THE CORN RROOOCTTON SECTOR OF THATLANO 7 : WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO CORN EXPORTS Thesis for the Degree-Of M; S. MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY .PANIDA i0NGPUTlSIRI 1970 XHE‘ idligan State ilivcrsity THE CORN PRODUCTION SEQTOR CF THATLLHD WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO CORN EXPORTS Panida Jongputisiri A RESEARCH REPORT Submitted to Michigan State Universitv in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of I STER OF SCIENCE Department of Agricultural Econumics 1970 ACKNO‘IEEDGIfiEN'lKS The writer wishes to express sincere gratitude to Dr. Glynn McBride, my major professor, for his encouragement, liberality of time, valuable guidance, constant supervision, and recommendation in preparation of this paper. His help~ ful comments and patient editing of the text of this study are also very gratefully acknowledged. Special thanks are also extended to Dr. Delane Emil Welsch who provided persona] guidance. His advice and moral support in providing information needed in constructing the framework of this study are very much appreciated. The suggestions and comments made by the committee composed of Dr. Nicolas G. M. Luykn II, Dr. M. Steinmueller, and Dr. Lester V. Manderscheid, were very helpful and are gratefully acknowledged. Thanks are due to Mrs. Laura Flanders and others in the Michigan State University Computer Center for their help in data calculation. Many thanks to the various officials in the Thai Ministry of Agriculture, the Ministry of National DevelOpment and the National Statistical Office, who provided valuable data which enabled the completion of this study. Appreciation is else expressed to my parents for their financial support which enabled the writer to complete her program at Michigan State University and to Pol. Lt. Ajiravidya Subarnbhesaj who encouraged her throughout graduate study. tone of the abovewmentioned pe sons .re responsible for Q‘- any short~comings that mav still remain. I alone accept that responsibility. ACKI‘IO 17 LED OMEN”. L" C LIST OF TABLES LIST OF FIGURE TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter Page I. INTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . l A. ObjGCtives O P O O O 0 O O O O O O O O O 6 O O l 1. To define the existing organization and structure of the corn industry in Thailand; 2. To analyze the economic prcblem: faced by the Thai corn sector in the light of uncertainty of the future international corn market; and, 5. To suggest changes in the existing market organization and structure designed to increase farmers‘ income and the national export revenue. B. Justification and Importance of the Study , , q l. The importance of agriculture in the Tllai e C Orlornyw Q 0 O O O O O O O O C O O O ‘7 2. The importance of corn in Thai agricultllre O O O O O O O O O O O C O O O 12 II. PR ELEM IDENTIFICATION , , , . . A. Domestic Market , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , 18 l. Inefficiency of market system organi— 2'81]- on o o 0 o 0 a o o c o o o c o c o o 18 .J. International Market , , , , , , , . , . . . 21 iv III. CORN E. . “.' ,0 .LV. 1'1 Lflh A. V. INPL AND A. B. BIBLIOGPAPHY Recommendation . . . . . . . . ‘. J . The uncertainty of the corn naiket in the light of rapt-d changes in .volrt ‘ 0 supply and demand of corn and oth.r closely related g-ictltuT l lflrod Tet PRODUCTION IN THAI] AND . . . . . . I118 L QTY 0 o o o 0 c o d o o o o o o o c o l. Yield of TTnjmproved variety vs. yield of Guatemala variety , , . . , , , , Geographic Location of C'rn Sectors . . . 1. Distribution of corn production by VOlume and al‘ea C ' g Q o g g 0 Q 0 O r: '13 91 Onv‘ a o o o o' c o c o o o o 5—1. Pla m1 ng e The Relationship Between Time, Producti n- Aroa and Production by Use of Linear "'h. \ ‘ lit-.110. a o 4' o o o o a o o o 0 Q Q B q § 0 SB amunal Il‘dGX o o o o o o o o a o o c o EIILE oloLLuo rOR CORN - PAD SI AND PRESENT Change in Marketing Channel . . . . . . . .. Bu:;ing: and selling . . . . O O Q Q I Q 1 2. M1 ansportation . . . . . . 3. Storage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . k. Credits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . IL ATIONS AND PROPOSED CHANGI S IN STRUCTURE POLICY 0 O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O 0 Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . O O O O O O O O O C O O O O 5 O O O C O ’25 f‘ ‘ «30 N ’3‘». r ‘ D \.3 N \l R) \O Table l. 10. ll. 12, 13. ll}. . LIST OF TABLES Average Export Prf, ice of Corn (F.O,B. Bangkok) and Tulear Average , Thailand, l963~1969 , . . . Indices For GNP and agricultural Production, Thailand ’ lgEB-lgbb o a o a o o o o o o o c o I Value of Exports of Principal Products, Thailand, 1957~196zl O O Q 0- O O O O O O O O 0 O O O O O ‘0 Share of World Corn Market of Each Major Exporting Country, 1959»1966 . . . . . . . . . . . . . , . Index Numbers: Agricultural Area Devoted to Upland CrOps, Thailand, 1950-1966 . . . . . . . . . . . Volume and Value of Thailand's Corn Export, 1957-1968 0 O 6 I O O O O O C O O C O O O C J 0 Contract Volume and Actual Export of Corn Between Thailand and Japan, 1965-1970 . . . , . . , , . Volume of Japanese Corn Imports by Country, Averages 1955-1959, Annual 1965-1968 , . . . . , Thailand's Share of Japanese Corn Imports Average 1960-1964, Annual 1965-1968 . . . . . . Cultivated Areas for Corn and Production Yield Before and After Availability of Improved Varieties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Distribution of Corn Products by Volume An Area (in percentage) - 5 year average, 1961/62 ~ 1965/66 0 O O 0 O O O O O O O C O O 0 O O O O 0 Area Planted and Average Yield of Rice and Corn in Thailand, (1951-1966) , , , , , , , , , , , , Production, Acreage and Yield of Corn in Thailand, (1950-.1966) o o o o o 0 o o o o o o 0 Yield Per Hectare in Principal CornmProducing Countries 0 O C I 3 0 O f O t O C 9 G C O 3 O 9 Vi I‘d \O 10 ll 27 30 31 K}! ?\) 15. 16. 19. 20. 21. 22. 23. Seasonal Index of Wholesale Corn Prices in Thailand, l950~l965 , , , , , , , , , , , Price Received at the Farm for Corn and Export Price, F.O,B, Bangkok, l9§9nl960 and 3-9(08"1969 O O O O O O O O O I O O 6 0 O 0 Marketing Cost, Profit of Dealers and Perm centage of Money Received by EXporters for Corn Obtained From Farmers and Dealers in 8 Prov:inces in Central P'gion, Thailand . 