Cooperation between the government, farmers and traders in the development of Thai rice production is essential if the country's rice exports are to increase by 5 to 10 per cent per year, to a value of Bt180 billion to Bt200 billion, a seminar was told yesterday.

Panelists at the seminar, called "Value Creation of Thai rice for Competing in the International Arena", and organised by the Intellectual Property Department, shared a common overall view. They felt that as the world's largest rice exporter, Thailand should focus on producing premium rice rather than on export volume. It should also develop packaging for export.

Thai Rice Association president Supoj Vongjirattikarn said the government must advise farmers to grow quality grain, rather than focusing on volume.

"Thai rice needs to set out its own position as high-value rice, rather than competing with other rice-exporting countries. Currently, consumers are inclined to eat higher-quality rice grain. Thailand must rapidly develop the quality of its rice to serve the market demand. This will help to drive export value up by 5 to 10 per cent a year," he said.

There is high demand for premium-grade rice in many markets, especially among upper-class consumers in European countries, who have high purchasing power. These include brown rice, organic rice, hom mali [jasmine] rice, parboiled rice and upland rice, all of which are well-known as highly nutritious grains, he said.

Thai Rice Millers' Association president Charnchai Ratthananon said the government should be encouraging farmers to grow more premium rice, rather than competing with low-quality export producers.

At present, only 30 per cent of Thailand's rice exports, which total 8.5 million to 9 million tonnes a year, are of high-quality premium rice, such as hom mali and brown rice. Yet half of the country's rice-export income comes from these premium grains. If the government promotes the growing of premium-grade rice, farmers will get better returns in the long run, Charnchai said.

The director of the Agriculture Ministry's Bureau of Rice Products Development, Laddawan Kunnoot, said the government would no longer focus only on building the quantity of rice for export. It will also concentrate on high-quality rice production because consumers are more concerned about the nutritional value of grain.

About 60 per cent of the world's population consumes rice, and people are likely to consume more as they realise the benefits to be gained from eating rice. To ensure that Thailand remains the world's leading rice exporter, the country must develop the quality of its rice to serve market demand, she said.

She said that many native or local rice varieties in rural areas, such as upland rice and sung yod rice, met high market demand. Cooperation between the government and local farmers will aim to increase yields per rai while retaining the high quality of the grain, to boost Thailand's exports.

Thai Rice Farmers' Association president Prasith Boonchuey said the government should set up projects to help rice farmers to understand the need to focus on the quality of their grain rather than on volume.

He said rice prices could easily be hit by fluctuations, price-cutting practices or supply-and-demand factors. On the other hand, a focus on high-quality grain, along with the development of an irrigation system, will sustain farmers' incomes.

Prasith said the area of farmland devoted to rice farming was shrinking by as much as 10 per cent a year because farmers were unable to earn a sustainable income. If Thai rice gains value, farmers will stay on the land for longer, he said.

Source: The Nation