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|titlepreviouspage= Gutta percha (FAO, NWFP 6)|previousshortname=Gutta percha|titlefollowingpage= Maçaranduba (FAO, NWFP 6)|followingshortname=Maçaranduba

 <center>'''COPALBALATA'''</center>BALATA == DESCRIPTION AND USES==Genuine balata is obtained as a latex from trees of certain South American ''Manilkara '' species,in particular M. ''Manilkara bidentata''. Like sorva, balata latex is coagulated by boiling and turned intoblocks, the form in which it is traded. Balata is sometimes described as the South American gutta percha. Its non-elastic, insulatingproperties made it, in the past, a valuable export commodity, used for covering submarineand telephone cables, and in the manufacture of machine belting. Its most well-known usewas in providing the outer covering for golf balls. Today, its use in Brazil, once the majorworld source of balata, is limited to a number of small applications such as the manufactureof souvenir figures and surgical implants. == WORLD SUPPLY AND DEMAND TRENDS===== Markets===An international market for balata no longer exists. During the 1960s, when Brazil was themain supplier, the United States was the dominant importer. During this period, Brazil exported around 500 tonnes/year to a world market of approximately 800 tonnes.In the 1970s, synthetic substitutes were developed which immediately displaced balata's rolein world markets, and this remains the case today. Table 36 indicates that only small or nilamounts of balata have been exported from Brazil in recent years. The Brazilian domestic market remains a very small one. Balata finds some use in dentistryand for surgical implants. Its most visible application is its use in the cottage crafts industryfor making model animals and other figures, mostly for sale to tourists. Neither domestic nor international markets offer any prospect for substantially increased useof balata. === Supply sources===The extent of balata production today in countries other than Brazil is not known, but it isunlikely to be substantial given the collapse in world markets. Peru, like Brazil, was asignificant producer in the 1950s, and in the 1960s and early 1970s Venezuela and Surinameappeared in United States' import statistics as exporting countries for balata. Brazilian data indicate a steady and severe decline in production over the last 30 years,consistent with world market trends. Production in Pará state, the main source of balata, wasalmost 1 500 tonnes in 1961. By 1978 (Table 36), total Brazilian production was down to400 tonnes and by the latter half of the 1980s recorded production was only around 20 tonnesannually; it was 18 tonnes in 1990.

=== Quality and prices===When balata was a significant item of international trade, its quality depended on its "gutta"(trans polyisoprene) content. Commercial balata was said, typically, to contain about40-50% gutta, most of the balance being resinous material. Genuine balata of Brazilianorigin (from M. ''Manilkara bidentata'') was claimed to be of superior quality, with a gutta content of upto 80%. 

 == PLANT SOURCES===== Botanical/common names===

*[[''Manilkara bidentata '']] (DC.) A. Chev. Balata,(syn. ''Mimusops bidentata '' DC., balata verdadeira''Mimusops balata '' Gaertn.) - Balata, balata verdadeira, bulletwood tree Genuine balata comes from M. ''Manilkara bidentata '' although the term balata is sometimes used in awider sense to include other non-elastic gums such as maçaranduba (from M. ''[[Manilkara huberi]]'') andcoquirana (from ''Ecclinusa balata'')<font color=#901040>(Accepted name : ''[[Chrysophyllum sanguinolentum]]'')</font>. === Description and distribution===M. ''Manilkara bidentata '' is a tall tree, reaching 30 m or more, and is found mostly in northern Amazoniaand the Guianas. == COLLECTION/PRIMARY PROCESSING==Traditional methods of collecting the latex have entailed felling the tree and girdling the entiretrunk so as to recover as much latex as possible at one time. Such methods are still claimedto be favoured by many ''balateiros '' today. Tapping methods that are now used for balata involve making a series of circular incisionsround the trunk of the tree, eventually extending to the lower branches, which the ''balateiro'' reaches by climbing. Each circular incision meets a vertical channel, down which the latexflows to a receiver fixed to the tree. The frequency with which trees can be tapped appears to be very low and dependent onrenewal of the bark which has been removed during the first tapping; different sources statethis to be only about once every 3-5 years or every 8-10 years. LOPES (1970), citing viewsexpressed by the "patrons" of several commercial operations in Brazil, says that a 15-20 yearrest period is necessary. Furthermore, this is only possible for those trees that survive thefirst tapping - survival rates were reported to be anything between 80% and 25%. In a similar manner to sorva, the collected latex is boiled in a large galvanized vessel and theresulting coagulated material then removed, washed with cold water and placed in woodenboxes to foim blocks. After removal from the boxes, the gum is left for 2-3 days to harden.