196() O O O O O O O O O O O 0 O O O O O O O 0 Marketing Cost, Profit of Dealers and Per” centage of Money Received by Exporters for Corn Obtained From Farmers and Dealers in 8 Provinces in Central Region, Thailand, June 1968 - May 1969 . . . . . . . . . . . . Prices Received by Farmers, by Provincial Dealers and Local Merchants, Wholesale Prices in Ranaliok and Fxport Prices. F.O.B, Banukolm Corn, by Months, 1968- -l969 . . . . . . . . . Mean Distance in Kilometers of Farms From Market and Transport Facilities According to 1953 Farm Survey, Thailand . . . . , , . ,g. Source of Credit by Region in Thailand . . .E. Monthly Interest Rates by Region in Thailand andTypeOfI-‘enderoooooccooooco A7 48 51 54 so 61 flap 1. 2. LIST OF MAPS Location of Corn Production in Thailand , , Location of Corn Production Area in Thailand viii Chart 1. 2. LIST OF CHARTS Marketing Channels of Corn in 1959vl960 . , Marketing Channels of Corn in 8 Changwads in Central Region of Thailand: June 1968 "' Ifiay 1969 o o o o o o o o o a o o 0 ix LIST OF GRAPES 'Page 1. Fluctuation of Export Price of Corn by I'Ionths’ TLIQjLLaI‘ld’ 1963-1969 0 n o o o o o o o o o 3 2. Seasonal Index of Wholesale C rn Prices in Tl'lailand o o o o o o o o o a o o o o o o o a o 39 3. Prices Received by Farmers, by Provincial Dealers and Local M rchants, Wholesale Prices in Bangkok and Export Prices F.O.B. Bangkok, Corn, by Months, 1968ul969 . . . . . . . 52 CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION The purpose of this paper is twofold: first, to systematically examine the present organization in the marketing of corn in Thailand; and second, to compare and contrast the present situation with a preposed system of marketing. This research will involve a brief study of the situa- tion as it existed in the past, an understanding of the nature and mechanics of the present system, and finally, an assessment of the direction in which the present system seems to be headed thus making it possible to set forth possible implications for corn exports policies for both governrent and the private business sector. In more specific terms the three main objectives of this study can be stated as follows: 1. To define the existing organization and structure of the corn industry in Thailand; 2. To analyze the economic problems faced by the Thai corn sector in the light of uncertainty of the future inter- national corn market; and 3. To suggest changes in the existing market organiza~ tion and structure designed to increase farmers' income and l the national export revenue. Before proceeding further, a comment is in order regarding the second objective mentioned above. Mention was made about the uncertainty of the future international market and the economic implications for the Thai corn sector. To provide some indication of the degree of uncertainty involved, monthly export price figures for corn for the years 1963 to 1969 are presented in Table 1. ‘AVERAGE EXPORT PRICE OF CORN (F.O.B. BANGK AVERAGE, THAILAND, 1963-1969 (dollars per metric ton) Table 1 2K) AND 7-YEAR 1 7-year Yr. 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 average Jan. 52.56 60.54 55.10 57.52 56.18 56.74 54.81 56.18 Feb. 57.51 61.07 65.41 49.01 55.80 56.07 59.84 57.82 March 62.20 61.32 68.79 52.08 55.01 56.22 62.43 59.72 April 57.74 59.98 71.68 52.99 54.94 55.95 62.58 59.58 May 57.95 60.78 75.56 52.59 56.95 57.04 56.89 59.94 June 58.04 60.79 72.27 51.65 56.18 66.94 56.54 60.352 JU1y 57.06 59.55 65.86 50.14 55.68 69.79 55.51 59.05 Aug, 57.20 56.64 61.96 49.90 54.94 65.45 52.47 56.9) Sept. 55.78 56.02 59.44 49.52 50.95 60.27 51.55 54.75 Oct. 54.99 56.00 59.39 54.48 50.16 59.21 48.8A 54.72 Nov. 55.04 56.29 57.43 55.54 53.23 57.09 47.0l 54.72 Dec. 58.16 58.52 49.12 55.84 56.30 56.70 49.51 54.56 Avg. 56.85, 58.92 52.59 59.79 54.78 57.27 65.52 54.69 1The 7-year average is not less than the Ministry of Economic Affairs, Thailand. Source: of Economic Affairs, Thailand, March 1970. ,— .' “-~.‘ the prices noted by Data l963~1967, Department of Foreign Trade, Ministry Data 1968wl969, provided by Dr. Delane E. Welsch, Rockefeller Foundation, May 1970. ->..—v db mason new mnemoz Ir? All. $2 XIII $9. .IX f/ 5 i" , / : 00 on a doe canpms new nsHHoQ mmaaumemfl azaaHame .mmezoz em zmoo so onmm emomxm so oneapaopqm "H snags The above figures are presented in graphical form in 1 Graph . The average for the seven years was found to be 1:3 57.30 per metric ton. Substantial (CvldLTO‘S from the average occured es pec ia 11y in the years 1965 and 1968. Furthermore the years 1966 to the first half of 1968 showed consistently beloww average prices. These fact 8 underline the chiswlrg uncertainty of corn prices, the reason being that Thailand possess.s only five percent of the total world market for corn.1 Therefore, the e port price is heavily dependent on the output of major corn producing countries as well as demand on the international market. Another major source of uncertainty is that exports to Japan, which comprised 43 percent of total exports in 1968, are on contract with the Japan Feed Grain Trades Associatidn Which is a Japanese government sanctioned m0n0p01y.2 Thus should the Japanese government decide to terminate the contract at any time, or should it decide to cut down on the quantity imported, Thailand will have to expand its other markets to absorb its excess supply of corn. Justification and Importance of the Study Agriculture has played an important part in the economy of Thailand and it is expected to play the same pivotal role in the future. To support this statement, a comparison of lUSDA, Wor3d PFPlCd'tUIdI Production and Trace Statistical Report, September 13 69, pp. 38 ~39. 2 , ,3 Dr. Delano E. tielsch and Others, Research for Planning Corn and Sor_ghum Dcve'onncrt in WP11'30Q 1058. p, 70, 5 growth of Gr ss National Product and the growth of Agriculture Production is made by comparison of their indexes from the years 1953 to 1963. Table 2 pres>nts this compar~ ison. .wensmHm use mpomm .v .mHH .e e 30H .m .Ammma .xoaeeemv quHmne .eOHpmhmmooo oHsoqoom one HmoHenoma mo pomspswmmn .mcusom .npseu pmmhdeq.mAp on coveson woostme m.amm m.mwm w.msm m.oom m.mmm H.0sa m.mma m.oma m.mmH m.mmH cos wwmmwm 0.0mm e.mmm. m.mom m.mma .n.HeH m.nmay m.meH o.m:a s.mma :.mHH ooH .ezm eeeH mmma News Hoes owed mmma mama umma mama mmma :mma mmmfl ese 1 .1 7 Aooa- mmeav memaummmr mzaaHama zomaopmomm gamsagsonea nae use mom mmoanH m magma ’ 7 Table 2 shows that GNP has increased from an index of 100.0 in 1953 to an index of 239.6 in 1963 or an increase of about 100 percent in ten years. During the same period the index for Agricultural production rose from 100 to 327.9 or an increase of more than 200 percent. This shows that since Agricultural production