Rice and shine: Thailand sets sights on 8 million tonnes export mark

The director-general of the Department of Foreign Trade, Ronnarong Phoolpipat, announced that Thailand’s rice exports are expected to achieve the target of 8 million tonnes this year. This forecast comes after the recorded shipments through to August 29 reached 5.29 million tonnes, reflecting a year-on-year increase of 11.9%.

This upswing in rice exports aligns with the rising concerns over drought triggered by the El Niño weather phenomenon, India’s embargo on non-basmati white rice exports, China’s falling rice production, and the increasing eagerness of several countries to import rice to safeguard food security. The competitive value of the baht has also played a role. Phoolpipat said…

“Given the current trends in rice export, we anticipate an ongoing rise in shipments as the demand for Thai rice escalates. Numerous countries…