BANGKOK, 1 July 2014 – The Department of Internal Trade (DIT) is prepared to help rice farmers reduce their production costs by imposing suggested prices for production factors.
DIT Director-General Somchart Sroythong made known that measures for lowering the rice production cost for the 2014/2015 season had already been proposed to the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) for approval during a meeting of the rice management policy committee. He said the measures were compiled from suggestions earlier made by rice mill owners, farmer representatives and relevant agencies.
Once implemented, the measures will help farmers save up to 432 baht per rai. The cost of chemical fertilizers is expected to come down by 40 baht per sack while pesticides will likely become cheaper by 20 baht per rai, rice seeds by 122 baht per rai, rice harvesting service by 50 baht per rai and land rental by 200 baht per rai.
Mr Somchart stated that, as the first step, suggested prices would be announced within this week for fertilizers and pesticides. Vendors of such products have so far expressed their willingness to cut their prices as instructed.