has been increasing faster than GNP during the years mentioned above, Agriculture must have been a major factor in 'the determination of the direction of the economy. It may also be mentioned that in 1965, four-fifths of the country's total working p0pu1ation was engaged in agricultural employment and that agriculture contributed over one-third of national income. Corn is one of the major upland cr0ps in Thailand, and it has been produced and consumed as a vegetable for many years. However, corn is neither a staple food for the Thai peeple nor is it regularly used for animal feed. Nevertheless, production has been increasing through the years and today it is one of the most important export items in Thailand. Table 3 shows that in 1967, corn was the fourth largest export product of Thailand, after rice, tin and rubber. As shown in Table 3 the export value of corn has risen from 74 million baht in 1957 to 1,356 million baht in 1967 or an increase of close to 1700 percent in ten years. This makes corn the fastest growing export item of Thailand for the years 1957 to 1967, making Thailand the world's fourth largest exporter of corn in 1966, after the United States, Argentine and France (see Table 4). Table 4 also points out that Thailand has held a relatively stable share of the world market for corn since 1959. This makes corn production one of the major factors contributing to a favorable balance of payments position. According to Agricultural Statistics of Thailand (19331, the index of area used for corn production rese from 100 in base year 1953 to 1,535 in the year 1966, while the index of production area for upland food crepe rose from 100 to 650 during the same period.3 This indicates that the agricul- tural area used for corn grew more than twice as fast as the agricultural area utilized for general upland food productions. A breakdown of the utilization of agricultural product areas for the upland products is presented in Table 5. 3A _griculture Statistigsmgf Thailand, Ministry of Agriculture, Bangkok, Thailand, 1966, p. 35. .m¢lm¢ .mm mm .02 .HHH> .Ho> .wmma Homempmmm .pHOMmm Nampnoz somafisne .vsmaflmsa mo xsmm "meadow .mnmaaoe .m.p an em masses pass a H emm.ea. sacred Hem.ma mmmnma mam.m mmm.o smm.m- zeam.w 1 omm.s meets oem.s asses mHo.m oom.m :m:.m mmm.m mem.a mamas i HMH.H eem.a mo¢.H :HN.H Hoe.a masses mmw eam.a moa.H mm: mam mam ems 0mm mm am me seems use mess mmu dew mmm mmm mm: mm: we: wwm :mm mma mma wwwwmmmm .sma mam How coma and can mmm mmm saw mmm New heme Wmmmrfl ommua mam mem.a wmm mom mam Hmm omm mma as egos mmmua mam.a mmH.H mom Hem mam mam mmm an: mmm Hmm ,efle msm.a Hmw.a mam.a omo.m mom.a HHH.m oma.m mum.m mmm.m mmm.H mo:.a nmnnem mmm.e Hoots emm.: mwm.e em¢.m oem.m mam.m oum.m mam.m mwm.m mmm.m moflm mmmfl mooa mmma :mma mmma mmma Hmma omma mmma wmma nmma afipemn confides aev . nmmauammfl “mzegHame meosmomm.qemHoszm so mamomxm so asses r m aficme Table 4 SHARE OF WORLD CORN MARKET OF EACH MAJOR EXPORTING COUNTRY, l959~l966 (percent of total) I -1 Country 1959 1960 1961 1962 1965 3964 1965 1966 U.S.A. ' 54.0 47.2 55.6 54.7 55.2 55.1 66.6 65.7 Argentina 26.0 21.6 12.4 16.8 11.7 15.1 12.3 15.4 France 0.4 2.3 5.0 0.8 1.7 5.7 2.5 .5.3 Thailand 2.3 4.3 4.1 2.4 5.6 5.2 3.6 5.0 Mexico - 3.8 - - 1.5 5.9 5.5 '5.5 Yugoslavia 5.1 4.3 2.7 1,4 0.5 0.1 0.2 1.5 South Africa 4.0 4.8 7.7 10.5 11.9 6.4 1.4 0.2 U.S.S.R. 1.5 1.0 2.9 6.3 3.5 2.9 “ “ Total Major , Exporters 71.5 89.5 88.4 90.9 67.4 94.4 90.1 94.6 Source: F.A.O.Monthly Bulletin of Agricultural Economics and Statistics, July-August 1968: p. 54. 11 Table 5 INDEX NUMBTRS: AGRICULTURAL AREA DEVOTED TO UPLAND CROPS, THAILAND, l950ml96' (195071955 = 100) Year Rice Corn Mung Beans Cassava Sugar Cane Total 1950-55 100 100 100 100 100 100 1954 96 124 95 107 . 137 122 1955 100 150 102 98 148 129 1956 104 195 105 63 175 154 1957 88 228 112 271 185 188 1958 100 298 119 ' 515 188 211 1959 105 470 157 445 211 285 1933 103 671 155 511 225 351 1961 ' 107 720 108 8 710 177 .555 1962 116 771 147 877 145 375 1965 115 982 298 994 ' 215 505 1964 114 1,297 500 745 232 573 1965 112 1,555 557 724 202 586 1966 128, 1,555 1 598 950 E 178 650 Source: Agriculture Statistics of Thailand, 1966, Ministry of Agriculture, Bangkok, Thailand, p. 35. 12 ,Corn in Thailand is produced mainly for export. Considu ering this fact, it becomes necessary to examine the world market situation and its effect on the Thai corn sector. it is equally important that an effort be made to deve10p improved methods of processing corn in order to expand domestic sales. A study also has to be undertaken regarding the feasibility of successfully marketing corn in the EurOpean market. At present very little Thai corn is sold in EurOpe and this has been the consistent pattern since 1957. Table 5 indicates that the EurOpean market has only averaged about one percent 0f the total corn exports of Thailand in the period 1957 to 1968. Probable reasons for this situation may be the following: 1. the excessive cost of transporting corn to EurOpe which has the effect of raising the price of Thai corn beyond reasonable levels; _2. the existence of effective substitutes in the EurOpean market, weakening the demand for corn; 3. the leadership of France in the EurOpean corn market, and, 4. the possibility that Thai corn is considered substandard in Europe. At present Thailand is trying to deve10p its livestock industry for the purpose of supplying the domestic demand and foreign exports. There is also a move towards establishing an animal food industry using corn as the base ingredient because of its high protein content. Domestic demand for corn will most probably increase due 7) - “2--...fi -Hmt4. .....- ._.... w-—..—--. w#. ——-.—.—.-—-.-—.——- m*. r... >.... -- *’~-m—upcow-_ an- < w . - , .1 7 : 1 ass mmm.oaa and mam.mea ems oes.oma mean as ooo.m mm Ham.sm wma mmo.ooa mos som.mm seem as mmm.aa mm. mmw.ww, ass Omm.msa um www.ms mama . ooo.ma as mam.mm Hoa Hom.aw sea mmw.am mama ma 1 as was.om .mm sss.ms mma mso.moa isms mm mamasm mm mmm.m¢ as was.ms mam msm.aaa _ mama . i am mm:.ms Hoa Hmm.mm HHH cam. 0a m mama . 