Thailand approves $300 million aid for drought-stricken sugarcane farmers

[webfact]

Thailand approves $300 million aid for drought-stricken sugarcane farmers

 

FILE PHOTO: Sugarcane is seen after being harvested in a field at Pakchong district in Ratchaburi province, Thailand March 22, 2016. REUTERS/Jorge Silva/File Photo

 

BANGKOK (Reuters) - Thailand approved 10 billion baht ($319 million) in aid on Tuesday for its sugarcane farmers, whose output has been hit by drought.

 

Thailand is the world's second-largest sugar exporter, behind Brazil, but its production plunged by more than 40% in the December-April season from a year earlier, as it crushed the lowest volume of sugar cane in a decade as a prolonged drought undermined yield.

 

The government expects that around 300,000 sugarcane farmers would receive the financial aid, said Ratchada Thanadirek, a deputy government spokeswoman.

 

"Sugarcane farmers were severely impacted by drought this year and they also bore higher costs of production per tonne," Ratchada said after the cabinet approved the aid package at a meeting.

 

"The government sympathizes with sugarcane farmers."

 

Thailand's cane production next season is expected to further decline by around 20%, the Office of the Cane and Sugar Fund has forecast, as drought continued while farmers planted new crops in April and early May, and as the coronavirus pandemic hits the global economy and reduces demand for sugar. The drought has now eased, however.

 

($1 = 31.3400 baht)

 

(Reporting by Panarat Thepgumpanat; Writing by Patpicha Tanakasempipat; Editing by Susan Fenton)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2020-06-10

 

- Whatever you're going through, the Samaritans are here for you

- Follow Thaivisa on LINE for breaking COVID-19 updates

[thequietman]

That's it - reward the very people who openly and flagrantly, pollute the air of the kingdom every year with no repercussions, cept of course, money to help them along.

 

Truly amazing Thailand. ????

Edited June 10, 2020 by thequietman

[CGW]

29 minutes ago, thequietman said:

That's it - reward the very people who openly and flagrantly, pollute the air of the kingdom every year with no repercussions, cept of course, money to help them along.

Dramatic statement, but the not the whole story! The "government" paid people to switch from rice to sugar cane some years back, with no thought as too how it would be harvested and no restrictions on burning! They funded the wholesale planting of sugar cane in conjunction with their wealthy "supporters" who built more sugar cane processing plants to handle the increased production they knew was coming their way, they had a lot of spare capacity & needed more product so they could make yet more money and reward those that helped them!

So the "government" is obviously going to help their "partners" in the mills, along the way they will give the farmers a few dollars - it's a win for them! - on a personal scale, yet a loss for the countries environment.

Where I live there is a lot of sugar cane, this past year the burning and pollution was down substantially and noticeably which may have been luck, doubtful if it was because of good government and policing.

As usual, rampant corruption on an Industrial scale ???? 

[sweatalot]

6 hours ago, webfact said:

Thailand approved 10 billion baht ($319 million) in aid on Tuesday for its sugarcane farmers,

ok but make it mandatory that they stop burning completely or pay back every satang as soon as they are caught burning again

[Toany]

Brazil has a total ban on the burning sugar cane.  It is probably not enforced well, but at east the ban is there.  I believe the government sets a quota for the amount of burnt sugar cane that can be processed.  Effectively giving the OK to burn sugar cane.

 

They had the ideal opportunity to ban it completely as a reward for the cash handout.  An opportunity wasted.

 

No doubt next year, I will again have to stay indoors some days because of the high pollution caused solely by local sugar can burning

Edited June 10, 2020 by Toany

[hotchilli]

8 hours ago, webfact said:

Thailand approved 10 billion baht

Thailand hub of bailouts, how many sectors are now helped via government subsidies, I've lost count !!

[canopy]

The purpose of a business is to make a profit, not become a burden to the taxpayer. If they can't make money on sugarcane then do something else. Throwing taxpayer money at farmers only ensures a deeper, longer cycle of poverty as farmers are encouraged to cling to this failed, rotten system. Every farmer knows droughts are common. They need to save during good times to tide over bad times. The government should stay out of it as they can only make things worse. Farming in Thailand desperately needs increased efficiency and streamlining, not encouragement of failure.

