Teragren’s Exclusive Optimum 5.5® Moso Bamboo

For our bamboo products, we specify only Teragren Optimum 5.5 Moso bamboo grown in the Zhejiang province of China. There are more than 1,500 species of bamboo and Moso (Phyllostachys pubescens) is among the hardest, with dense fibers that make for strong timber and beautiful, durable bamboo flooring, panels and veneer. Bamboo has greater compressive strength than concrete and about the same strength-to-weight ratio as steel in tension. But it doesn’t start out that way. To achieve the characteristics valued in construction material, it must be harvested at the right time, between 5-1/2 and 6 years.

Even fast-growing bamboo needs time to mature.

Like all bamboo, each culm grows rapidly from a rhizome. Moso has been known to grow 47 inches in 24 hours, but it generally reaches its maximum height of 80 feet within just two months. After that, growth occurs within the stalk. The walls of the hollow culm thicken inward as chlorophyll, sugar and organic material are changed into dense, fibrous cellulose. It is these reinforced but lightweight internodes that provide tremendous strength with flexibility along the entire length of the bamboo culm.
Young shoots of moso are so tender that they can be harvested as a culinary delicacy (for humans, not pandas). One-year-old culms are still soft and can be used to make fine calligraphy paper. At four years of age, fiber development in the culm is more appropriate for pulp and paper manufacturing than bamboo flooring.
When the bamboo reaches maturity at 5-1/2 to 6 years, its fibers are at peak density—and it’s time to harvest. By using only Optimum 5.5 Moso bamboo harvested in this way, Teragren ensures that our products are harder and more stable for lasting beauty and performance.

Made In China: Fact vs. Myth

The high quality, mountain-grown 5.5 year old Moso bamboo – the only bamboo Teragren uses for our premium products – grows primarily in the Zhejiang province of China. Because that is where the bamboo grows, that is also where we make our products. Our bamboo is harvested by hand and each culm is carried out of the forest on foot to maintain the delicate root systems of the forest floor. Our manufacturing facilities are located within a day’s drive of the forest in order to cultivate close relationships with the family farmers who grow and harvest our bamboo, as well as to ensure access to the highest quality raw materials.

Because bamboo is so good at capturing carbon from the atmosphere and sequestering it within the stalk and root system, all Teragren’s products are carbon-negative at the time of manufacture. We work with Clean Cargo member carriers for our ocean transport, as well as partner with SmartWay carriers for our land transport within North America. Our intention is to keep the transportation footprint of our products as minimal as possible, and 70% of Teragren deliveries travel at least half of their journey via rail, which uses 76% less fuel per mile than other overland transportation methods. By the time your Teragren product arrives at your home or business, it is still carbon negative, holding on average 0.84 lbs of CO2 per square foot.

Tackling Quality Assurance Together

Our most important ally in our efforts to make quality bamboo products responsibly is the single factory group with which we have worked with for many years. Headquartered in the Zhejiang province of China, our partners maintains our strict, environmentally conscious standards day in and day out. Teragren frequently visits the factories for ongoing product development, quality assurance and to monitor working conditions.

Superior Indoor Air Quality

We appreciate the trust you have placed in us to provide only the highest quality products, and we take our customers’ health and well-being very seriously. For over 20 years, Teragren has been committed to designing and manufacturing bamboo products that are healthy for the home and the environment. In that vein, all Teragren flooring products are tested and certified to the California 01350 standard for indoor air quality, the most stringent indoor air quality standard in the world, and are CARB Phase II compliant. Our panels and veneer are tested to the SCS Gold standard for indoor air quality.

Our products are tested through a US-based independent, third-party laboratory. All Teragren flooring products comply with California standard 01350 for indoor air quality and are CARB Phase II compliant – emitting significantly less formaldehyde than allowed by the CARB standard.