Firestone Rubber Plantation

Firestone Rubber Plantation

Firestone Rubber Plantation is located in Harbel, Margibi County, Liberia. It is lies along the Farmington River, approximately 15 miles upstream from the Atlantic Ocean. The town has been home to the vast natural rubber plantation since 1926, which is still operated by Firestone, a subsidiary of Bridgestone. It was the largest plantation of its kind in the world from 1926 until the outbreak of the first Liberian Civil War in 1990. After the civil war, Firestone restarted operations in March 1992, but had to shut down again in October that year as hostilities worsened. Operations only fully resumed in 2003, after the end of the Second Liberian Civil War. Firestone has invested more than $100 million since the end of the war to restore and rebuild its facilities in Liberia. Natural rubber is a renewable resource providing livelihoods for millions of people around the world. Although it is a key ingredient in many products, 70% of the world's natural rubber consumption is used in tire production. Worldwide, the cultivation of rubber trees provides jobs for more than 6 million people.