1 mm mHH.Hm as sas.mw as Ham.ms Hess u 1 mm mmmwam an Hes.mm ma. smm.HH coma u . om oaa.om ma som.sH Ha saw.m m ”was 1 n ma ass.sa ma oww.:H a mew.m w wmma : I ma mma.ma Ha mwm.m a mmm.m _ smma esas> mampwssaob W fiaMWflmhmHMmsaob esawwaommmmwmao> m5~MWoxmnwwsaob M anew 1 . Ampmsn.sOHHHfls use weep sflv mwmalnmmfi “Hmcmxm zmoo m.mm¢AH¢mB ho MDQ<> Q24 MEDQO> m mnflwa 14 .Ommm some: «enmaflsse .xostsm .nflsmms oflsosoom mo assesses .EOpmso mo psmsphwmom "meadow mmm.H sme.0ss.s as. mso.mm ems mas.mam ass ame.mos _ seas mmm.a mas.omo.a .sm mmm.wa mwa www.maa Hmm .mam.oss mama omm.a smm.wam.a as. mm:.sm as mHH.sm .swo.H www.mmw moms ass osw.sos. mm smm.s4 an osa.s New ass.amm mesa 1 mam.a Hso.maa.a ma mm:.:a .ma mum.m oao.H mmm.ssm seas wmw mso.sas m Hao.m NH Ham.m was :He.mm: mama mom _ mo:.msa m mam.a : : smm mum.mmm mmma mam 8mm.smm m sea.: a ass mm: sos.mos Hams amm mas.sam 4 on m mmo.m as: mso.ass omma 0mm ass.mmm : mos . .u How mma.mma mmma mwa sam.mma . a u a was www.mma mmma as smm.sw : H a n o: www.mm umma * mSHmb. . 0.8.9405? 03H“? mESHO> OSHM> GESHO> 05H6> mfiSHOP gmfi Hmpoe nmspo sesame awash Incl-v...» ”— Ampswp mosaafi: was weep may ‘1 mmoausmma .smomxs zmoo m.mu¢gHama so asses nae masses A.pnoov w oases 15 to growth in pepulation and efforts to find new uses of the product and new ways of marketing them in the international market. Therefore specific ways and means to stabilize domestic demand and to increase productivity in order to meet both the domestic and foreign market demand are of great importance. A second reason for the importance and justification of this study hinges on the marketing system itself. It is possible_that in this area some problems occur between pro- ‘ducers and consumers, in the production and marketing systems, ‘and the employment of modern technological advances in this area. Specifically, the problems mentioned above may involve transportation systems, the grading of corn, storage, stand- ardwzation, processing, packaging, and purchasing and selling practices. The quantity of corn planted is dependent both on the price of corn and the relative ease or difficulty in producing and marketing the product. Thus an investigation of the costs involved in the production and marketing of corn as well as a Proper understanding of its present set-up may provide better Parapective of the problems involved. This may provide valuable ~hints for a possible reorganization of Thailand's corn-producing sector which would enable it to COpe more effectively with the demand of both the domestic_and foreign markets. 16 The First Five Year Plan of the corn producing sector under the development'plan provided for'the production of Shh thousand tons of corn.4‘ According to the National DovelOpment Board estin ate the output of corn wil.l show an increase of 50 percent during the Second Five Year_Plan (19674197l)_and will be around 1.5 million 10.ns by ch— at time. This target, however, appears to be slightly ambitious because for 1966, the target of output was 1.2 million tons but the actual output rose t0- only 1.12 million tons.5 The least square estimate (see Chapter III) indicates that in 1971 the output of corn will be 1356.84 thousand tons. .To suta up it may be pointed out that the corn output might fal short of the target at the end of the present plan. In 1965, Thailand exported 812 thousand tons of corn out of one million tons of total production. It is estimated that by the end of the present plan (1971), xports will increase 1.3 million tons and 100 thousand tons will be used for domesticéconsump- tion. Thus, the National Economic DevelOpment Boardiexpects the preportion of exports to total production to rise from 81 6 percent to 87 percent during the Second Five Year Plan. l+TheflSecond National Economic and Social Develoyment Plan, (1967"1973) National Economic Dev velopment Board, E angkok, Thailand, p. 12. . 5Ibid. ., p. 55. 6Ibid.,'p. 161. CHAPTER II PROBLEM 1DENTIFICATION This chapter is designed to examine the problems that are confronting the corn marketing system in Thailand. A brief mention of the problems with respect to corn export was made in Chapter I. It also gave passing reference to the problems of domestic demand for corn. In this chapter, however, an attempt will be made to identify these problems in detail. Export Market for Corn: Table 4 and Table 6 in Chapter 1 presented a description of corn experts for Thailand. It can be seen from Table 4 that between 1959-1966 Thailand's share of the world's export trade in corn increased from 2.5 percent to five percent. She is the fourth largest corn eXporter in the world, even though 80' percent of all corn exports still come from the U.S.A. and Argentina. Table 6 gives an impression of the tremendous increase in the export of corn from Thailand between 1957-1968. During this period, total exports of corn increased from 64.3 thousand tons to 1480.7 thousand tons, whereas the value of eXports increased from 74 million baht to 1,555 million baht. The volume in 1968 was 25 times that in 1957 and the value in 17 1968 was 21 times that in 1957. Though these figures are impressive, there are certain problems which may dampen the Thai corn exports in the near future. These problems can be identified as the problems encountered in the domestic market and international marketing of corn. Domestic Market Problems: , There are a number of domestic market conditions which create problems in the export trade of corn. _They include a) inaccurate estimate of production, b) reluctance to adept new technology, 0) corn movement from up country to Bangkok, d) instability of the price and, e) lack of cOOperation among the members of various corn exporting associations until 1962. laaccurate Estimates QT COID.PTQQU¢§iQQ= The estimates of annual corn production are still not accurate and a wide gap between the supply and demand frequency occurs due to the inaccurate reporting of production.1 Even though the acreage and output of corn have shown an increase during the past two decades, still due to lack of information available to the farmers and also due to inadequate capital, the yield of corn has not recorded the expected increase. _ Farmers are suspicious of government agents and hesitate to adopt new techniques. The output of corn could have shown a higher increase than what has been reported if these constraints had not been there. 1Sopin Tongpan, Thai Corn Export Problems, Kasetsart University, Bangkok, Thailand, March 1970. I..x \C.