Thailand's cassava export prospects are expected to be in good shape this year, boosted by rising global demand and a rise in cereal prices.
Speaking after chairing the meeting of the Cassava Policy and Management Committee, Commerce Minister Jurin Laksanawisit said tapioca exports this year are expected to enjoy a growth momentum after they surged by 48.41% in 2021 to 123.2 billion baht.
Export quantity also rose by 45.58% to 10.38 million tonnes, the highest volume in the past 14 years driven by the rising prices of world cereals and demand for the production of ethanol, alcohol and medical products.
The biggest export markets were China which accounted for up to 70% of total exports, followed by Japan at 8%, Indonesia at 3%, South Korea at 2% and other countries at 17%.
The current price of fresh cassava root is averaged at 2.50-2.60 baht per kilogramme for 25% of flour percentage, which is close to the prices that are guaranteed by the state-sponsored farmers' income guarantee scheme.
Mr Jurin said he expects overall tapioca prices to increase further given the continuous increase in tapioca demand for ethanol production in China.
The world's cassava root production in the 2021/22 crop year is expected to increase by 1.21% to 302 million tonnes.
However, fresh cassava root production in Thailand is forecast to shrink by 1% to 34.69 million tonnes in the 2021/22 season from 35.09 million tonnes in the previous season because of the flood in the Central region and the periodic drought in certain cultivation areas.
Domestic demand for fresh cassava roots is estimated at 12.7 million tonnes, and export demand is predicted at 29.7million tonnes.
Mr Jurin also said that the committee approved 10 projects worth 474 million baht, mainly focusing on eliminating cassava mosaic disease between 2023 and 2027.
The meeting also assigned the Agriculture Department and Agriculture and Cooperatives Ministry and related agencies to speed up research and development (R&D) on tapioca and methods to strengthen cassava plants and reduce farmers' losses.
The government also pledged to allocate 25 million baht to support R&D to wipe out cassava disease.
