Japanese firm pledges to boost silk industry

Japanese-owned Il Brille, which runs two beauty salons and a shop in Phnom Penh, will invest in Cambodian silk production to supply the local market and export to Asia and the United States. Kuzunori Kato, CEO of Il Brille, said his company has already sent staff to Thailand to learn how to grow mulberry trees and raise silkworms. Currently, silk weavers in Cambodia have no choice but to import raw silk from either Vietnam or Thailand due to the rarity of mulberry trees. The training, the CEO said, will help reduce the reliance on imports in the future. Commerce Minister Pan Sorasak said investment from the Japanese company would bring transferrable knowledge and experience to Cambodia and the project to boost silk production in Cambodia would be carried out with the support of the Japan International Cooperation Agency. (Source: Khmer Times)