‘ Qprn Movement From Up Countrxnpo Banghoh: As has been explained in Chapter IV, the transportation .system between the corn producing area and Thailand is not satisfactory. This results in irregular movement of corn from the upland area to Bangkok which is the principal center for distributing corn for domestic use or for export. This, however, gives rise to the third problem of instability of prices. Instability of Corn Prices: Chapter I presented an account of the f.o.b._Bangkoh prices of corn during different months of the year (see Graph 1). These oscillations reflect the instability in the priCe of corn and act as a disincentive in the adeption of the pack- age 01 improved seeds, fertilisers and farm implements by the farmers. Lack of COOperation Among the Exporters: Japan has been the principal importer of Thai corn and thus the attention of corn exporters has been focused on Japan. Until 1962, a few coeperative associations of corn exporters were formed in Thailand to take care of the corn export trade. But the distortions in the domestic market, i.e., the dis- parity between eXport and domestic prices would not permit the members of these associations to remain loyal and comply with the neceSsary regulations. For instance, when the domestic price of corn exceeded the export price, the individual exporter would be tempted to sell in the domestic market and break the contract with the Japanese trader. 0n the other hand, when the prices of corn in the domestic market were lower than the export price, the trader who did not have any contract with the Japanese importer would approach the latter, and offer corn at a lower price. Since 1962, due to regula- tion of corn exports by the Thai government such arbitrary behavior on the part of exporters have been considerably controlled, yet as has been pointed out below, the discrepancy _between the contracted quantity and the actual export con- tinues (see Table 7). Table 7 CONTRACT VOLUME AND ACTUAL EXPORT OF CORN 'BETWEEN THAILAND AND JAPAN, l965~1970 i v M 1 Contract Volume I Actual Export 1ea1 (metric tons) (metric tons) . 1965~66 800,000 -, 559,799 1966-67 800,000 ' 826,289 1967—68 820,000 670,6l2 1968-69 780,000 ' 605,459 1969-70 600,000 - Source: Monthly Economic Report, Department of Foreign Trade, Bank of Thailand, 1970. Since 1962, however, the nature of the discrepancy has changed. Previously, the contracted quantity fell short or exceeded the actual exports on account of the arbitrary behavior of the individual exporters. But now, more exports h M) 3—) than the contracted quantity can result only through negotia~ tions between the department of foreign trade of the Ministry of Economic Affairs of Thailand and the Japanese Feed Trade 'zj Association (JFTA), a group of Japanese need Grain Importers. lpternational Market Problems: With respect to international marketing of corn, Thailand is currently facing two interrelated problems, namely, the predominance of Japan as an export market and the dwindling prices of exportable corn.4 Predominance of Japan in the Corn Exports: As Chart 2 indicates, Japan is the most important buyer of Thai corn, though the share of Japan in total exports has declined from 56.6 percent to h0.9 Percent between 1957-1968. Such dependence, however, is to the disadvantage of Thai corn exporters because the Japanese traders can impose their terms 'in the trade arguments. Already there are indications that Japan is buying more of her corn requirements from other countries. Table 8 indicates the amount of corn which Japan imported from different countries during the period, 1955-68. VOLUME or JAP AHLS3 conn IMPORTS BY COUNTRY, AVLiAGDL 1),/w19/9. ANNUAL 1965m1968 (thousand metric tons) \NYear 1955~59 196c~6n‘ 1965 1966 .1967 ' 1968 Country\\\\\\ ' U.S. . 252 867 2,502 2,254 1,584 2,542 Burma 7 1 1 3 - ‘ - Cambodia 25 29 26 29 20 15 Indonesia 2 - h 65 120 10 Thailand 69 ' 432 576 767 699 633 Other 202 946 525 500 547 1,944 Total - ' 557 2,275 3,93A 3,598 3,960 5,194 Source: Japanee e Efforts to Diversify Sources of__gpicultural lgpggpg, Econozn'ic Research Service, U. S. D. A., April 10 70, p. Beyond l960, corn imports in Japan have doubled, but the share of Thailand in Japanese imports has declined considerably (Table 9). This suggests that while Thai corn exporters place a heavy reliance on the Japanese importers, the latter are presumably looking for other markets where they cantdictate their terms. The crucial issue, therefore, is to promote exports of corn in other markets rather than placing such heavy dependence upon a single market. However, the increasing exports to Taiwan have given hepe that the Thai corn exporters are aware of the above problem and are making efforts to Open new markets in addition to expanding the existing ones. 5‘.) b4 Table 9 THAILAND'S SHARE or JAPANESE cone IMPORTS AVERAGE 1960-1964, AnNUAL 1965-1968 (percentage of total) Year Share of Corn Imports Average: 1960-64 , 19.0 Annual: , 1965 16.9 1966 21.3 1967 17.7 1968 12.3 Scurce: Japanese Eff\rts to Diversify Sources of AgriCultural Imports, Economic Research Service, U.S.D.A., April 1970, p. 2. Problem of Declining Export Prices: Table 6 of Chapter 1 indicates that the export earnings of corn declined from 1150 baht to 1050 baht per ton between 1957-1968. This is roughly a nine percent decline in the value of corn exports of Thailand. The continuation of this trend will adversely affect the export of corn. In fact, Thai exports have to compete with the low-cost corn producing countries such as the U.S.A., Argentina, Mexico, France, and Brazil. The trend of the world's corn prices due to progres~ sively increasing output is downward, and therefore, this affects the relatively less efficient exporters such as Thai- 9 land more than the major suppliers mentioned above.“ The 2 u' . ' . Production, Consumption and Trade of Coarse Grains, U.S.D.A., BBS—Foreign 272 (June 1969), pp, 40, 42, 48, 31+ solution to this problem lies in shifting the emphasis on the .D eXport of grains to other forms mentioned in the lollowing chapter. CHAPTER III CORN PRODUCTION IN THAILAND new Guatemala corn is a variety of corn which is at present pOpularly grown in Thailand. More than 80 percent of the area of cultivation is used for growing this variety. The Guate- mala variety was first selected in Antigua, a town in Guatemala, in 1946 under the management of the TrOpical Research Center of the IOwa State University of which Dr. E. I. Malhus was Director. A substantial amount of seed was sent to Mr. Ream, ICA Agricultural Advisor in Thailand in 1952 for yield trials in the country. It was found that this variety was remarkably adaptable to the climate of Thailand. Although the yield of Guatemala corn was not particularly high, it was found to be an Open-pollinated variety that could be further prepagated right in the country. Furthermore it had several seed charac—8 teristics which were desirable in foreign markets. The Thai Department of Agriculture then decided to multiply corn seeds in order to be able to