Commerce rolls out fertiliser relief, cuts prices on 3,000 items

Deputy Prime Minister and Commerce Minister Suphajee Suthumpun has launched a new package of cost-of-living and farm support measures, including a fertiliser discount scheme offering assistance of up to THB2,100 per household and price cuts on more than 3,000 consumer products nationwide.

Speaking at Government House on April 11 after the first Cabinet meeting, Suphajee said the government was pressing ahead with urgent measures to reduce household expenses while also helping contain agricultural costs, particularly pressure linked to goods prices and fertiliser. She said the package followed on from the policy commitments already outlined by the government to Parliament.

In the short term, the Commerce Ministry has already begun rolling out living-cost relief from April 1, working with more than 300 operators ranging from small businesses to major wholesalers and retailers. Under that effort, over 3,000 essential consumer items are being sold at special prices, with discounts of up to 58%, across all 77 provinces and Bangkok.

The next phase goes further. Cabinet has approved additional funding to drive two key support measures: expanding market access for SME products and boosting online sales. The government plans to bring an initial 2,000 SMEs with genuine production capacity, recognised standards and ready-to-sell products into the programme, before expanding that number to at least 10,000 over the course of the year.

The Commerce Ministry is working with four main platforms, Thailand Post Mart, NextGen, TikTok and Shopee. Under the scheme, the platforms will waive GP fees, while the government will cover shipping costs so buyers do not have to pay delivery charges and sellers face no added deductions. A total of 500,000 discount coupons worth THB100 each will also be distributed to help stimulate purchases of SME products and generate income for smaller businesses.

The government is also expanding its low-cost Blue Flag distribution network into remote areas, with plans to distribute discounted goods through more than 500 sales points nationwide. Mobile Blue Flag outlets and “Poom Phuang” trucks are also being expanded, rising from more than 2,000 vehicles currently in the system to a planned 5,000, in an effort to reach rural and hard-to-access communities more effectively.

Ahead of the new school term in May, the Commerce Ministry is also joining hands with the Education Ministry to provide special-price school uniforms and learning supplies to more than 1,000 schools, easing the financial burden on parents at the start of term.

For farmers, the government is moving ahead with a fertiliser co-payment scheme in coordination with the Finance Ministry, the Agriculture and Cooperatives Ministry and the Commerce Ministry. The aim is to promote more suitable fertiliser use based on local soil conditions, drawing on data from the Department of Agriculture and the Land Development Department, while the Bank for Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives will help support interest costs on a shared basis.

At the same time, the government is trying to address continued volatility in the urea fertiliser market, which still depends heavily on imports. Suphajee said the situation had been affected by external factors, especially shipping disruption around the Strait of Hormuz, which had delayed at least five fertiliser vessels. The government has therefore stepped up efforts to secure additional supply sources from countries such as Malaysia and Brunei in order to prolong domestic fertiliser stocks for as long as possible.

Cabinet has also approved the new “Green Flag Fertiliser” scheme to reduce farmers’ costs. Under the programme, the discount will increase from THB200 per sack to THB300 per sack for the first five sacks, along with an additional THB50 discount on agricultural chemicals. That brings total initial support to THB1,550 per household.

Farmers who also hold registered farmer status, have a digital farmer card and buy additional organic fertiliser will be eligible for total support of up to THB2,100 per household. The government says the aim is to ease cost pressure at a time when global fertiliser raw material prices remain volatile.

Suphajee said fertiliser price rises have not yet been approved, although the government recognises that operators are facing higher costs from freight, insurance and raw materials. She said the measures were being pushed out in advance in order to contain the impact before it feeds through more sharply.

Authorities have also sent officials to inspect more than 1,000 fertiliser shops nationwide and found 48 cases of wrongdoing, which are now moving through legal proceedings. Suphajee said members of the public who encounter opportunistic price hikes can report them through hotline 1569 so officials can investigate and take legal action.