Thailand Bets Big on ‘Future Food’ with New 500 Billion Baht Goal
FDA plan aims to slash R&D costs for firms in four key sectors: Functional, Medical, Alternative Protein, and Organic foods
- Thailand has set a goal to generate over 500 billion baht in economic value from the "Future Food" sector by 2027.
- To achieve this, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will create a "Positive List" of over 150 pre-approved, safe ingredients to accelerate market entry for businesses.
- This regulatory initiative is expected to cut development costs for companies by over 70% and allow for faster product launches with approved health claims.
- The national strategy focuses on four key growth areas: Functional Food, Alternative Protein, Medical & Personalised Food, and Organic Food.
Thailand is targeting the burgeoning 'Future Food' sector, aiming to unlock over 500 billion baht in economic value by 2570 (2027) through a new regulatory initiative designed to accelerate market entry for businesses.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has announced plans to establish a Positive List of over 150 certified safe ingredients and raw materials by 2570.
This will allow companies to use these components in health products without incurring expensive and time-consuming research and development costs.
The FDA predicts this move could cut costs for entrepreneurs by more than 70%, enabling them to bring products to market much faster and immediately use approved health claims on labels.
Four Growth Pillars
Future Food is broadly categorised into four high-growth segments, with the Functional Food sector currently leading exports.
1. Functional Food & Ingredients: Foods engineered with specific ingredients like prebiotics or Omega-3 to provide health benefits beyond basic nutrition. This category was Thailand’s largest exporter in the first quarter of 2568, valued at 37.99 billion baht, with the Thai Future Food Trade Association projecting total exports to reach 170–173 billion baht for the full year.
2. Alternative Protein: This includes protein sources like plant-based, insect, and cell-cultured options, driven by concerns over environmental sustainability and health. The sector, valued at over 6.5 billion baht in Q1 2567, is growing rapidly, with plant-based options dominating the global market.
3. Medical & Personalised Food: Specialised nutritional formulas for patients with chronic illnesses (Medical Food) and bespoke diets tailored to an individual’s genetic and health data (Personalised Food), driven by biotech and AI. This group’s exports stood at 7.01 billion baht in 2567.
4. Organic Food: Products grown and processed without synthetic chemicals or genetic modification. This segment is smaller but growing fast, showing a 19% increase in Q1 2567 to over 1.6 billion baht.
Global bodies, including the UN's FAO and the UK's Royal Society, concur that Future Food will fundamentally transform how food is produced and consumed worldwide. Thailand’s strategy aims to solidify its position in this multi-billion dollar global market.
