Natural Rubber
Some natural latexes are the main ingredient in the extraction of natural rubber, an indispensable raw material for all kinds of industries and essential for the manufacture of surgical gloves, condoms or tyres. All the latex used in Europe is imported, extracted fundamentally from the the Hevea brasiliensis tree. The largest producers in the world are Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand, three Asian countries that have practically the worldwide monopoly of this resource. In order to find alternatives to this commercial dependence and promote the cultivation of latex-producing plant species in the European Union, within the VII Framework Programme, a research project is being undertaken in which twelve technological centres, universities and companies related to this matter are taking part. The Basque Neiker-Tecnalia technological centre is part of this consortium and its function is to carry out research into, amongst other matters, the genotype and the possibilities of introducing into