Tapping panel dryness (TPD) causes a 15%-20% loss of annual rubber production in China and is a hard nut to crack in the natural rubber producing countries in the world. No workable solution is available so far although world efforts have been made for several decades. A new formulation of TPD cure was developed by CATAS-RRI in 2012 to recover latex regeneration ability from TPD affected trees at stoppage. This new formulation is a nutrient-based healthcare for curing TPD of the TPD rubber trees. It can be brushed onto the TPD bark or spray to the tapping panel or root system, and 50-60% of TPD trees treated with this recuperater can recover to produce latex again for at least 2-3 month without further treatment. This new formulation is now under pilot trial in Hainan, Guangdong and Yunnan provinces. If proved successful, the new formulation could be a good news to all natural rubber producing countries in the world.
