File photo credit: Thai Rath

 

Eight companies have submitted their qualifications to bid for 15,000 tonnes of decade-old rice. This rice is left over from the Yingluck administration's rice-pledging scheme. The Public Warehouse Organisation (PWO) received the documents yesterday.

 

According to Wittayakorn Maneenet, a Commerce Ministry spokesman, the potential bidders include rice exporters and other businesses from various provinces. The aged Hom Mali fragrant rice is a remnant of the government’s controversial rice-pledging programme.

 

This Thursday, the PWO will reveal the names of the qualified companies on its website. Only those that pass the screening can submit sealed bids on June 17 between 9 am and noon. Bids will be opened later that afternoon, with results announced on June 21.

 

The highest bidder must sign a contract with the PWO within 15 days of the announcement and make a 5% cash down payment. Failure to complete the deal within the stipulated time will result in the loss of the deposit. In such cases, the contract will go to the second-highest bidder, and the first will be required to pay the bid difference.

 

Once the contract is signed, the winning bidder has 20 days to pay the full amount. The bidder must also take delivery of the first lot—up to 10,000 tonnes—within 20 days of signing, and the remaining rice within 30 days.

 

Maneenet assured the public that if the rice is sold domestically, it will undergo testing and approval by the Medical Sciences Department and the Office of the Consumer Protection Board, ensuring it is safe for consumption.

 

For export purposes, a quality standard certificate from the Foreign Trade Department will be necessary.

This process is crucial for managing the surplus stock while maintaining safety and quality standards.

 

-- 2024-06-11

 

Get our Daily Newsletter - Click HERE to subscribe

13 minutes ago, webfact said:

Maneenet assured the public that if the rice is sold domestically, it will undergo testing and approval by the Medical Sciences Department and the Office of the Consumer Protection Board, ensuring it is safe for consumption.

 

comforting not

 

this rice if sold to consumers through retail outlets should be labeled properly identifying exactly what it is, not much chance of that is there.

 

why was it left to rot in storage so long ?

I think this rice has been "auctioned" before, but the winning bidders failed to come up with the cash.

 

Which leads to the perpetual headline: Old rice 'to be auctioned next month'

52 minutes ago, smedly said:

why was it left to rot in storage so long ?

 

I removed-----------

 

 

 

 

It´s very strange to me, that this problem actually exists. How can they have 15 tons of rice left since 10 year back in time. I thought that they sold the old rice first and kept the new stocks. Why on earth have they been saving this rice that long?

We just got some rice in Sir ....   would you like it with your chicken  '  

 

ah no thank's  '     I'll give the rice a miss this week ....  

21 minutes ago, Gottfrid said:

It´s very strange to me, that this problem actually exists. How can they have 15 tons of rice left since 10 year back in time. I thought that they sold the old rice first and kept the new stocks. Why on earth have they been saving this rice that long?

It's special rice, a bit like 100 year old eggs....

Come on folks - this stuff is 'aged'.

With added vitamins (bugs).

One pays more for aged wine etc.

10 minutes ago, simon43 said:

It's special rice, a bit like 100 year old eggs....

😂😂😂

4 hours ago, webfact said:

Maneenet assured the public that if the rice is sold domestically, it will undergo testing and approval by the Medical Sciences Department and the Office of the Consumer Protection Board, ensuring it is safe for consumption.

I though it was going to Africa

9 minutes ago, hotchilli said:

I though it was going to Africa

 

9 minutes ago, hotchilli said:

I though it was going to Africa

Even they know not to buy rubbish

14 minutes ago, hotchilli said:

I though it was going to Africa

 

In one of the original press releases they all but said the rice was not up to Thai standards but the rice should be good enough for the Africans...

3 minutes ago, redwood1 said:

 

In one of the original press releases they all but said the rice was not up to Thai standards but the rice should be good enough for the Africans...

I wonder if this rice is going to be bought by an unscrupulous buyer .

Will it be bagged and sold clearly identified clearly as 10 year old aged rice so everyone knows what it is and where it comes from?

Or will it be mixed in with other rice to be re-sold at a handsome profit?

31 minutes ago, hotchilli said:

I though it was going to Africa

Initially yes, but with more positive testing for quality, more offers may have come in, proving rice viability as human or animal food.

21 minutes ago, redwood1 said:

they all but said

Either they said or they did not say. Do you have a link to the alleged press releases?

my honest question,  is there 9 year old rice, 8,7,6,5,4,3,2 ...  why eat anything else then last crop ?