distribute them to the farmers. More seeds were then imported from Guatemala and multiplication was started at Kaset Klong, Bang Khen in 1953. The second lot of seeds-was sent to several Agricultural Experiment stations in the corn-growing regions. Demonstra- 25 ."J C\ tions regarding the relative advantages of’Guatemala corn compared with the currently pepular variety were made to farmers with the purpose of obtaining their support and acceptance. In this way the new variety of corn was spread widely among the farmers throughout the country. Table 10 indicates the shift in quantity of production from the unimproved variety of corn to the period from 1950 to 1966. There were no improved varieties of corn produced in Thailand in 1950. In 1966, there were 2,800 hectare of agricultural land used bearing Guatemala and other newly introduced varieties. This was about nine times more than the area of land utilized for the traditional varieties in 1966. Furthermore, the yield of the Guatemala varieties was found to be more than twice as much as that of the Guatemala variety. As a consequence of the widespread acceptance of the Guatemala variety of corn, the total area cultivated with corn increased almost fifteen times in a spanof 16 years, jumping from 219,000 hectares in 1950 to 5,115,000 hectares in 1968. Table 10' CULTIVATED AREAS FOR CORN AND PRODUCTION YIELD BEFORE AND AFTER AVAILABILITY OF GUATEMALA VARIETIES Year Traditional Varieties Guatemala Varieties Acreage Yield Acreage Yield (1000 (metric (1000 (metric hectare) tons/hectare) hectare) tons/hectare) 1950 ‘219 .12 o _ 1966~68 515 _ .22 2,800 .A5 Source: Global CrOp Paper, "Corn," Agency for International DevelOpment, May 1969, p. 2. ' ‘ Geographic Location_of Corn Sectors: Approximately 88 percent of Thailand's corn production is concentrated in nine changwads (provinces), namely LOp Buri, Nakhon Sawan,pSaraburi, Nakhon Rachasima, Phetchabun, Phitsanulok, Phitchit, Sukhothai, Kamphang Phet. Among them, Lop Buri, Nakhon Sawan and Saraburi are the most important, having 70 percent of the total production. While these three changwads are major corn production areas, LOp Buri and Saraburi are more efficient in terms of total production per area planted (27 percent of total production from 25 percent of area planted and 17 percent of total production from 15% -of area planted respectfully). Respective data are presented in Table 11. Table 11 DISTRIBUTION OF CORN PRODUCTION BY VOLUME AN AREA (IN PERCENTAGE) - 5 YEARS AVERAGE, 1961/62-1965/66 Percent of Percent of Changwad . Production ~ Total Area Planted LOp Buri ‘ 27 25 Nakhon Sawan 26 26 Saraburi 17 ' l5 Nakhon Rachasima h 5 Phetchabun A 4 Phitsanulok 4 A Phitchit . 5 5 Suckhohai _2 2 Kamphang Phet l 1 Total 88 85 Kingdom Total 100 100 Source: Kasetsart University, November, 1967. LOCATION or CORN D.) Go Map 1 PRODUCTION IN THAILAND (9 Leading Changwads) SOUTH .1. N \O 00$ @Ul-PKN Q 0 O O Changwads (in central plain) LOp Buri Nakhon Sawan Saraburi Nakhon Rachasima Phetchabun Phitsanulok Phitchit Sukhothai Kamphang‘Phet p". \O Planting.Season: Cultivation of corn requires an adequate supply of water which must be obtained either from rainfall or from irrigation. In the central plain area which is the only corn producilg area in Thailand, soil and climate conditions are relatively more favorable to corn production. Corn is planted in Thailand during the months of May and July and normally it takes 90-110 days before the crOp is ready. The farmer who depends only on rainfall prefers to plant corn with the first rain which usually occurs in May and harvests sometime in August. If adequate rainfall occurs, the second crOp can be planted in August and would_be harvested in the month of November. It may be men- tioned here that rice is planted in the month of July or August (depending on the rainfall) and is harvested during December or January. The second crOp of corn therefore, competes with rice. During the past two decades, however, the yield of corn has increased considerably as compared to rice. As the follow- ing table indicates, between 1951-1966 the average yield of rice has increased by 40 percent while the yield of corn has increased by 86.5 percent during the same period. Table 12 also reveals that while the area under rice increased by 28 percent, the area under corn increased by 54 percent during this period. This means, that though corn and rice are competitive craps, the preference for corn is rising, presumably due to its rising demand for exports. Production. Acreage and Yield of Corn in Thailand: Table 15 explains the growth of output, acreage and yield of corn (1950»1966). AREA PLANTED AND AVERAGE YIELD OF RICE CORN IN THAILAND, ' Table 12 (”ICU-2 \ ~/,’ 1—1966) AND — Area planted Average yield . Area planted Average yield Year ({SSoriéi) €§e§i§§) (i880ciii) tigfiiii) 1951 37,245 197 25 163 1952‘ 33,551 196 281 165 1953 38,574 213 298 173 195A 34,732 .202 331 191 1955 36,060 218 347 196 1956 57,648 250 514 225 1957 51,726 208 606 229 1953 35,987 213 792 238 1959 37,909 206 1,249 256 1960 57,008 222 1,785 506 1961' 58,619 231 1,916 521 1962 41,617 240 2,050 551 1963 41,277 253 2,612 353 1964 40,890 256 3,449 276 1965 40,492 249 3,605 291 1966 47,095 276 4,083 ', 304 Source: Agricultural Statistic of Thailand, 1966, pp. As, 54. 51 Table 15 poop em v ~ - 7 ~ *- inunUelIOu, ACREAGE ALD YIEhD 0F CORN IN TFAILAND (1950—1966 Year .Production Acreage ‘* ~ (1000 tons) (1000 rai) (igfiigi) 1970 2 1951 4&2? 226 127 1952 44.8 951 103 1955 51.1 3 a 165 1954 62.5 791 A 173 1955 67.5 33 I 191 1956 114.8 517 196' 1957 136 8 602 ' 225 1958 186:3 2 229 1959 317 2 l 29 1238 1960 543'9 1’ 39 256 129; 59833 1’31? 53? o- ’/ . an age a 5 313:? 1 325% 2h? 2'76 ’ r... 0/ J AC 1966 1,122.4 4108? 56% Source: Agricultural Statistics Of Thailand, 1966, Bangkok, Thailand, p. 5A. J '\ 5- During this period production of corn increased by 41 times, yield increased by two times and the area under corn increased 18 times. While these indicators of progress are significant, there is little room from complacency. The yield of corn in Thailand is still much lower than many other corn producing countries. Especially, since Thai corn exporters have to compete with their counter-parts in other countries to capture the whole market, lower yields and comparatively higher costs serve as an Obstacle in expansion of exports. The following table compares the per hectare yield in the principal corn producing countries in the world. The U.S.A., Canada and France produce 2-2% times as much per hectare as does Thailand and pose a serious challenge to the Thai corn exporter in the world market because Of their higher yield and lower cost Of production. Even though Italy and Taiwan are currently importing corn from Thailand, they also have higher yields and in the course of time either they may reduce their imports of corn or may become exporters. Table 14 YIELD PER HECTARE IN PRINCIPAL CORN-PRODUCING COUNTRIES (100 kg/hectare) Year Average Item 1948-52 1966 UosoA. ' 2409 4501+ Thailand 9.1 22.4 Chile 14.2 2.4 Canada 52.0 51.7 ’France 15.6 45.6 Italy 18.4 35.5 Taiwan 14.1 25.2 Source: FAO, Production Year Book, vol. 21, pp. 55-56. 