Overview
This project primarily focused on the technical and social elements of forming a new coconut veneer-based Engineered Wood Product industry.
Coconuts are pivotal in the livelihoods of quasi-subsistence smallholders who dominate Pacific primary production. Viability of this sector is being challenged by the increasing proportion of the coconut plantation estate becoming senile, characterised by significantly reduced fruiting capacity.
This project, AGB/2021/172 Commercial Engagement Fund (CEF), was conducted in parallel and in partnership with the existing and overarching FST/2019/128 project team. The FST project primarily focused on the technical and social elements of forming a new coconut veneer-based Engineered Wood Product industry. The CEF project aimed to inject critical assessment and develop strategies for commercial stakeholder engagement, private sector alignment, thinking and potential investment and enable market access.
Key project outcomes include:
- Development of a methodology for identifying potential private sector partners for a specific project.
- Provided a sound and disciplined commercial perspective into identifying opportunities to transition an existing research project with identifiable commercial application, to private sector partnership and collaboration leading to sustainable and viable socio-economic outcomes.
- Increased understanding of the commercial perspective which researchers need to more fully embrace to ensure effective connection with private sector.
- Assessed Value Chain Research from initial resource supply chain stakeholders (senile stem supply), to end market users (Value Add actors) for coconut veneer.
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