Jakarta –
After the last harvest season, Sripai Kaeo-eam rushed to clear his rice fields so he could plant rice in August, despite the directions given by the Thai government which wanted to limit water waste.
“This variety is our hope,” said the 58-year-old farmer, pointing to green rice seedlings that are only a few centimeters tall. Sripai wants to quickly make a fortune because the price of rice is rising sharply, while he is currently in debt of 200 thousand Baht or around Rp. 90 million. The increase in rice prices on the global market was triggered by a ban on rice exports in India.
These conditions should benefit Thai farmers. This white elephant country has long been listed as the second largest rice exporter in the world. In 2022, Thailand exported 7.7 million tonnes of rice to the Middle East, Asia and Africa, according to research institute Krungsri Research.
But what happened was not growth, quite the opposite. The area of rice fields in Thailand has actually decreased by 14.5 percent since the last year. The numbers have been decreasing consistently since 2020.
According to experts, Thailand’s agricultural system is being threatened by high debt levels, a lack of technological innovation and climate change. This pressure has not diminished even though the government has disbursed billions of US dollars in agricultural subsidies over the last decade. Currently, many farming families are in huge debt due to failed harvests after borrowing money to finance the planting season.
“The reduction in rice fields is due to the lack of rain and irrigation,” said Somporn, a senior researcher at the Thai Knowledge Institute Network (KNIT). It is believed that the increasing drought will get worse, following the El Nino season which will last until 2024.
“The government is not doing enough to increase productivity,” continued Somporn. Now, when prices are soaring, “farmers cannot produce rice,” he said, adding that the drought would cut yields by as much as 30 percent over the next two seasons.
Get carried away with past successes
The foundation of Thailand’s success in producing rice was laid at the end of the 19th century by King Chulalongkorn. “He carried out agrarian, land and free trade reforms,” said Nipon Poapongsakorn of the Thai Development Research Institute. Decades of investment and development of superior varieties began to bear fruit in the 1960s, when Thailand achieved rice self-sufficiency. “If you plant superior varieties, you must have an irrigation system,” he added.
However, the lack of investment in the last few decades has also had an impact on the productivity of Thai farmers. In 2018, Thai farmers produced 485 kilograms of rice per 1600 square meters. Meanwhile in Bangladesh, farmers can produce 752 kg and in Nepal 560 kg.
“We are lulled by our own success,” said Nipon. “Our rice varieties are very old and our yields are very low.”
Thai farmers can only plant varieties that have been permitted by the government. They could be subject to penalties if they buy or develop other types of varieties. The decline in research in Thailand was accompanied by massive investment by India and Vietnam. As a result, the productivity of farmers in both countries has now exceeded that of Thai farmers.
Moreover, increasingly erratic weather conditions present new challenges that are not easy to overcome. “Extreme weather patterns brought by the El Nino phenomenon create major risks for farmers,” said Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin last week. This year’s average rainfall was 18 percent lower and clean water storage ponds were only filled at 54 percent of total capacity, wrote the National Water Resources Office.
“There will be consolidation in water management and innovation, in order to increase crop yields and find new markets for Thai agricultural products,” said PM Thavisin.
But for Sripai, despite the government’s plans, the spike in rice prices this time is a rare opportunity to catch up. “We hope to be able to pay off our debts,” he said, sitting in front of the wooden hut he lived in. “We continue to pray.”
rzn/as (rtr,afp)
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2023-09-19 03:21:45
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