35 Estimated OutputA_Acreage and Ti 16 of COln: On the basis of least souare method, the following A. regression equation from Table 15 is obtained: Y1 = al‘+ bl t Y2 = a2 + b2 t Y3 = a3 + ‘03 t where Y1 refers to estimated production bl is the coefficient for one unit change in time Y and Y3 refers to estimated value of acreage and 2 yield respectively while, b2 and b3 are the respective regression coefficients for the two dependent variables mentioned above. Following values have been obtained: 2 1. Y1 = ~265.02 + 73.63t (R = .89) 2. Y2 = ~762.12 + 244.18t . (R2 = .87) 5. Y3 = 133.49 + 12.26t (R2 = .83) This estimate suggests that our last 16 year period corn producing sector has exhibited enormous upward movement and based on this trend. We can Obtain following estimate the production of corn, area planted and yield for the next 10 years (shown in Table 15). It must be noted that the regression equation Y1 and Y2 used in estimating production have negative Y-intercept; how- ever, it is impossible because production must be positive even without the use of fertilizer, modern equipment, etc.- Perhaps the reason for this is that for the years 1950-1955, production advanced slowly because modern technology was not used intensively, whereas the years 1956~1966 ICPVCwGLtOQ years of‘accele rated growth caused by increasing utiliza* tion (f modern tec ”inclo ogy. Consequently, it is possible to obtain two regression equations, with the latter years having a greater lepe. It is not feasible to use the earlier years' regression nor the latter vears' simply because technology should exhibit more growth in production for l956w1966 than 1950-1955, and also because continued grow th such as that of 195 6-1966 is not practical because of d‘mluJSPln“ returlls to scale. Therefore, the average should lepre esent a better estimate. asonality in the_Corn Prices: Seas na fluctuations in prices are measured by seasonal price indices. The focus of this section will be on the oscillations in the wholesale prices of Corn during different months of a year. An attempt has also been made to analyze the factors that are responsible for such seasonal variations. IIJ'QE{AE?B w..— —-—-—--- w-—.-—.-.—.— . -. -..-.. . PRODUCTION. -—- _‘—— _— AHEA PLANTED or CORN In THAlLAND, (1967~197 A 6 ND YIELD \ I .- "FH‘ -.—_--—' ou-.-—o——-.-———-—- “——.~—~...—1. mated yield kg/rai) Year Estigggegoggtput Estipgggdr2§§eage Est? 1967 1,062.32 3,633.12 1968 1,135.95 3,877.30 1969 1,209.58 4,121.48 1970 1,283.21 4,365.66 1971 V1.356.84 4,555.84 1972 1,430.46 4,854.02 1973 1,504.10 5,098.20 1974 1,577.73 5,342.38 1975 1,651.36 5,586.56 1976 1,724.99 5,850.74 . 378.69 _..-- _a”'-.-—._- .‘q 35%.17 366.43 390.95 403.21 415.47 427.73 439.99 452.25 464.51 The monthly wholesale prices of corn in Thailand between 1950 and 1969 are shown in Table 16 and a seasonal index on the basis of these data have been estimated and included in Chart 3 which presents the.seasonal index and the standard diviation. The following points of interest can be noted from table and chart. 1. The wholesale price of corn increases steadily frOm January to mid-April because during these months the quantity of corn flowing from the farm is almost negligible. ' 2. Between May and September the wholesale price of corn showed a decline because during these months, Thailand has two creps of corn and for the reason explained in Chapter IV (the problem of storage), that farmers brought the whole produce of corn to the market. The demand for corn during this period does not usually increase neither in domestic market nor in the external market. The wholesale price of corn, therefore continued to decline until the market had excess of supply over demand. 3. From October to December, the wholesale corn price showed an upward trend. This trend continues beyond December as well. V The seasonality in the wholesale corn prices thus can be viewed in two phases. The period of declining prices and that of rising prices. The phase of higher prices (October - May) reflects the inclusion of storage and other overhead costs incurred by the middleman to stabilize the supply over the whole year. The discrepancy between demand and supply during the different months of the year results in seasonal varia- .L tions in the wholesale corn price. .05mH .esmaflmsm .xoxmnmm .wnawmma ossosoom mo hyphens: "moaned . . i 0.0 mm.0 H.0 0.5 .m.0 m.m 0.m 0.mH m.m :.0H m.m :.0 .emm M . Usmum . 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I \ . ONH / \ . / \ — / \ . x .\ vaqH Hmnommmw QZdQH¢mB ZH WHUHmm Zmoo mflflwmgomg h0.xmmZH.A¢Zomdmm N :tho CHAPTER IV' MARKETING SY TENS FOR CORN The principal feature in marketing of corn in Thailand is that the external demand absorbs almost the whole of the corn production. In 1959-60, 90 percent of the corn produced in Thailand was eXported, but the corresponding ratio for 1968-1969 increased to 98 percent. Unlike the other develOping nations, corn is not used in human consumption in Thailand as a staple food and the residual amount is used as a feed grain. In 1959-1960, 10 percent of the corn output was used for cattle feeding but it declined approximately toh2 percent in 1968-1969. As has been indicated earlier, the production of corn during this period has increased more than 2 times, whereas demand for corn feed grain has shown a very small increase.1 But the sharp increase in output has facilitated not only the fulfill: ment of the local demand for corn as feed grain, but also the demand for export. As these figures reveal, the export of corn has increased about three times over this period (Table 6). The above discussion suggests that over this period, the importance of the exporter in the disposal of Corn has 1 . . . - . fl . . . D1V1sion of Agricultural Lconomics, Ministry of Agriculture, Bangkok, Thailand. 