Cassava
A drought-hardy root crop that feeds 800 million people and powers Thailand’s starch industry.
About Cassava
Cassava is a hardy, drought-resistant root crop that grows in more than 80 tropical countries and is a primary food for more than 800 million people. People along the Amazon grew it for centuries before Columbus arrived, and its leaves are edible too.
Plantations International grows cassava in Thailand, where it is the raw material for a large industrial chain: native and modified starch, sweeteners, sorbitol and MSG. It needs little fertiliser but is vulnerable to bacterial and viral disease, so clean planting material and good agronomy matter.
Ideal growing conditions
The site, soil and climate parameters our agronomists work to when developing a cassava plantation.
Thrives in lowland heat
Survives dry spells better than most crops
Accessible land for harvest transport
Applied during land preparation
15:15:15, 20:10:10 or 12:12:17
Vulnerable to bacterial and viral disease
What cassava is used for
Native starch
Food, paper and textile industries.
Modified starch
Thailand exported 947,120 t in 2016.
Sweeteners
About 80% of raw material for Thai sweeteners.
Sorbitol
Thailand produces 43,000 t a year.
MSG
18% of Thai cassava starch.
Food
Flour, tapioca pearls and fresh roots.
Thailand’s cassava value chain
Thailand is a world leader in cassava starch and the products made from it. Sweetener production alone takes about 44% of the country’s cassava starch, and the global food sweetener market was valued at USD 33 billion in 2016 with growth projected by IHS Markit.
Thailand is also a leader in MSG, valued at THB 7 billion (about USD 210 million) in 2019, while modified starch exports reached THB 21.2 billion (about USD 635 million) in 2016.
From nursery to harvest
- 110 days before
Land preparation
Weed control, ploughing and liming.
- 2Apr–Oct
Planting
25 cm stem cuttings set 1 × 1 m apart.
- 3Days 0–3
Weed control
Pre-emergence treatment if no earlier herbicide was used.
- 4Week 8
Fertiliser
NPK placed away from stems and leaves; gaps replanted.
- 5Months 8–12
Harvest
Roots lifted and delivered to starch mills.
How we manage cassava
Varieties
High-yield lines such as TMS 30572 and NR 8082, with more in development.
Stand
Dead cuttings are replaced to keep a 100% planting rate.
Nutrition
A single, well-placed NPK application at 8 weeks.
Precision farming
Data-led management lifts yields to 25 t/ha and beyond.
Cassava in the field
Cassava: common questions
Where does Plantations International grow cassava?
In Thailand, which has one of the world’s largest cassava starch industries.
What is cassava used for?
Food, native and modified starch, sweeteners and sorbitol, and MSG.
What yield can cassava achieve?
25 tonnes per hectare or more with good agronomy and precision farming.
When is cassava planted?
Between April and October, from 25 cm stem cuttings.
Related crops
Develop a cassava plantation with us
Request a free initial consultation with our plantation development and management team.