Government gives more credit lines to farmers

[rooster59]

Government gives more credit lines to farmers

 

The government yesterday (Aug 4) endorsed several measures to help rice farmers fetch higher prices for their crops as global rice prices are soaring.

 

The measures were given approval at a meeting of the Rice Policy Committee chaired by Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha.

 

The meeting was told of the promisingly global rice prices rise due mainly to the fact that Thailand’s major competitors were facing difficulties involving natural calamities.

 

Jasmine rice prices have risen from 10,000 baht/tonne to 12,000 baht/tonne.

 

Sticky rice prices accordingly also rose from 9,300 to 12,000 baht/tonne and regular rice rose from 7,700 to 8,800 baht/tonne.

 

Full story: http://englishnews.thaipbs.or.th/government-gives-credit-lines-farmers/

 

 

-- © Copyright Thai PBS 2017-08-05

[NanLaew]

So the farmers get deeper in hock while the rice millers get richer.

 

And some say the Shins were well dodgy.

[coulson]

The government yesterday (Aug 4) endorsed several measures to help rice farmers fetch higher prices for their crops ^^^^^^^

 

The meeting was told of the promisingly global rice prices rise due mainly to the fact that Thailand’s major competitors were facing calamities

 

Sounds familiar!?!?

 

 

[Denim]

So glad Prayuth has kept yet another promise. To put an end to populist policies. What a great guy after all.

Misunderstood by millions his compassion and foresight is appreciated by at least half a dozen TV posters.

[Chris Lawrence]

Ah, the 'Perfect Storm'.

 

"Overall, the government has budgeted 40 to 50 billion baht to help farmers, part of which will come from loans from commercial banks." 

 

The hand outs may be a cash cow for the banks, but is enough being done to manage the resource. Thailand has some of the best rice in the world. A Thai rice farmer needs to be productive during downtimes. 

 

The Government is trying to follow the market in its upward trend. A similar flaw that was campaigned in another populist rice scheme.

[canuckamuck]

An upcoming Bangkok flood and a rice scandal too. Can't this government come up with its own ideas and stop copying Yingluck?

[colinneil]

I am sure i have read this before, or am i just getting old.

 

Ohh wait a minute, thats a Shinawatra plan, can the government not think up anything of their own.

Giving rice farmers more credit is not the solution to anything.

More debt is no answer to anybodysproblems.

 

[George Bowman]

Our place is halfway between Phitsanulok and Sukothai. This area of Thailand is mostly farmers and rice fields. The wife's family are rice farmers. Having grown up on a farm in 'Missoura' the similarities between there and here, is pretty close. Some farmers work hard. Some farmers are eligible for bank loans. Some farmers think the profit will be good every year. Some farmers learn the market can be tough. Some farmers lose everything.

 

 

[worgeordie]

Just what they need !, get them in more debt,so they have to sell their land

to rich outsiders,just to continue living.

 

regards worgeordie

[Cadbury]

10 hours ago, rooster59 said:

Rice Policy Committee chaired by Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha

Is there no committee in this country that isn't chaired by PM Prayut Chan-o-cha? What a human dynamo!

And what's this clap-trap about "Thailand’s major competitors facing difficulties involving natural calamities". An exaggeration created to justify a flawed policy.

The Philippines has a current problem because it cannot satisfy it's own demand due to low yield and high costs but that's about all. The Philippines has never been a major competitor of Thailand. It could more truthfully be described as a good customer and becoming an even better one.

What are the farmers going to do with the loan money? Change with the times and Improve their rice farming techniques or buy a new pick-up which has some small chance of being transformed into scrap metal on the highway.

[BEVUP]

It never changes always being subsidised (like other countries ) & it all depends on the global market

Most of them are always in debt year after year just to plant another crop

Just have to watch them screaming for help from Gov. as I think they dont know about world markets & probably don't have enough land to diversify 

 

[canuckamuck]

What the farmers really need here is training and some good advice.

[inThailand]

2 hours ago, worgeordie said:

Just what they need !, get them in more debt,so they have to sell their land

to rich outsiders,just to continue living.

 

regards worgeordie

Yup! 

 

Let the uneducated farmers easily borrow 50K on land worth 1M as collateral and when they can't pay, make them homeless without a means to make a living. That's the way to help the backbone of Thailand, the farmers.

[BEVUP]

30 minutes ago, inThailand said:

Yup! 

 

Let the uneducated farmers easily borrow 50K on land worth 1M as collateral and when they can't pay, make them homeless without a means to make a living. That's the way to help the backbone of Thailand, the farmers.

That land would already have 500,000 debt on it

[inThailand]

7 minutes ago, BEVUP said:

That land would already have 500,000 debt on it

Not a chance....banks lending 50% of the value of farm land!  They already have 10 million rai they can't unload.

[NanLaew]

2 hours ago, canuckamuck said:

What the farmers really need here is training and some good advice.

