scope and status of sericulture

1. SCOPE AND
STATUS OF
SERICULTURE
P R E S E N T E D BY : K R I S H N E N D U M
R O L L N O : 2 1

2. CONTENTS
• Introducion
• History
• Importance of sericulture in developing countries
• Multipurpose use of sericulture
• Future demand for silk
• Present status of silkworm germplasm at global level
• Historical review of silkworm germplasm in India
• Importance of conservation of silkworm genetic resources
• references

3. INTRODUCTION
• Sericulture, or silk farming, is the cultivation of
silkworms to produce silk. Although there are
several commercial species of silkworms, Bombyx
mori (the caterpillar of the domestic silkmoth) is
the most widely used and intensively studied
silkworm. Silk was believed to have first been
produced in China as early as the Neolithic
Period. Sericulture has become an important
cottage industry in countries such as Brazil, China,
France, India, Italy, Japan, Korea, and Russia.
Today, China and India are the two main
producers, with more than 60% of the world's
annual production.

4. HISTORY
• According to OMKAR text, the discovery of silk production dates to about 2700 BC,
although archaeological records point to silk cultivation as early as the Yangshao
period (5000–3000 BC).[1] In 1977, a piece of ceramic created 5400–5500 years ago
and designed to look like a silkworm was discovered in Nancun, Hebei, providing the
earliest known evidence of sericulture.[2] Also, by careful analysis of archaeological silk
fibre found on Indus Civilization sites dating back to 2450–2000 BC, it is believed that
silk was being used over a wide region of South Asia.[3][4] By about the first half of the
1st century AD, it had reached ancient Khotan,[5] by a series of interactions along the
Silk Road.

5. • By AD 140, the practice had been established in India.[6] In the 6th century AD, the
smuggling of silkworm eggs into the Byzantine Empire led to its establishment in the
Mediterranean, remaining a monopoly in the Byzantine Empire for centuries (Byzantine
silk). In 1147, during the Second Crusade, Roger II of Sicily (1095–1154) attacked
Corinth and Thebes, two important centres of Byzantine silk production, capturing the
weavers and their equipment and establishing his own silkworks in Palermo and
Calabria,[7] eventually spreading the industry to Western Europe.

6. THE SILKWORMS AND MULBERRY
LEAVES ARE PLACED ON TRAYS

7. TWIG FRAMES FOR THE SILKWORMS
ARE PREPARED

8. THE COCOONS ARE WEIGHED

9. THE COCOONS ARE SOAKED AND THE
SILK IS WOUND ON SPOOLS

10. THE SILK IS WOVEN USING A LOOM

11. IMPORTANCE OF SERICULTURE IN DEVELOPING
COUNTRIES
• The art of silk production is called sericulture that comprises cultivation of mulberry,
silkworm rearing and post cocoon activities leading to production of silk yarn.
Sericulture provides gainful employment, economic development and improvement in
the quality of life to the people in rural area and therefore it plays an important role in
anti poverty programme and prevents migration of rural people to urban area in
search of employment. Hence several developing nations like China, India, Brazil,
Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia, Egypt, Iran, Sri Lanka, Philippines, Bangladesh, Nepal,
Myanmar, Turkey, Papua New Guinea, Mexico, Uzbekistan and some of the African and
Latin American countries have taken up sericulture to provide employment to the
people in rural area.

12. MULTIPURPOSE USE OF
SERICULTURE
• Apart from silk, there are several other bye-products from
sericulture. The mulberry fruits are rich in minerals and
vitamins and from the roots, barks and mulberry leaves
several ayurvedic and herbal medicines are prepared. Some of
the woody mulberry trees provide timber which are resistant
to termites and the timber is used for making sports items,
toys etc. The mulberry branches after silkworm feeding are
generally dried and used as fuel particularly in the villages.
The foliage of mulberry is used as a fodder for cattle. The
mulberry trees are also planted in the embarkment area for
protection of the soil to prevent soil erosion, and mulberry
trees are planted as avenue trees. The silkworm pupae are
rich in oil content and pupal oil is used in cosmetic industry
and the remaining pupal cake is a rich source of protein
suitable for poultry and fisheries.