 

[trainman34014]

3 hours ago, sweatalot said:

ok but make it mandatory that they stop burning completely or pay back every satang as soon as they are caught burning again

Better still; suspend all payments until they actually stop burning first. If there is one breach of the rule then nobody gets paid !

[CGW]

1 hour ago, canopy said:

The purpose of a business is to make a profit, not become a burden to the taxpayer. If they can't make money on sugarcane then do something else. Throwing taxpayer money at farmers only ensures a deeper, longer cycle of poverty as farmers are encouraged to cling to this failed, rotten system. Every farmer knows droughts are common. They need to save during good times to tide over bad times. The government should stay out of it as they can only make things worse. Farming in Thailand desperately needs increased efficiency and streamlining, not encouragement of failure.

Before any of the above they need fertile soil and water for the crops, unfortunately there are not any options without these vital ingredients! The "good times" barely pay the bills as it is.

 

[canopy]

3 hours ago, CGW said:

Before any of the above they need fertile soil and water for the crops, unfortunately there are not any options without these vital ingredients! The "good times" barely pay the bills as it is.

If a farmer can't make money, then do something else with the land or sell it to someone else who can. That won't happen as long as the government continues to keep their head just above water. Throwing good money after bad at these problems is solving nothing. The government should form a think tank on how to best utilize each micro climate and soil condition optimally. That would be a true help to the farmers and the country.

 

[DrTuner]

Give them 300M worth of fire extinguishers instead.

 

The air has been breathable for a while now.

[mr mr]

are they going to burn that too ? fracking attholes 

[CGW]

4 hours ago, canopy said:

If a farmer can't make money, then do something else with the land or sell it to someone else who can. That won't happen as long as the government continues to keep their head just above water. Throwing good money after bad at these problems is solving nothing. The government should form a think tank on how to best utilize each micro climate and soil condition optimally. That would be a true help to the farmers and the country.

I know what you are saying and agree with the sentiment, but this is Thailand, agricultural land is dirt cheap, I am surrounded by land that is for sale, no one wants it as they can't make a living from it, it's simply not possible!

Your expectations of the "government" are totally unrealistic! their an undemocratic military dictatorship, not some "Western" entity that was elected to take care of the people! My wife has a fair chunk of land, little is done with it, theres no point, at the end of the day, if you are lucky you will break even! The people that make the money are the conglomerates that buy the produce, sell the chemicals, loan the money, always been that way here, I see no change coming in the future, "government" is happy with the status quo!

[canopy]

9 hours ago, CGW said:

agricultural land is dirt cheap

Dream on. Agricultural land is NOT dirt cheap this century. Land prices go up every year despite the fact no one wants it. It's getting to the point a muddy field in the middle of nowhere goes for a half million baht a rai that several decades ago cost 1/100th that price. This is called greed. Agricultural Land is so expensive it is now a speculative market reserved for rich buyers. I agree a farmer can't expect to buy land and turn over the cost of the land over time by farming on it. This is very sad state of affairs and it never used to be this way. The only way I see to break this price raising scheme is to introduce a property tax. Now the farmer has to spend his whiskey money to keep his land. He'll drop the price and sell the land real quick. Land all over Thailand will drop to its true market value which is the way it should be instead of being reserved for rich speculators. Then good farmers and the new generation can afford to buy land again and have the chance to make a good living on it. Instead we prop up the dogmatic, greedy, failure farmers who have land and whine they are losing money. Why not do something for the have-nots for a change and give them a chance.

 

9 hours ago, CGW said:

I am surrounded by land that is for sale, no one wants it as they can't make a living from it, it's simply not possible!

Subsistence size crop farms don't work in the 21st century and it's easy to see that with depressingly poor farmers all over Thailand. The country needs new ideas, new land uses, modernization, and more. As popular as it may be, propping up the current failed system is the worst possible solution. It chains these farmers in poverty for as long as the government continues to do it.

 

9 hours ago, CGW said:

Your expectations of the "government" are totally unrealistic!

Read the news more. It surprised even me that this government actually has taken steps to do precisely what I have advocated in some places--they formed a think tank and came up with very interesting and profitable land use ideas and I for one was very impressed with this. Sadly I haven't seen it taken the last mile which is to prod the herd to these greener pastures. Instead the strategy seems to have shifted to populist bailouts and crop pledging that panders to the poor, a reward system for failure.