Pineapples

[Gary A]

One of the locals offered my wife all the pineapple plants she wanted because he was going to plow them under. He said the market price for whole pineapples was 1.25 baht per kilo and he couldn't afford to keep them growing for that price.

[Khonwan]

(BangkokPost.com) - Hundreds of pineapple farmers block the road between Phitsanulok and Phetchabun provinces to demand the government to help raise prices of pineapples.

They said the prices of the fruit has plummeted -- to only 1.25 baht per kilogramme.

They would like to government to raise the price of the fruit from 3.80 to 4.50 baht per kilogramme.

They said that the prices of chemical fertilisers have risen, causing them to shoulder higher costs.

Road block occurred in Nakhon Thai district, causing heavy traffic along the area.

May 17, 2008

[pumpuiman]

I pay 4 to 5 DOLLARS for ONE pineapple at my local market in the U.S.

Thats some markup.

[dave_boo]

I was going to reply that here in Iraq we pay over $3.25/lb for pineapple produced in Thailand. I'm not good at math, but that's some 1800% markup!

[AlexLah]

Was at a roadstall and I could buy a nice pineapple for 8 Baht.

[ozzydom]

(BangkokPost.com) - Hundreds of pineapple farmers block the road between Phitsanulok and Phetchabun provinces to demand the government to help raise prices of pineapples.

They said the prices of the fruit has plummeted -- to only 1.25 baht per kilogramme.

They would like to government to raise the price of the fruit from 3.80 to 4.50 baht per kilogramme.

They said that the prices of chemical fertilisers have risen, causing them to shoulder higher costs.

Road block occurred in Nakhon Thai district, causing heavy traffic along the area.

May 17, 2008

All a result of the age old agricultural problem of glut and shortage .

When you get 10,s of thousands of individual growers all vying for a piece of the market ,it is a middlemans dream as they play producers off against each other.

The same thing was standard procedure in Oz until Government set up statutory Marketing Boards such as the Wheat Board (AWB) Egg Marketing Authorities,Apple and Pear Board,Berry Fruit Board and just about any agricultural commodity you care to mention.

These Boards have a fairly standard charter which is basically>

A.. To ensure an adequate supply of the commodity for the market (local and export)

B.. To set a fair and adequate return to the grower.

Set minimum returns are funded by Government input and levies on growers, the system works fairly well in Western countries although the Longon industry in Thailand is a prime example of

what can go wrong if its allowed.

In Oz these boards are administered by producer elected members with minimal Government representation,and are supported by legislation.