Rice Production in Thailand - Importance of Rice

Importance of Rice

Rice has many important roles in Thai society from food to work. Rice uses over half of the farmable land area and labor force in Thailand . It is one of the main foods and sources of nutrition for most Thai citizens. Rice is also of the main components of Thai exports. The Thai rice industry also faces a few big threats. According to Setboonsarng the top three threats are, “(i) increase in competition in the international market; (ii) growing competition with other economic activities that increases the cost of production, especially the labour cost; and (iii) degradation of ecological conditions. Rice research has to address these challeneges.” As the world becomes “flatter,” and the rice production around the world become more competitive, it becomes harder for Thailand to keep its competitive advantage and the margins Thai rice producers have been used to. For the second threat, the modernization of Thailand has led to an increase in wealth and the cost of labor, making it more expensive for rice farmers that use cheap manual labor. Third, the massive amount of land used for rice can have long term adverse effects on the yields of the land.