Last month Bangkokians were buzzing about the very low prices of jasmine rice, one of Thailand’s major exporting products. Once we knew that paddy rice prices went down to as low as B5 per kilogram, Bangkokians had gone mad. People came up with many initiatives to help out the "oh so poor" rice farmers: retailing rice through online markets (so rice is free from middleman extra charge), designing logos and packaging (so rice bags from farmers also look attractive on shelves), and many more. They are all good, no doubt. But without understanding the accurate information and rigid factors, you are not really solving the problem. And as you can see this week, when there are new matters and dramas, no one is talking about rice anymore. And it’s sad.
Time Out spoke to a source from a rice exporting company and found out that more than half, if not more than 60%, of Thailand’s rice production is for exports. And that means the prices of rice and paddy are actually up to the economics basics of demand and supply. Thailand is one of the biggest rice exporting countries in the world, but not the only. The amounts of rice exported from Cambodia and Vietnam, for instance, are growing significantly every year. To Western palates, which are our primary exporting markets, those rices taste no different than ours — and they see theirs cheaper.
So what does Thailand need to do to sell our rice? Lower the price would be one of the choices, and it affects everybody in the supply chain, from exporters to rice mills to middlemen to farmers. And while some farmers are complaining about low prices, some organic rice farmers who focus on organic farming and high-quality rice breeds are enjoying the high prices. Our source revealed that some farmer alliances have pre-sold organic rice as high as B30-40 per kilogram. Yes, pre-sell — they’ve sold their rice even before they grow it. So this has got us thinking, are we moving on the right way to solve this problem? What are your thought?