=== Yields===As might be expected, latex yields per tree are very variable and not easily predicted,although there appears to be some correlation with bark thickness. Felled trees have beenclaimed to yield up to 40 litres of latex or 5-8 times as much as a standing tree. Trees whichare tapped a second time have been found to produce only a third the quantity of latexobtained from the first tapping. Average yields of 18-20 litres of latex per tree have been reported for tapped trees, and inBrazil, in a 6-month period, one person is said to be able to tap 200-300 trees, producinga total of 800-2000 kg of balata (i.e., of the order of 4-7 kg of balata per tree). Reports ofbalata production in Guyana in the 1930s describe yields of 5 litres of latex (producing 2.5kg of balata) per tree as being good, although up to five times these yields can be obtainedin exceptional cases. == VALUE-ADDED PROCESSING==Separation of the gutta and resinous fractions of balata is, as far as is known, always carriedout in the end-user country and there are few opportunities for value-added processing atsource. == PRODUCTS OTHER THAN LATEX==Apart from occasional timber use, there has been no other significant exploitation of thebalata tree. == DEVELOPMENTAL POTENTIAL==The practical difficulties in cultivating and tapping M. ''Manilkara bidentata '' are, if anything, even greaterthan for ''Couma '' spp., the source of sorva. In the absence of any significant market forbalata, and the fact that there appear to be no problems in meeting local demand fromexisting supply sources, at least in Brazil, there is little incentive to undertake research onsilvicultural aspects or improved tapping methodologies, and the developmental prospectsmust be considered negligible. == SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY==*BRULEAUX, A.M. (1989) [Two former products of the Guianese forest: rosewood essence and balatagum] (in French). ''Bois et Forets Forêts des Tropiques'', (219), 99-113.*COPPEN, J.J.W., GORDON, A. and GREEN, C.L. (1994) The developmental potential of selectedAmazonian non-wood forest products: an appraisal of opportunities and constraints. Paper presentedat the FAO Expert Consultation Meeting on Non-Wood Forest Products, Santiago, Chile, 4-8 July.*FANSHAWE, D.B. (1948) Forest Products of British Guiana. Part II. Balata. pp 16-21. In ''BritishGuiana Forestry Bulletin No. 2''.*LESCURE, J.P. (1995) [Extractivism in Amazonia. Viability and Development] (in French). FinalProject Report. ORSTOM/INPA/Aarhus University.*LESCURE, J.P. and CASTRO, A. (1990) [Extractivism in central Amazonia. An outline of economicand botanical aspects] (in French). Paper presented at UNESCO-IUFRO-FAO Workshop

:"L'Aménagement et la Conservation de l'Ecosystème Forestier Tropical Humide", Cayenne, 10-19May.*LOPES, J.R. (1970) [''Contribution to the Study of the Exploitation of Balata in Amazonia Region''] (inPortuguese). 8pp. Ministry of Agriculture, Pará, Brazil.*MORS, W.B. and RIZZINI, C.T. (1966) Latex-yielding plants. pp 1-12. In ''Useful Plants of Brazil''.San Francisco/London: Holden-Day.*OLIVEIRA, F.A., MARQUES, L.C.T. and FERREIRA, C.A.P. (1992) [''Non-Wood Products of theNational Forest of Tapajos, Santarem, Para, Brazil''] (in Portuguese). Preliminary reportTCP/BRA/0154/FAO for IBAMA. 20 pp.*SERIER, J.B. (1986) [Tree secretions] [includes balata and gutta percha] (in French). ''Bois et ForetsForêts des Tropiques'', (213), 33-39.*STERN, H.J. (1939) Gutta percha and balata: purification in the factory. ''The Rubber Age'', (Oct.),245-249 and 258.*WILLIAMS, L. (1962) Laticiferous plants of economic importance. I. Sources of balata, chicle,guttapercha and allied guttas. ''Economic Botany'', '''16''', 17-24.

{| class="wikitable center" text-align:right;|+ Table 36. Balata: production and exports from Brazil, 1978 and 1986-92(tonnes)|- ! ||1978 ||1986 ||1987 ||1988 || 1989 ||1990 ||1991 ||1992|- |Production || 407 || 22 || 19 || 21 || 21 || 18 || na || na|- |Exports || na || 5 ||-||-|| 15 ||-||-|| na|}Source: National statistics (taken from COPPEN ''et al.'', 1994, and LESCURE, 1995)