Story perspectives
China Cultivates Duzhong Plant as Alternative Rubber Source
1/30/2026
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Story summary
- Chinese scientists are cultivating the Duzhong plant in the Gobi Desert as an alternative rubber source.
- China, the largest consumer of natural rubber, imported over 7 million tonnes last year, mainly for cars.
- Duzhong is valued in traditional Chinese medicine and is described as the world's second-largest natural rubber source.
- It supports military uses by strengthening high-performance tyres and is used in advanced composites.
