Commerce Minister Jurin Laksanawisit looks set to propose to the cabinet for its approval a 3-year strategic plan for maize cultivation, aiming to expand the amount of farmland used for cultivating the crop in 37 provinces and put greater focus on increasing farmers' productivity.
Speaking after a meeting of the Maize Policy and Management Committee yesterday, Mr Jurin said the meeting had approved the national maize strategic plan, spanning 2022-24, which calls for an increase in maize productivity during the annual wet season to 1,104 kilogrammes per rai from the current 800 kg per rai and 1,187 kg per rai from 860 kg per rai during the dry season, when there is less water availability within three years.
The plan also aims to raise the amount of maize farmland during both the wet and dry seasons to 1,106,622 rai in 37 provinces mainly in the North and Central areas which popularly grow the off-season rice from 801,900 rai.
According to Mr Jurin, the 3-year plan also aims to accelerate cultivating or developing premium maize with good practices and is free from aflatoxins or certain fungi which cause cancer.
In a related development, according to Mr Jurin, the meeting also green-lighted the maize farmers' income guarantee scheme for the 2022/23 season, which requires 1.67 billion baht worth of government spending.
The scheme which will run for the fourth straight year is scheduled to run from Nov 1 to April 30, 2023, with the price guarantee set at 8.50 baht per kg maize with 14.5% moisture content, with a limit of 30 rai per family.
Eligible maize should be grown between June 1, 2022 and May 31, 2023.
The government is scheduled to pay the first round of the price guarantee scheme for maize from Nov 20, with the next round of payment set for the 20th of every month.
Some 452,000 farmers are expected to participate in the scheme under which farmers will receive the difference between insured prices and benchmark prices that change periodically in line with market prices.
The price guarantee scheme offers compensation to farmers if market prices fall below the benchmark.
According to Mr Jurin, the meeting also agreed on measures to help subsidise a 3% interest rate of bank loans to farming institutions and maize traders who agree to keep their stocks during the period when there is a massive harvest to prevent a price slump.
