BANGKOK, 14 June 2014 – The National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) has asserted the rice pledging program will not be continued, although it is looking to reduce the costs of production borne by rice growers.
At a meeting with state agencies to discuss the budget for fiscal year 2015 on Friday, NCPO chief Prayuth Chan-ocha said the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives had been told to determine the best method for assisting rice growers. He said the most beneficial project for rice growers would be deliberated in the future. Gen. Prayuth said the NCPO was not going to continue with rice mortgage or rice price guarantee, but was looking at reducing costs associated with rice growing and reducing farmers’ losses when selling to middlemen.
The NCPO chief said on Friday that public needed to be informed of the country’s debt burden, and that the NCPO was not going to proceed with populist policies.
