Deputy Prime Minister Korbsak Sabhavasu pledged yesterday to finish the guidelines for stabilising agricultural product prices before taking a new post.

The completed guidelines would include the new crop insurance or options programme for staple crops rice, tapioca and maize at the beginning of the crop year and supplementary measures to help shore up crop prices once they fell.

Supplementary measures might include traditional price intervention or a pledging scheme for particular areas or provinces, said Mr Korbsak, who replaces Niphon Phromphan as the premier's secretary-general.

"The government needs to accelerate implementing the insurance scheme as soon as possible to stabilise agricultural product prices for maize, rice and tapioca," said Mr Korbsak.

"I personally believe the new options programme will directly benefit farmers and raise their income."

However, Mr Korbsak said he remained concerned over a lack of balance in the monetary policy management of the Bank of Thailand and Finance Ministry that has resulted in a rise in the baht against the US dollar.

Commerce Minister Porntiva Nakasai met recently with representatives of farmers, millers and exporters and they agreed to delay the option scheme until Nov 1 as many farmers still don't fully understand the process.

A majority of them are concerned over their eligibility, as up to 75% of Thai farmers rent farmland to grow rice.

Most farmers are not confident they will be entitled to the new rice price insurance scheme, particularly the requirement that calls for farmers' paddy to contain a ceiling of 15% moisture, said Prasit Boonchoey, president of the Thai Farmers Association.

Most farmers' paddy contains more than 15% moisture. They have exceeded the moisture limit because of an overly rainy season and a lack of equipment to dry the rice.

For the country's 2009-10 main crop season starting in November, insurance prices under the scheme for Hom Mali paddy have been set at 15,300 baht per tonne. Prices for general provincial fragrant rice were set at 14,300 baht, glutinous paddy at 9,500 baht and second-crop paddy at 10,000 baht.

The benchmark is 10,000 baht per tonne for 15%-moisture white rice paddy. The government will guarantee the prices quoted. If farmers sell to millers or exporters for less, the government will pay them the difference.

The Commerce Ministry will announce reference prices every 15 days so farmers can decide whether to sell.

Source: Bangkok Post