Malaysia obtained its raw materials from both within the country as well as from other countries. There were limited amounts of local materials produced for the herbal industry during the period and as such, large amounts originated from foreign countries. Most of the imports came from Asia with China in the lead, supplying 72% of the total raw materials imported, followed by India (11%), Hong Kong (4%), Indonesia (3%) and Singapore (3%). The other countries contributed less than 1%. See Figure 246.
Figure 246: Imports of Raw Materials from Countries of Origin
Malaysia imported raw materials from many countries, howver only selected countries are shown in the pie-chart (Figure 246). Amounts traded from the other countries were very small in relation to total quantity imported by Malaysia was taken into account.
9.2.1 Percentage Shares of Imports from Various World Regions.
The quantities of raw materials from foreign countries imported come from various regions in the world, which, for the purpose of this study are divided into 5 main regions and 16 sub-regions. The total quantity imported during the observed period was about 1193.3 million kg, and breakdown proportions are as shown in the following Table 189. The pie-chart below (Figure 247) shows the percentage shares of the import from the 5 main regions.
Table 189: Malaysia: Breakdown of Imports for Herbal Raw Materials from Various World Regions
Figure 247: Imports of Herbal Raw Materials from Various Regions
From a global perspective, the highest percentage of imported raw materials came from Asia followed by Europe, the Americas, Africa and Oceania in that order. It is well-known that the Asian populations had been using herbal raw materials in traditional and complementary medicine for a long time. With such high population density it became apparent that Asia produced the highest proportion of raw materials
The map below (Figure 248) shows the sources of Malaysia’s import of herbal raw material
Figure 248: Global Trade: Import of Herbal Raw Materials from Various Regions
