Thai Airways international Plc (THAI) has joined forces with the Commerce Ministry to help farmers struggling from low rice prices by introducing a range of initiative such as farmers selling directly to the carrier’s cooperatives, retail shops and markets. The national carrier will also create a new menu to introduce specialty rice grains to increase consumption of Thai rice, while providing free areas for farmers at its cooperatives to sell their products as well as allowing the sale of packed rice at its shops at Suvarnabhumi and Don Mueang airports. The development followed a meeting between the company’s Thai Employees’ Saving & Credit Cooperatives Ltd and Commerce Minister Apiradi Tantraporn. Kanok Thongpurk, president to Saving & Credit Cooperatives, said that THAI will ask for contact lists of rice farmer cooperatives so farmers will be able to sell directly to the airline’s cooperatives, retail shops and markets, located at THAI office areas. The specialty rice THAI will serve on its flights include riceberry and sung yod.

Source: The Nation Bangkok November 18, 2016 10:20 UTC