Hi SZ,
Thanks so much for resending this info. I remember reading it when you first posted it, but it seems more pertinent now that we know things are rolling in Vietnam and that Kraig Labs is involved in the project (as opposed to us hoping they were before the official ERC and IRC came through).
And I agree that using local production numbers is much better considering the wide range of styles/strains/climates that are used for sericulture around the world. So thank you for providing those
From the article, it looks like current production yields for cocoons in that area is about 1.4 metric tons per hectare per year. What that equates to in raw silk is anyones guess. From what I've gathered, this is using the lower yielding mulberry strains from China. I'd imagine if they began using the high-yielding hybrid strains, this 1.4 ton/ha/year for cocoons could increase.
From your original post I read that to convince farmers to switch back to mulberry, they would need to see an economic equivalent to what they make cultivating other vegetables (peppers, beans, etc.) which is about 250 million VND per hectare. Thats quite a bit more than the mulberry/silkworm farmer average of 140 to 160 million VND. I think this is why Vietnam is interested in Kraig Labs silk. The high quality silk will be able to create a premium that covers the increase income for mulberry farmers. That and the new higher-yielding mulberry strains.
It's also nice to see that they can start harvesting the mulberry leaves at 6 months. Even though the yields are much less than when the plants are more mature, its nice to know they can begin feeding the worms relatively quickly without having to wait for an entire forest to grow. You originally posted this a year ago so it is feasible that the project has been already implemented and that some mulberry fields are at least harvestable at low yields.
Anyways, thanks again for your continued due diligence. Always appreciated.