Or less Bangkok led government micro-management? For a country with a 60% rice farming constituency, there's a whole lot of milking going on.

[retarius]

Did someone say populism?

[seajae]

big difference here is that they are not setting the rice price, the world market is, still would be better if they made any borrowing had to be spent on improving  current methods/yeilds and not personal items etc. Simply borrowing every year and not improving anything is not the way to go about it, farming methods need to be modernized and not relying on govt support

[Srikcir]

20 hours ago, rooster59 said:

The meeting was told of the promisingly global rice prices rise due mainly to the fact that Thailand’s major competitors were facing difficulties involving natural calamities.

Prices rise due to rice shortage - logical.

But if Thailand then "floods" (that time of year) with rice incentivised by government subsidies, it will drive rice prices back down. Thus negating the value of government subsidies and further damaging the Thai rice farmer - stupid.

[473geo]

 

As the rice price rises, allow credit to purchase, fertiliser, and spray insecticide to improve the quality of the rice and increase output, this way the whole supply chain benefits........ and the farmer can pay for it later

[chainarong]

6 hours ago, inThailand said:

Not a chance....banks lending 50% of the value of farm land!  They already have 10 million rai they can't unload.

Correct, Thai banks have been avoiding just land as investment or borrowing collateral since the 1990ies

[Elkski]

So your sure China and the banks are not wanting loans on more land?  looking 50 years in the future and seeing all this food producing land as a long term hold? 

The farmers who got flooded due to dine breaches lost crops and maybe more and need loans to survive and replant after the water receeds if it's not to late.     I did plant some rice last month.  It's a  nice memory but I think I can find other places to put my thumb rather than sloppy mud. 

[YetAnother]

20 hours ago, NanLaew said:

So the farmers get deeper in hock while the rice millers get richer.

 

And some say the Shins were well dodgy.

extending and deepening debt that can never be repaid = 'assistance'

[NanLaew]

20 hours ago, 473geo said:

 

As the rice price rises, allow credit to purchase, fertiliser, and spray insecticide to improve the quality of the rice and increase output, this way the whole supply chain benefits........ and the farmer can pay for it later

As the rice price rises, allow credit to purchase, fertiliser, and spray insecticide to improve the quality of the rice and increase output, this way the whole supply chain benefits a new Revo and the whole village reckons he must be banking it....... and the farmer can pay for it later finance company can repo it later.

[473geo]

5 hours ago, NanLaew said:

As the rice price rises, allow credit to purchase, fertiliser, and spray insecticide to improve the quality of the rice and increase output, this way the whole supply chain benefits a new Revo and the whole village reckons he must be banking it....... and the farmer can pay for it later finance company can repo it later.

You don't know how the additional credit is calculated do you?

[cooked]

Amazing how many experts on rice farming and the related short term credit system that is available we have here.

I don't see the details of these proposed extensions of credit and neither do our resident experts.

 

I am presuming that the credits referred to are the short term credits that are already available, generally intended to get farmers through what  is a very delicate period stretching from the period when the rice fields are made ready, through sowing and applying treatments to paying for the rice harvester. I know that many farmers have an absolutely desperate three or four months financially. I see no indications that farmers are going to get hundreds of thousands of Baht on demand. Certainly no farmers in this village are driving BMWs, most of them dream of buying a tractor.

I presume that the already existent subsidised fertiliser and chemical subsidies will become easier to obtain for instance.

Rice prices are rising (no thanks to Thaksin-o-nomics) and thus the already existent subsidies and short term loan systems are going to be augmented. What's wrong with that?

 

[473geo]

One calculation is basing the additional credit on the weight of rice sold to the BAAC last year. So say your credit was 6 baht a kg currently it could now be raised to say 8 baht a kg, so per ton 2000 baht additional credit. Not a fortune but enough to assist in the purchase of this years fertiliser. Do not know the exact figures but this is my understanding. Not sure if there is another option for those that did not sell to the Bank, Many farmers historically take a loan against next years crop.

[inThailand]

On 06/08/2017 at 5:50 PM, 473geo said:

 

As the rice price rises, allow credit to purchase, fertiliser, and spray insecticide to improve the quality of the rice and increase output, this way the whole supply chain benefits........ and the farmer can pay for it later

My understanding is anytime the rice price rises, the products and services the farmer needs to farm rises. The farmer is continually being squeezed by the middeman and hence why it's a yearly necessity to borrow money with the farmland as collateral. They are stuck in this vicious circle.

[BasalBanality]

So how is this different from the ill-conceived rice-pledging nonsense?

[cooked]

23 hours ago, BasalBanality said:

So how is this different from the ill-conceived rice-pledging nonsense?

We don't have enough information. If they just increase the current short term credit facilities and subsidies, then this is no  big deal.

Stop getting excited about things we know nothing about. I won't know until out of the blue a village meeting is called and we are informed.