1 Million Tons of Premium Rice: A 5-Year Gamble on Thailand's Farmers

The "Premium Rice" initiative is a policy concept introduced by Suphajee Suthumpun, the Minister of Commerce, in late 2025, with the goal of increasing the value of Thai rice by 5-10 times through the creation of a premium market. This will focus on processing local rice to high standards, building global brands, and creating added value for farmers.

Recently, the National Rice Policy and Management Sub-Committee (NPMC) on Production (February 11, 2026) has outlined the "Premium Rice: High Quality and Value-Added" project, with a target of 1 million tons of output, split into 700,000 tons of low-carbon rice and 300,000 tons of organic rice. The project aims to increase farmers' income with a budget of 586.2 million THB for the administration of the project.

Assoc. Prof. Somporn Isvilanond, an independent scholar and former senior researcher at the Knowledge Network Institute of Thailand - KNIT and a distinguished member of the NPMC on rice policy, shared his views with Thansettakij regarding the "Premium Rice: High Quality and Value-Added" project, particularly focusing on organic and low-carbon rice.

He noted that the market is still limited and considered a niche, with the primary buyers currently being the European Union (EU), where demand for Thai rice is not yet high. Larger markets such as the Philippines and Indonesia have not yet prioritized these standards.

However, low-carbon rice presents a future opportunity, especially with the European Union's Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) coming into full effect in the next 4-5 years. If Thailand does not meet this standard, it risks losing competitive advantage.

The government is offering financial incentives to farmers, providing 500 THB per rai for low-carbon rice and 800 THB per rai for organic rice. Assoc. Prof. Somporn sees this shift from "free giveaways" to "conditional support" as a way to encourage farmers to improve production quality. In the past, unconditional financial support has led to a lack of adaptation and skill development among farmers.

Comparing with competitors, Vietnam has taken the lead, with a policy to produce low-carbon rice on 1 million hectares (almost 6 million rai) to meet the demands of Singapore and Europe. Vietnam has successfully shifted from producing low-priced hard rice to producing soft rice, marketed as “Jasmin Rice,” which commands prices of 500-520 USD per ton. Vietnam’s key development strategy is based on the slogan “3 Reductions, 3 Increases” (reducing costs, seeds, fertilizers, and pesticides while increasing quality, efficiency, and profit), while Thailand still struggles with high production costs and low yield per rai.

Pramote Charoensilp, President of the  Thai Agriculturists Association, shared that after the government introduced the Premium Rice model focusing on low-carbon and organic rice, the response from farmers has been rather muted. Farmers are still concerned about the high initial costs, especially for leveling rice fields using laser technology, which requires an investment of about 2,000 THB per rai, a significant challenge for many farmers facing liquidity issues.

Furthermore, there are concerns that overall production costs will be higher than traditional rice farming, while yields might decrease. The selling price remains uncertain, leaving doubts over whether it will be attractive enough to motivate farmers to participate. Additionally, surveys of exporters have shown that demand for this specific rice is still relatively low, further dampening farmers’ confidence in the program.

“The experience from the past organic rice project, where farmers faced delays in payments and higher production costs, only to sell their products at low prices, remains a crucial lesson. This has led to a significant decline in confidence toward similar projects,” said Pramote.