FRIDAY, March 29, 2024
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Agricultural sector needs to 'focus on higher standards, safety'

Agricultural sector needs to 'focus on higher standards, safety'

The government should establish standards for good agricultural practices (GAP) in order to enhance exports of agricultural products and ensure food safety, the Thai Agricultural Innovation Trade Association (TAITA) has suggested.

The association's director, Woranika Nakwachara, said that TAITA aimed to elevate Thai agriculture to international standard, collaborating with alliances which would share new knowledge, innovations and technology so that agriculture can become sustainable and be able to compete globally.
Thailand itself is aiming to be “the world’s kitchen” and the Agriculture and Cooperatives Ministry is planning to increase food safety and organic products which require GAP that the Department of Agriculture is working on.
The project, however, still needs more personnel and the National Bureau of Agricultural Commodity and Food Standards has not approved GAP for the private sector yet.
Moreover, Thailand’s GAP is not accepted by the international markets and it is the government’s task to elaborate on it so that the country has food security and can export to other places around the world, she said.
TAITA is now collaborating with the Thai Chamber of Commerce and the Board of Trade in instructing farmers to learn how to grow keeping in mind the safety of the environment and consumers. "Eat Safe, Live Safe" also has been introduced to raise awareness on safe food consumption.
Chemical fertilisers are also another topic that have to be dealt with as Woranika said that pesticides and fertilisers were in the production process and natural substances could barely substitute the role they played.
“The ban on paraquat and chlorpyrifos might push away ‘the world’s kitchen’ goal but meanwhile glyphosate usage is limited and entrepreneurs cannot access it as the Department of Agriculture did not give permission or allow any kind of registration before June 30,” she said.
“The private sector will definitely sue the department since they could not continue the businesses including for domestic sales and exports.”

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