Product Description: Yellow board is a kind of paper board which is used for a wide range of purposes including folding boxes, backboard for writing pads. Yellow board is made from rice straw or wheat and barley straw and treated with small amounts of lime milk, soda ash, etc. This product can be turned into white board if bleached pulp is added as a surface layer in the process of manufacturing.
Market Potential: All the paper board requirements of the Amhara Region including yellow board are imported from Addis Ababa or abroad. The demand for yellow board depends upon the development of the packaging and printing industries. Though not very many, there are some industries in printing, meat packing, food processing and textile sectors which require the use of yellow boards. The yellow board production; envisaged in this project idea is intended for distribution in the Region as well as in the country. As the raw material for yellow board is available in the Region, it is possible to produce the product for regional and national market.
Source of Raw material: The main raw material for yellow board is rice, wheat or barley straw. This material is found in cereals producing localities of the Region.
Process and Technology: The manufacture of yellow board has two major stages. The first stage is pulp making and the second is paper or board making. Pulp making involves the pretreatment of straw (cutting and dusting), cooking (putting in a digester, adding lime), stock preparation (feeding the material into a dilution box with a pump, adding fresh water and beating) and chemical preparation (dissolving lime for digestion). The second stage is for the manufacture of paper. This stage involves the feeding of the pulp into a paper machine which consists of wire, press, dryer parts, calendar and paper cutter. Each component has its own distinct operation to manufacture the paper.
Estimated Investment:
Buildings/shade 1500m2 at Birr 1500/m2 = Birr 2,250,000
Machinery ……………………………………….. = Birr 7,500,000
Working capital ………….………………….…. = Birr 800,000
Total = Birr 10,550,000
Benefits: Saves foreign exchange and regional finance, utilizes local raw material-straw, and introduces new skills and technology.
Location: Any urban center around which there is a large cereals growing area.