Khmer Times/Sum Manet

Officials at the Industry Ministry say they are striving to make Cambodian rice more competitive by improving its quality as well as farm productivity, as rising supply is expected from new entrants to the market, like Myanmar, and leading exporters like Thailand and India are fighting to regain market share.

Sat Samy, a secretary of state at the ministry, said the private and public sectors have to work together to ensure rice exports can compete.

Myanmar will become a rice exporting country within five years and its prices will be as low as those charged by Cambodian exporters, he said, adding that like Cambodia it will enjoy duty-free access to markets like the European Union.

read more: http://www.khmertimeskh.com/news/18433/rice-exports-to-face-rising-competition/

Vietnamese and Myanmar rice farmers are getting more than 50% profit margins on their rice exports compared to Thai farmers at about 25%.

(Thai farmers poorest in ASEAN, 2014-07-22)

While Cambodian farmers may not produce large quantities of rice exports, they should be able to match the profit margins of Vietnam and Myanmar and exceed Thai profitability.