BANGKOK, Oct 4 – Continued flooding has damaged some 400,000-500,000 rai of Thailand’s current sugarcane crop in a number of provinces in the upper part of the country.
Thailand Sugarcane Planters Federation president Kamtorn Kittichotisub said the affected areas include Phitsanulok, Phetchabun, Pichit and Nakhon Sawan provinces.
However, the flooding is considered minimal in terms of its impact on national production. He believed it would not affect the country’s sugar production as it counted for only 4-5 per cent of the 10 million rai nationwide of sugar plantations, Mr Kamtorn said.
He predicted the amount of sugar refined this year would be equal to that of last year at almost 10 million tonnes, while sugarcane products would be as much as the previous year at 95 million tonnes.
Both figures are Thailand’s highest record of Thai sugarcane.
Concerning the minimum price of sugarcane, farmers expected it to be at least Bt1,200 per tonne, an increase from Bt1,050 per tonne indicated by the previous government last year.
The sugarcane planters chief asked the Agriculture and Cooperatives Ministry to provide financial assistance to affected farmers once the flooding situation had improved.
