kong, kae, nam kae, or chang ga tog); indigo (Indigofera tinctoria Linn. I. arrecta Hochst syn., I. suffrutiosa Mill, I. sumatrana Gaertn., family Papilionaceae) (kram, kam, or kram yom) (Subansenee 1995).

Utensils, handicrafts and construction materials

Thailand has 60 species of bamboo in 13 genera (i.e. Arundinaria, Bambusa, Cephalostachyum, Dendrocalamus, Dinochloa, Gigantochloa, Melocalamus, Melocanna, Neohouzeaua, Pseudosasa, Schizostachyum, Teinostachyum and Thyrsostachys). Wild bamboo mostly appears in mixed deciduous forests (Subansenee 1995).

There has not been any particular inventory of bamboo resources in Thailand. In 1988, bamboo covered about 5.5 percent (8 100 000 ha) of the forest area (148 600 000 ha) of Thailand (Subansenee 1995). More recent satellite imagery (LANDSAT TM taken in January/February 1991) combined with field mapping revealed that bamboos were found over an area of 32.83 million rai (5 525 800 ha).

The important commercial bamboos in Thailand for construction work and supporting poles include pai liang (B. nana), B. bambos, B. blumeana, D. asper, D. strictus, pai sangnuan (D. membranaceus), T. oliveri and pai phak (G. hasskariana); important species for basketry and handicrafts include B. nana, B. blumeana, D. membranaceus, T. siamensis, T. oliveri, G. albociliata, G. hasskariana, pai griab (Schizostachyum humilis), pai kaolaam (Cephalostachyum pergracile) and pai hiae (C. virgatum) (Pattanavibool 2000).

Thyrsostachys siamensis, Bambusa blumeana Schult, Bambusa nana and Dendrocalamus asper are also cultivated. The area of bamboo plantations expanded rapidly during the first half of the 1990s (Pungbun Na Ayudhya 2000).

According to Subansenee (1995) all rattans were brought under protection in 1987 because overexploitation had depleted the resource. Permits from the Royal Forest Department (RFD) are required for harvesting.

There are more than 60 species of rattan in Thailand occurring in swamp, evergreen, dry evergreen and mixed deciduous forests at elevations up to 1 000 m asl. The most important large stem rattans in Thailand used for furniture are kordam (Calamus manan), kampuan (C. longisetus), namphung (Calamus sp.), keesean (C. rudentum), nguay (C. peregrinus) and the most important small stem rattans are takathong (C. caesius), keephung (C. blumei), lek (C. javensis), horm (C. pandanosmus) and keereh (C. densiflorus). Besides cane production, some species of rattan produce edible shoots.

Exudates

Thailand has about 27 plants which produce gums and resins. They are used mostly to satisfy the subsistence needs of rural people. Two important Thai resins are gum oleoresin (Pinus merkusii) and yang oil or gurjan (Dipterocarpus alatus Roxb. and other dipterocarps). Besides these, Thailand produces gambodge from Garcinia hanburyi Hook.f., Chinese lacquer (natural lacquer) from Melanorrhoea usitata Wall (syn. Gluta usitata), benzoin from Styrax benzoin Dry, gutta percha from Palagium obovatum Engler, jelutong from Dyera costulata Hook.f and gum dammar from dipterocarps (Subansenee 1995).

Table 7. Exports of gum and resin from 1988 to 1993

Year	Export quantity (MT)	Export value (baht)
1988	2 210	21 308 000
1989	2 378	20 767 000
1990	1 534	15 318 000
1991	1 874	18 271 000
1992	1 398	10 928 000
1993 (Jan–Nov)	11	1 028 000

Source: Subansenee (1995)

ANIMALS AND ANIMAL PRODUCTS

Honey and beeswax

There are four species of bees in Thailand, of which the rock bee (Apis dorsata), the hive bee (A. cerana) and the dwarf bee (A. flores) are found in natural forests. In addition, A. melifera has been introduced for beekeeping (Subansenee 1995). Other products than honey obtained from bees are wax, pollen, royal jelly, propolis, venom and bees themselves. The current production, prices and demand are difficult to estimate. Beekeeping became more popular in Thailand during the 1980s. In 1990, there were about 77 000 hives in Thailand. It is estimated that annual national honey production from beekeeping is about 2 000 tonnes (Subansenee 1995). In 1994, honey exports were 1 94.4 tonnes (26.9 millon baht).

