Singapore – Heaven for Agarwood Products
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The Indo-Malaysian genus of Aquilaria in family Thymelaeaceae contains nearly about 15 species & Aquilaria malaccensis is one of them. It is a strong tree that can attain a maximum height of 40m and radius of 2.5m and mostly found in tropical forest conditions prevalent in an altitude range of 0-1000m above the sea level. This particular species grows in abundance at areas including Malaysia, Indonesia, India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Philippines, Myanmar, Thailand & Singapore. Auillaria malaccensis & Auillaria agollocha are famous for producing highly expensive & aromatic heartwood. This resinous heartwood is given several names including Gaharu, Agarwood, aloeswood, oud, Jinko & eaglewood. The demand for this wood is rising fast due to its large scale application in Agarwood beads, Aloeswood oil, Agarwood incense & perfumes across Middle East & Asia.
The illegal cultivation & trading of Aloeswood is putting this species under threat. Therefore Gaharu producing countries have formulated forest laws to protect its habitat. The law in some form or other regulates cultivation of Agarwood in Indonesia, Malaysia & India but countries like Thailand, Singapore, Myanmar, Philippines & Bhutan have made the species fully protected. India has put a ban on the export of all Agarwood products except Oud oil. Similarly the trade & cultivation of Auillaria is not legalized in Bangladesh. So nothing can be said for sure about the conservation of Agarwood in this country. However, Agarwood cultivation & trading quota has been fixed for each year in Indonesia. The cultivation quota for A. malaccensis accounts for four more species of Agarwood plant namely A. hirta, A. microcarpa, Gyrinops versteegii and A. beccariana. There is no specific governing body to supervise the trading & conservation of Agarwood in the South East Asian countries.
The export & import of Oud oil for the international trade market has all started from India & proceeded eastwards to Borneo & Sumatra through Myanmar, Malaysia, Indo-China bordering states, Indonesia & Philippines Since 1997, Papua New Guinea has been supplying a major chunk of Agarwood products including Jinko chips oil, Agarwood chips & Agarwood incense in international market. Earlier all its exported products to Singapore were sourced from Aquilaria filarial but later changed to Gyrinops iedermannji in 1999. Malaysia & Indonesia have been among the top suppliers of Aloeswood in global market with an export record of 1,043 t and 2,420 t in the years 1995 & 2001 respectively. Singapore is re exporting several Agarwood products including Agarwood chips, Aloeswood oil & Agarwood dust/powder from both Malaysia & Indonesia & continuing to influence the global trade statistics in a remarkable way. A whole total amount of 1,448t has so far been re-exported from Singapore in between the period of 1995-2001. India, Thailand & Hong Kong S.A.R are also among the Agarwood consuming & re-exporting states. Taiwan has been into export and import of A. malaccensis & Aquilaria spp for decades. Some other global recognized Agarwood supply sources include Saudi Arabia, Japan & United Arab Emirates. Both Malaysia & Indonesia has reported export of a variety of Agarwood producing species such as A. beccariana, A. microcarpa & Aetoxylon Sympetalum under the name of A filarial & A. malaccensis. Singapore finds difficulty in identifying the Agarwood species during export/import.
Agarwood grown in different countries does not show the same characteristic features. It is divided into separate grades depending on the type of product used in trading & the place where it is grown. Hence the value of Aloeswood and its extracts such as Agarwood beads, Oud oil, Agarwood incense, perfume, wine & tea is decided on the basis of certain factors including its source, aroma value, duration, purity, wood thickness, resin quantity, size & color. The kind of quality of Agarwood produced in a country may vary a lot from others. Some professional Agarwood dealers in Singapore are offering high quality Agarwood chips for USD$40, 00/10gm excluding freight charges.
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Source by loardjohan
