Natural rubber, also called
India rubber or
caoutchouc, as initially produced, consists of
polymers of the
organic compound isoprene, with minor impurities of other organic compounds plus water. Malaysia is a leading producer of rubber. Forms of
polyisoprene that are used as natural rubbers are classified as
elastomers. Natural rubber is used by many manufacturing companies for the production of rubber products. Currently, rubber is harvested mainly in the form of the
latex from certain trees. The latex is a sticky, milky
colloid drawn off by making incisions into the bark and collecting the fluid in vessels in a process called "tapping". The latex then is refined into rubber ready for commercial processing. Natural rubber is used extensively in many applications and products, either alone or in combination with other materials. In most of its useful forms, it has a large
stretch ratio and high
resilience, and is extremely waterproof.