Table 8. Exports of natural honey, 1987 to 1993

Year	Export quantity (MT)	Export value (baht)
1987	745	11 111 000
1988	1 750	24 548 000
1989	704	9 290 000
1990	2 432	31 114 000
1991	1 206	16 966 000
1992	2 407	32 392 000
1993 (Jan–Nov)	2 108	28 233 000

Source: Subansenee (1995)

Bushmeat

Oecophylla smaragdina (weaver red ant), Omphisa sp. (bamboo borer) and Vespa sp. (wasp larvae) are edible insects found in all forests and important foods at the national level (Nutchanart and Prachoen 1999; Yanyong and Pannee 1999; Prachoen and Nutchanart 1999).

Other non-edible animal products

Thailand is the second largest lac-producing country after India. The world production of lac is about 30 000 tonnes of which Thailand’s proportion is 40 percent. The production of lac fluctuates depending on weather conditions and the world market price. From 1984 to 1994 production has averaged 6 000 tonnes annually (Subansenee 1995).

The largest lac-producing areas are in the north and northeast. There are many trees and shrubs that can host the lac insect (Laccifer lacca). The major lac host tree in Thailand is the raintree (Samanea saman Merr). Other highly productive host trees are Zizyphus mauretiana, Albizzia lucida, Combretum guadrangulare and Acacia glauca. Although lac can be cropped twice a year, in practice it is done only once, from November to January (Subansenee 1995).

Table 9. Exports of lac, 1987 to 1992

Year	Export quantity (MT)	Export values (baht)
1987	7 685	287 184 000
1988	3 483	121 616 000
1989	6 505	151 760 000
1990	4 740	115 907 000
1991	3 692	106 627 000
1992	2 650	124 753 000

Source: Subansenee (1995)

REFERENCES

Pattanavibool, R. 2000. Bamboo research and development in Thailand. Bangkok, Thailand, Royal Forest Department. (Mimeo.)

Pungbun Na Ayudhya, P. 2000. Bamboo resources and utilization in Thailand. In L. Puangchit, B. Thaiutsa and S. Thamincha, eds. Bamboo 2000, pp. 6–12. International Symposium, The Empress Hotel, Chiangmai, Thailand.

Royal Forest Department. 1999. Forestry statistics of Thailand. Bangkok, Thailand, Data Centre, Information Office, Royal Forest Department. 153 pp.

Sial, M. I. 1995. International trade in non-wood forest products in the Asia-Pacific region. In Beyond timber: social, economic and cultural dimensions of non-wood forest products in Asia and the Pacific. RAP Publication 1995/13. Bangkok, Thailand, FAO Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific.

Subansenee, W. 1994. Thailand. In Non-wood forest products in Asia. RAP Publication 1994/28.

Bangkok, FAO Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific.

Subansenee, W. 1995. Major non-wood products of Thailand. In Beyond timber: social, economic and cultural dimensions of non-wood forest products in Asia and the Pacific. RAP Publication 1995/13. Bangkok, Thailand, FAO Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

This report has been realized within the framework of the EC-FAO Partnership Programme "Sustainable Forest Management in Asia". The contents are based on available information at FAO headquarters in Rome, as well as on a report provided by Mr Narong Pengpreecha and Mr Watinee Thongchet, Forest Products Research and Development Division, Royal Forest Department, Chatuchak, Bangkok, Thailand.

Additional information on NWFP in Thailand would be appreciated and duly acknowledged.

QUANTITATIVE NWFP DATA OF THAILAND

Product

Resource

Economic value