The private sector will propose to the government that a new rice strategy committee be set up to settle the problems of rice farmers, vice chairman of the Thai Chamber of Commerce (TCC) Pornsilp Patcharintanakul said on Friday.

The new rice panel must be a politician-free body and its members should comprise experts who are representatives from all sectors. The committee’s main task should be to map out long term rice strategies, said Mr Pornsilp.

Past governments’ policies to help farmers, including the farm price guarantee and rice price subsidy programmes, were all focused only on providing financial assistance.

“None of them mentioned about how to increase rice production per rai or to strengthen trade competitiveness of the farmers. Moreover, these policies opened opportunities for corruption,” he said.

Deputy Prime Minister for economic matters Trairong Suwannakhiri said on Friday that he was ready to accept the rice strategy being proposed by the private sector and use it in improving rice management.

Mr Trairong admitted that the farm price pledging schemes of all governments had forced the state to buy rice from farmers at a high price.

This had distorted the market mechanism and affected the export price of Thai rice.

Source: Bangkok Post