An Analysis of Rubber Supply in Sri Lanka

An analysis of the supply response for perennial crops is undertaken for rubber in Sri Lanka, focusing on the uprooting‐replanting decision and disaggregating the typical “reduced‐form” supply response equation into several structural relationships. This approach is compared and contrasted with Dowling's analysis of supply response for rubber in Thailand, which is based upon a sophisticated reduced‐form supply function developed by Wickens and Greenfield for Brazilian coffee. Because the uprooting‐replanting decision is central to understanding rubber supply response in Sri Lanka and for other perennial crops where replanting activities dominate new planting, the standard approaches do not adequately capture supply response.