4 hours ago, Gottfrid said:

It´s very strange to me, that this problem actually exists. How can they have 15 tons of rice left since 10 year back in time. I thought that they sold the old rice first and kept the new stocks. Why on earth have they been saving this rice that long?

It's not 15 tons, it's 15,000 tonnes.

4 hours ago, Gottfrid said:

It´s very strange to me, that this problem actually exists. How can they have 15 tons of rice left since 10 year back in time. I thought that they sold the old rice first and kept the new stocks. Why on earth have they been saving this rice that long?

 

learn to read... not 15 tons

 

15.000 tons

or 

15.000.000 kilograms

 

3.000.000 bags of your standard 5 kg bag

 

 

1000 truck loads?

4 hours ago, Gottfrid said:

How can they have 15 tons of rice left since 10 year back in time.

The military junta took over in 2014 overthrowing the Yingluck regime. It continued to support the storage of this rice until junta chief and PM Gen. Prayut vacated the government in 2023.

Likely, the rice storage (paid by the junta government) was maintained as evidence by Prayut in its original quality to prosecute Yingluck. But she fled prosecution and Prayut did not win the PM in the 2023 election. So there appears now there was more reason to continue expensive storage.

5 hours ago, webfact said:

Maneenet assured the public that if the rice is sold domestically, it will undergo testing and approval by the Medical Sciences Department and the Office of the Consumer Protection Board, ensuring it is safe for consumption.

I don't care what guarantees they provide. I want to know the name of the company so I don't buy that price by accident. 

23 minutes ago, Srikcir said:

The military junta took over in 2014 overthrowing the Yingluck regime. It continued to support the storage of this rice until junta chief and PM Gen. Prayut vacated the government in 2023.

Likely, the rice storage (paid by the junta government) was maintained as evidence by Prayut in its original quality to prosecute Yingluck. But she fled prosecution and Prayut did not win the PM in the 2023 election. So there appears now there was more reason to continue expensive storage.

Yeah, or just use photo evidence, right?

26 minutes ago, john donson said:

 

learn to read... not 15 tons

 

15.000 tons

or 

15.000.000 kilograms

 

3.000.000 bags of your standard 5 kg bag

 

 

1000 truck loads?

Oh yeah, wrote wrong there. Missed a couple of zeros. Nothing wrong with my reading, it just was the fingers that made a revolution.

6 hours ago, webfact said:

Eight companies  unscrupulous entities have submitted their qualifications to bid for 15,000 tonnes of decade-old rice.

 

there... fixed it

5 hours ago, simon43 said:

It's special rice, a bit like 100 year old eggs....

Like fine wine

6 hours ago, webfact said:

Maneenet assured the public that if the rice is sold domestically, it will undergo testing and approval by the Medical Sciences Department and the Office of the Consumer Protection Board, ensuring it is safe for consumption.

Shouldn't it undergo testing before it is sold , and if it does not meet the approval of the Medical Sciences Department and the Office of the Consumer Protection Board, then it can only be sold for export only.

I am like a few others on here , Slippery Somchai buys it , re-bags with a different name on it and sells it cheap.

Seems like a prudent restriction would be to require the buyer to certify that they'll use the rice for rice wine, rice vinegar, or livestock food.

 

That would protect the reputation of the millions of tons of Thai rice sold each year, giving end users around the world a little confidence that they haven't bought a bunch of old rice mixed in with the bags they bought.

 

They may not get top dollar (baht) with that restriction, but is the difference worth the risk to international confidence in millions of tons of Thai rice each year?  All it would take is one customer in Africa or Europe (or a Walmart) to claim that the Thai rice they bought was tainted, and they'd be pulling Thai rice off the shelves around the world.

 

Edit:  And that kind of reputational stank takes decades to go away.

 

This old rice will soon find its way into shops and restaurants in Thailand.

3 hours ago, Srikcir said:

Initially yes, but with more positive testing for quality, more offers may have come in, proving rice viability as human or animal food.

It sounds like it was going to be dumped, then it was quality tested and it's value increased, let's hope the quality sample was from this aged stock!!! 

4 hours ago, hotchilli said:

I though it was going to Africa

To feed the British deportees?  555

Late amendment! 9 companies!

 

Mrs C

eats rice 3 times a day and wants a bid for 1500 tons no bugs or molds!