Agriculture Ministry urges Bt5,000 handouts for farmers as global food shortages loom

[snoop1130]

Agriculture Ministry urges Bt5,000 handouts for farmers as global food shortages loom

By The Nation

 

Alongkorn Ponlaboot

 

The Agriculture Ministry is asking the government to hand farmers monthly payments of Bt5,000 for six months to maintain the agricultural supply amid forecasts of global food shortages within three months.

 

Alongkorn Ponlaboot, adviser to the agriculture minister, said that the United Nations, the World Health Organisation and the World Trade Organisation all predict that food shortages will become another global crisis in the next three months, especially for countries that are unable to produce their own food.

 

The ministry wants a backup plan in place before the world recovers from the Covid-19 crisis, which might take about two years.

 

“Thailand is the 12th largest food exporter in the world and the second in Asia,” Alongkorn said. “This is a time when we have to maintain our production bases for agricultural products, crops, livestock and fish.”

 

With both domestic and international purchasing power decreasing, farmers have a crucial role under current circumstance, and the ministry needs to subsidise them with Bt5,000 payments for six months, he added.

 

The ministries of Agriculture and Commerce must work together to balance volumes of food for domestic consumption and for export, said Alongkorn, so that the country can maintain its food supply and also revenue from international markets.

 

Source: https://www.nationthailand.com/news/30386070

 

-- © Copyright The Nation Thailand 2020-04-15

Follow Thaivisa on LINE for breaking COVID-19 updates

[FarFlungFalang]

Otherwise known VB.Election anyone?

Edited April 15, 2020 by FarFlungFalang

[rbkk]

Things are getting very murky now. On Monday it was 15,000 baht per farmer family. Now it is 5,000 per farmer? Does the left hand know what the right hand is doing? Can someone tell me if I'm missing something here. Also the number of farmers being quoted has gone from 9 million to 13 million to 17 million (17m=Prayut 4pm today)....

Edited April 15, 2020 by rbkk

[dtpman83]

Website to check if someone is registered as a farmer by inputing their ID number and click on the search button:

http://farmer.doae.go.th/

 

For those who registered for the 5000 THB workers handout scheme and were denied because of the reason of being a farmer, they can check if the reason is valid.

If they were denied for the 5000 thb worker handout scheme, but are not in the farmers database, they might be able to appeal next week.

[davemos]

Meanwhile China is stopping the water flow in the Mekong.Dans are filling in China and downstream there is drought .

[brokenbone]

this is not that easy. the state need to support those in need

but at the same time not giving away money to the large percentage that doesnt need support.

but the government in thailand have insufficient data to separate the two.

 

[Speedo1968]

40 minutes ago, davemos said:

Meanwhile China is stopping the water flow in the Mekong.Dans are filling in China and downstream there is drought .

Nothing new, whether this is for need or greed.   

Water is a necessity and a tool of war in the past, present and in the future.

I have worked in farming in the UK and elsewhere since the early 1960's.    I spent some years in Paraguay when during some of that time Brazil put the screws on Paraguay by reducing river flows, shipping and the stopping of cereals that affected both humans and livestock.    Later they restricted fuel supplies.     My farm and shop were not large by any means but eventually the restrictions put me out of business.

[Bender Rodriguez]

corona makes the rice STOP growing or something ?

 

[kevin612]

I am confused as well, I saw a news before, Prayut said the government has lack of money and only provide Funds for 1 month only. This guy said six months for farmers. They all work separately?

[2 is 1]

51 minutes ago, Bender Rodriguez said:

corona makes the rice STOP growing or something ?

 

Do you think it grow it self? Nothing need to buy to make that happen!!!?

Maybe don't need do also nothing to harvest, go try even for day to harvest! I can say to you hope you have good back!

[Almer]

3 hours ago, brokenbone said:

this is not that easy. the state need to support those in need

but at the same time not giving away money to the large percentage that doesnt need support.

but the government in thailand have insufficient data to separate the two.

 

There data analysts will have a field day when the virus subsides, 

22+ million in need out of a 68 million population.

[Almer]

16 hours ago, rbkk said:

Things are getting very murky now. On Monday it was 15,000 baht per farmer family. Now it is 5,000 per farmer? Does the left hand know what the right hand is doing? Can someone tell me if I'm missing something here. Also the number of farmers being quoted has gone from 9 million to 13 million to 17 million (17m=Prayut 4pm today)....

When the 5000 baht stops there will be 40.000 farmers

[Almer]

3 hours ago, Speedo1968 said:

Nothing new, whether this is for need or greed.   

Water is a necessity and a tool of war in the past, present and in the future.

I have worked in farming in the UK and elsewhere since the early 1960's.    I spent some years in Paraguay when during some of that time Brazil put the screws on Paraguay by reducing river flows, shipping and the stopping of cereals that affected both humans and livestock.    Later they restricted fuel supplies.     My farm and shop were not large by any means but eventually the restrictions put me out of business.

China doesn't need weapons to control

[Krataiboy]

6 hours ago, davemos said:

Meanwhile China is stopping the water flow in the Mekong.Dans are filling in China and downstream there is drought .

Come on, Big Chief Five Rivers. Tell them to stop <deleted> around - or else.

[CGW]

7 hours ago, davemos said:

Meanwhile China is stopping the water flow in the Mekong.Dans are filling in China and downstream there is drought .

There's enough fear mongering going on without adding to it, where are they getting the water to fill these dams? 

[rbkk]

3 hours ago, Almer said:

There data analysts will have a field day when the virus subsides, 

22+ million in need out of a 68 million population.