13. FUTURE DEMAND FOR
SILK
• The present global silk production is fluctuating
around 70, 000 to 90, 000 M.T. and the demand for silk
is annually increasing by 5%. With the increase in
population and also with the increased demand for
fashionable clothing items due to fast changing
fashion designs in developed countries, the demand
for silk is bound to increase even more. For increasing
the silk production we require highly productive
mulberry varieties and silkworm races and also
silkworm races tolerant to adverse climatic conditions
and diseases which can come mainly from the
sericultural germplasm resources and also from the
wild relatives of Bombyx available in the natural
habitats.

14. PRESENT STATUS OF SILKWORM GERMPLASM AT
GLOBAL LEVEL
• Though accurate data are not available on the silkworm germplasm in different
countries of the world, an approximate information indicate that there are 4310
silkworm germplasm accessions available in different countries (Table 1). There is
every likelihood that some of these silkworm accessions are duplicated; for
instance the silkworm germplasm from China, Japan, France, Russia and India
might be represented in the germplasm collection of other countries since these
are the principal source of sericultural germplasm and also several countries might
have exchanged some silkworm germplasm for silkworm breeding and hence a
proper documentation on the availability of silkworm germplasm in different
countries is very much required.

15. HISTORICAL REVIEW OF
SILKWORM GERMPLASM IN
INDIA
• The domesticated silkworm species, Bombyx mori L.
evolved almost 4600 years ago from the wild species,
Bombyx mandarina Moore, which is a native of China and
Palaearctic region (Hampson, 1892; Hirobe, 1968). The
eggs of silkworm, B. mori were first introduced from China
into Japan and Korea in the first century and subsequently
into Middle Eastern and European countries and later into
the neighbouring countries around China in the sixth
century. The historical background of silkworm entry into
India is still a mystery; and the historical evidence indicates
that a flourishing silk trade was practising between India
and Rome/Greece during Kaniska period (56 B C).

16. IMPORTANCE OF CONSERVATION
OF SILKWORM GENETIC
RESOURCES
• During the recent years, biodiversity conservation programmes
have drawn the attention of many countries including
developing nations, because of the genetic erosion due to
indiscriminate use of bio resources and damage to the
environment, destruction of forest, human interference in eco-
system, upsetting the equilibrium of the biosphere. The
Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) organised by United
Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED)
at Rio de Jeneiro Earth Summit in 1992 made an awakening call
to draw the global attention for conservation of biodiversity.
Since then the biodiversity conservation and gene bank
maintenance have gained greater momentum since the
germplasm resources are considered as "Common Heritage of
Mankind" and "Sovereign Right of Nations". The issues related to
access the genetic resources and its sustainable use, benefit
sharing, farmers rights are being deliberated at various national
and international fora.

17. REFERENCES
• 1. Barlow, H.S. 1982. An introduction to the moths of South East Asia. Malayan Nature
Society, Kaulalumpur, pp.1-305; pls. 1-50.
• 2. Bruford, M.W. and Wyne, R.K. 1993. Microsatellites and their application to
population genetic studies. Curr.Opin.Genet. Dev. 3: 939-943.
• 3. Frankel, O.H., and Brown, A.H.D. 1983. A critical appraisal. proc. XV Intl. Cong. Gent.
Applied Genetics IV: 3-13.
• 4. Hampson, G.F. 1892. The Fauna of British India including Ceylon and Burma: Moths.
Vol.I Taylon and Francis London. pp. 31-40
• . Hirobe, T. 1968. Evolution, differentiation and breeding of the silkworm - The Silk
Road, past and present. Genetics in Asian countires. XII International Congress of
Genetics.

18. THANK
YOU