SIA 2026: Lamine Sanogo, President of Côte d'Ivoire's Natural Rubber Producers Association: "We Want to Create Value From Our Own Raw Materials"
- Agrilinkage
- 2 days ago
- 3 min read
At the 2026 Salon International de l'Agriculture in Paris, AgriLinkage sat down with Lamine Sanogo, President of the Association of Natural Rubber Producers and Processors of Côte d'Ivoire. In an exclusive interview, he shared his vision for a sector that is no longer satisfied with simply producing, it wants to transform.
A Standing Ovation at the World's Biggest Agricultural Show
This year, Côte d'Ivoire holds the title of guest of honor at the Salon International de l'Agriculture, and the country is making its presence felt. From the very first hours of opening day, the Ivorian pavilion attracted a steady stream of visitors, professionals, and potential partners drawn by the energy and diversity of what the country has to offer.
For Lamine Sanogo, the salon is above all a place for strategic encounters. His association came to Paris with one clear objective: find partners who share the same vision, turning raw materials into finished products, on Ivorian soil.
The World's Third Largest Producer, Exporting Every Tonne as TSR
Côte d'Ivoire produces two million tonnes of natural rubber every year, making it the third largest producer in the world and the undisputed leader on the African continent. But behind that impressive figure lies a challenge that Sanogo is determined to address. Today, every single tonne leaves the country in the form of TSR, Technically Specified Rubber, meaning the raw material is exported as is, and the transformation into finished goods happens elsewhere.
"Every tonne we produce leaves the country as a raw material. Our goal today is to create value on part of that production, right here in Côte d'Ivoire."
The association's ambition is to move into secondary transformation: manufacturing finished goods locally that can be used directly by industries and consumers around the world, rather than letting that added value leave with the raw material.
One of the Cleanest Rubbers on the Market
What sets Ivorian natural rubber apart isn't just volume, it's quality. From the very beginning, the sector was structured and regulated by a state-owned company, which imposed strict agricultural practices on every player entering the industry. The result is a standardized, high-quality product that stands out from conventional rubber on the global market, considered one of the cleanest rubbers available today, and particularly sought after by the most demanding industries.
Room to Grow, Without Touching a Single Forest
While traditional rubber-producing countries are hitting the limits of their agricultural land, Côte d'Ivoire is still growing at 15 to 20% annually. The reason lies in the country's savanna regions in the north. Though located in the savanna, these areas receive around 1,500mm of rainfall per year, well above the 1,400mm threshold required for rubber tree cultivation. New plantations are being developed there on fallow land and open savanna, with zero deforestation.
This is a critical advantage in today's regulatory environment. The European Union's anti-deforestation regulation is forcing importers to trace the origin of their raw materials with unprecedented precision. Ivorian rubber, grown on land that was never forested, is naturally positioned to meet these sustainability requirements where others are struggling to comply.
Paris as a Launchpad for Secondary Transformation
For Lamine Sanogo, the Salon de l'Agriculture is not just a showcase, it's a starting point. Building the partnerships needed to move into processing requires technology, financing, and expertise. France, with its long history in transforming tropical raw materials, is a natural conversation partner.
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