28+ Million in need (claimed) out of a 69.8 Million poulation=40% . (Some have withdrawn their claims out of fear.)

[rbkk]

https://www.bangkokpost.com/thailand/general/1833439/green-algae-blue-water-add-to-fears-over-mekong-health

20 minutes ago, CGW said:

There's enough fear mongering going on without adding to it, where are they getting the water to fill these dams? 

 

7 hours ago, davemos said:

Meanwhile China is stopping the water flow in the Mekong.Dans are filling in China and downstream there is drought .

I was watching a documentary about the 'Blue water' in the Mekong. I seem to remember them saying the actions of these dams is affecting over 40 Million people downstream whose livelyhoods depend on the Mekong. Dictatorships don't give a sh*t....Sorry that's 60 Million (link).

Edited April 16, 2020 by rbkk
added link

[CGW]

5 minutes ago, rbkk said:

I seem to remember them saying the actions of these dams is affecting over 40 Million people downstream whose livelyhoods depend on the Mekong.

Not going to argue that, but the dams are in Laos, its the dry season, so why is this an issue now, the Mekong is always dry this time of year!

[Almer]

57 minutes ago, rbkk said:

28+ Million in need (claimed) out of a 69.8 Million poulation=40% . (Some have withdrawn their claims out of fear.)

Thankyou my figures out of date, it was changing by the hour

[Almer]

40 minutes ago, CGW said:

Not going to argue that, but the dams are in Laos, its the dry season, so why is this an issue now, the Mekong is always dry this time of year!

This year it is very lie, the good working relationship thai and china should be able to sort this

[rbkk]

1 hour ago, CGW said:

but the dams are in Laos

Eleven dams so far in China........https://www.bangkokpost.com/world/1899000/study-finds-chinese-dams-held-back-mekong-waters

Edited April 16, 2020 by rbkk

[Assurancetourix]

1 hour ago, CGW said:

Not going to argue that, but the dams are in Laos, its the dry season, so why is this an issue now, the Mekong is always dry this time of year!

It's true, but I never saw it looking like a small river.
This photo is from the New York Times;
it was taken at the height of Sangkhom in the province of Nong Khai;

Thailand is on the left side of the photo

 

 

 

 

 

[Assurancetourix]

51 minutes ago, rbkk said:

Eleven dams so far in China

Many more 

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydropower_in_the_Mekong_River_Basin

 

https://opendevelopmentmekong.net/topics/hydropower/

[HaleySabai]

7 hours ago, 2 is 1 said:

Do you think it grow it self? Nothing need to buy to make that happen!!!?

Maybe don't need do also nothing to harvest, go try even for day to harvest! I can say to you hope you have good back!

The input cost for rice farmers in my area of Mae Rim has gone up since the Government turned off the taps. They have been forced to pay for access to ground water,buy pumps,PVC,fuel et...

 

The planting is either mechanical or manual. Using the machine is a brilliant mechanical idea,very fast and easy. Manual means involve either 'throwing seeds" or inserting rice plugs into the wet soil, the former is really back breaking labor.

The harvest,which has started a few days ago here involves hiring an independent thrasher-unit that can do a 10rai field in a few hours. No work for the farmer but to stand and watch. Then there is the clean-up and burn then the tilling-under,many farmers in this area own a tractor, which is another expense.

 

The reason they burn the rice stock is because when it becomes wet it cloggs up the tractors rotary tillers. In the old days(not so long ago) the farmers would harvest by hand-cutting the rice very close to the ground leaving very little need to burn. It was easily (but with a lot of labor) manually tilled back into the soil.

 

Under normal conditions of sufficient water supply and after a certain input of labor the rice then of course does "grow by itself". At this point it's time to get back to the whiskey for the next three-months....which is also another expense ????

[kickstart]

23 hours ago, snoop1130 said:

“Thailand is the 12th largest food exporter in the world and the second in Asia,” Alongkorn said. “This is a time when we have to maintain our production bases for agricultural products, crops, livestock and fish.”

It is going to be Catch 22,Thailand imports a lot of the raw ingredients to make all the feed for livestock and fish ,that is going to be exported.

If this food shortage happens the main exporting country's will stop their  exports of raw ingredients and use them themselves ,so Thailand will be short of ingredients to make the livestock feed, what they have will be used for they own use ,and the export market will drop .

As for the rice exports ,other countries be thinking the same Vietnam ,could well up their production ,if India climb back up they could up production for export ,and now Thailand is Number 3 in the world for  rice exports lagging behind  the others ,if it is going to be another dry year rice yields will be down ,less for export.    

[rickudon]

On 4/16/2020 at 5:04 PM, CGW said:

There's enough fear mongering going on without adding to it, where are they getting the water to fill these dams? 

The Himalayas. Glaciers melt you know.

[CGW]

21 minutes ago, rickudon said:

The Himalayas. Glaciers melt you know.

I know that the upper Mekong is fed by the Glaciers, but would have though it was too early for a lot of water to be fed into the river at this time of year, also believe that the majority of water is fed further downstream?

[rickudon]

1 hour ago, CGW said:

I know that the upper Mekong is fed by the Glaciers, but would have though it was too early for a lot of water to be fed into the river at this time of year, also believe that the majority of water is fed further downstream?

16% of the total flow comes from China, mainly from glacial meltwater. In the dry season, 30% of the flow reaching Cambodia is from China.

[davemos]

On 4/17/2020 at 10:07 PM, rickudon said:

16% of the total flow comes from China, mainly from glacial meltwater. In the dry season, 30% of the flow reaching Cambodia is from China.