Exporters are warning that the Commerce Ministry's plan to include white rice on the list of standard export commodities will likely turn into yet one more hardship for them this year.

The fresh requirement means all shipments of white rice in various grades such as 100%, 5% and 10% must be verified by the Office of Commodity Standards (OCS).

The measure has previously applied only to 10 crops including Hom Mali rice.

"This will mean higher expenses and more time in complying with export procedures due to the lengthy bureaucratic system," said a source.

Hom Mali was the only rice variety put on the list in 2001 by the Commerce Ministry in order to preserve the quality of the premium grain in the export market.

Shipments of white rice are normally inspected and verified by the rice inspection committee of the Board of Trade (BoT) before getting export documents from the Customs Department.

The new requirement is expected to be applied in April, and exporters said the change will not only take away the BoT's role but also increase the power of the OCS in regulating rice exports.

The rice inspection committee was assigned by the Commerce Ministry 57 years ago to monitor the quality of all rice exports including Hom Mali to assure the quality of grain received by foreign buyers.

However, widespread adulterated Hom Mali rice in some Asian markets led the ministry to beef up measures, and the grain was categorised as a standard export commodity in 2002, leaving the inspection and verification to the OCS.

"The ball is now in the authorities' hands," the source said.

"This could lead to consignment delays or asking for hush money to speed up the verification process."

But Tikhumporn Natvaratat, deputy director-general of the Foreign Trade Department, said putting white rice on the standard list is aimed at protecting the Thai grain's quality.

The tighter measure will prevent attempts by traders to adulterate Thai rice with substandard rice from neighbouring countries to gain profit when the Asean Economic Community liberalises regional trade.

Mr Tikhumporn said the additional process only includes tighter inspection from authorised surveyors and approvals from the OCS.

"Exporters are worried the change will worsen the export situation," said Wanlop Pichpongsa, secretary-general of the Thai Rice Exporters Association (TREA) and deputy managing of Capital Rice Trading, one of Thailand's leading rice exporters.

"Exporters feel the outlook will not be better than last year in view of the enormous supply in the market, especially from Thailand."

The slow global market plus rising stock amassed from the government's rice pledging scheme will likely affect rice exports for another year.

In 2012, rice exports totalled 6.9 million tonnes, down by 30%.

The TREA forecasts private companies will ship between six and 6.5 million tonnes of rice this year not including rice sales by the government.

It also expects a fragile global rice market this year.

China, a major buyer of Thai rice, is forecast to increase its rice production to 143 million tonnes from 140 million tonnes, reducing its need for imports.

The two largest rice exporters _ India and Vietnam _ plan to sell more rice this year, while Myanmar and Cambodia will ship 1.5 million tonnes and 1 million tonnes, respectively.

Traders are expected to closely watch how the Thai government manages its huge stockpile amid concerns that rice will be sold at low prices that jeopardise the market.

Source: Bangkok Post