THE Philippines is expected to generate up to P400 billion in revenue from a new industry involving engineered bamboo, the Department of Agriculture (DA) said.

DA Undersecretary Deogracias Victor Savellano said on Monday that the economic benefit from engineered bamboo, solely through import substitution, is estimated at P400 billion or $8 billion annually.

"Our wood-based construction material is imported almost 94 percent. The focus is bamboo as a reengineered lumber for the construction industry and as biomass and ethanol production," said Rizome Philippines chairman Luis Lorenzo Jr.

Lorenzo added that engineered bamboo can import substitutes in our national construction industry.

To maximize bamboo's potential as an alternative to steel or glass in construction, DA pointed out the need for the government to formulate policies that incorporate bamboo into the National Building Code or National Structural Code.

"[To use bamboo] for import substitution and earn billions of dollars, we need to move fast [in coming up with policies] that include bamboo in every instrument — into the structural building code," said Lorenzo.

Savellano, who also serves as the vice chairman of the Philippine Bamboo Industry Development Council (PBIDC), emphasized the importance of House Bill 9144 or "An Act Integrating Bamboo as a Sustainable Material for the Built Environment."

He said that the government must expedite the passage of a law to capitalize on the substantial global market for engineered bamboo.

PBIDC Executive Director Rene Madarang also emphasized the need for the Philippines to catch up in bamboo commercialization.

Madarang said that while the total export trade value of bamboo commodities in 2020 reached $2.969 billion, with Asia holding an 80.2 percent share, the Philippines contributed only $473,852.

He pointed out that the local industry faces challenges such as low product quality, high production costs, limited financing access, and unsupportive policies.

"The bamboo industry is anti-poverty and anti-insurgency in Mindanao's poor rural communities. We have proven it today in North Cotabato and Bukidnon," Lorenzo said.