40 1.1, :e esoo mm "meadow , .M0mH .0H .02 psoamm .esmasmsa .aosmsmm .mpsmseessm psmwpmwsz .ussaflms sOflwsmpxm cosponsosmleommmm moses messessms use compasses mo wsmanos O [-i M s: I &M “A hexosm Z// r . a5” ;//,» . M. aam .A ass aweampso awn 4/ _ / \ \ . .. f z / aces amuseosm amass: \\ a2 \/ soossosm . &0e same \\\ Assamfleeas \ \ Hmsfiss I ,.HmooA t; /\ a O0mHlmmmH zH zmoo ho mamzz¢mo EZHEHMN¢E a pause [fl .M0ma .0H .02 psommm .essaflmsa .d amsmm .apsmsmbas: psmmpewsm .vswasmse as dosesmpxm sowposeoss poemmm moans msflpoxams was cospozeos mo mamapos oflsosoom smxosm § 1//,» as A sense amm / mooa nooseosm OH = a _ u\\\\\\ \qofi/ \\\\1//// o:eosm\ . X03 some Assamese: \ \ Heads¢\ ,_HMooA A a0 00mHImmmH zH zmou ho mqmzz¢mo UzHBmMmdz H pnmno shoe go ”meadow. eswaswse «mommsmm .mpflmsm>ssp pammemmsm .OH .02 poenosm .m0ma psommm \II/ 993mm J can A .\\1‘ asm.sm amm.s \I/\.\.mm.mm .50N0H / , ,x, / //\. sepsomxm \\\.\l//// ~ \ sesame &:5.5m A . ,, .\o..flm..m.fi .50 m.mm - in. MS. / .HmunOHm I . / / &¢5.: smaamm s0m.m \\\\ ammwMIIIIIIII. ems .( . AHV . asa.mm Av . $mm N smoseonm seem assasm m0ma sesuw0aa mzss "mzagHams so onemm qamszmo zH maesezamo 0 2H amoo so mqmzzamo eszmsmas m eases assess "mossom \..// seosvosm sooa M5 5 ‘ 0 enormously increased. This has led to certain structural changes in the marketing channels for corn. Chart 1 explains the relative positive of various agencies in the disposal of corn in l959~1960 while the cor- responding arrangements of different marketing agencies in 1968—1969 have been presented in Chart 2. In 1959-1960, local middlemen accounted for 46 percent of the total corn produced by the farmer. The outside middleman purchased one—third of the output directly from the farmer. He also procured 17 percent of the produce following from the farmer.to the money lender and one percent of that going to the millers. The farmer sold three percent of the produce to the brokers who worked for the exporters. In other words, exporters also purchased corn from the farmers, but they have to use the service of the brokers in this process. By l968~l969, the situation had changed considerably. There are now three principal agencies working between the farmers and the exporters, namely, the first seller, the second seller and the third seller. The first seller is the local buyer who has a direct contact with the farmer and buys about 53 percent of the better produce, but would then sell to the second seller, to the exporter, to the broker and also to the cattle-feeder. As Chart 5 reveals, by 1968-1969, the local middleman (now known as first seller) had lost much of his direct contact with the exporter as compared to 1959-1960, and currently less than 20 percent of the produce goes directly Vfrom the first seller to the eXporter. As compared to 1953~1960,'a relatively new but stronger agency seems to have emerged in the process of corn marketing in Thailand. The third seller or commonly known as Changwad (province) seller has more financial power and can work on a larger scale. Even though his direct purchases of corn from the farmer constitute a very small fraction of the total corn production, he buys corn from the second and first sellers. In short, about 40 percent of the corn which is exported passes through the third seller. Two other important changes have taken place in the marketing process for corn over the 1959-1969 period. First, the brokers working for the exporters have lost their direct Contact with the farmer and now they buy either from the first or second seller. Secondly, money-lenders have lost their distinctive role in procuring corn from the farmers while in 1959-1960 farmers sold 17 percent of their produce to the money~lender against the principal and interest payment. In 1968-1969 this type of obligation on the part of the farmer is not found. However, it appears that most of the money-lenders have turned into middlemen and are-buying corn from the farmers in this capacity. Many of the local as well as outside middle- men advance loans to the farmers with an understanding that they (farmers) would sell their produce to these traders immediately after the harvest. About 63 percent of the traders . . 2 give credit to the farmers. 2 . . . Dr. Chalyong Chuchart and others, Productigp and Marketing of Corn in Thailand, Kasetsart University, Bangkok, Thailand, T963, p. 42. :— \n _L Change in Marketing Margin: Though during the last decade, the marieting channel for corn in Thailand has undergone certain basic changes, the marketing margin has declined over this period. The follow- ing table presents an account of the average price received by the farmer, the export price f.o.b. Bangkok and the marketing margin for l959~l960 and 1968-1969. Table 17 PRICE RECEIVED AT THE FARM FOR CORN ND EXPORT PRICE, F.O.B. BANGKOK, 1959-1960 AND 1968-1969 Percentage Price received Export price Marketing of market— Year by the farmer f.o.b. hangkok margin ing margin (baht/60kgs) (baht/60kgs). (baht/60kgs) (col. 3 as % of col. 2) ,_ -_... 1959—60 h4.23 71.18 26.95 37.8 ‘ 1968-69 45.59 65.75 20.16 30.6 Source: Computed from data shown in Table 18 and Table 19. As indicated in the above table, even though the export price, f.o.b. Bangkok, has declined by 5.4 percent, the price received by the farmer has increased by 1.3 percent. Despite the fact that a new channel, i.e., the third seller has emerged as an important marketing agency,-the marketing margin has decreased from 57.8 percent to 30.6 percent. Tables 18 and 19 indicate that as compared to 1959-1960 the transportation costs in l968~1969 were considerably lower J1“ C \ (by 21 percent). Simi-arly the profits of the outside and local middleman have also decreased during this peliod. It appears that with an increase in the number of middlemen and with increasing competition among them, the share of the farmer has gone up. Yet, the profits of the exporter and the wholesaler appear to be high. In 1968~l969 for example, the profit of the eXporter accounted for 11.3 percent of the export price, f.0.b. Bangkok. In addition, about nine percent profit was obtained by the wholesalers and other middlemen. Even if other costs are allowed, the broker fee, transportation, wages, taxes, etc., the profit of the middleman appears to be exhorbitant. On the basis of certain data published by the Kasetsart University for the monthly corn prices received by the farmer, by the provincial dealer and the wholesale price in Bangkok for the year 1968-1969 it can also be shown that the market- ing margin appears to be high. The data on prices received by the farmers and provincial dealers pertain to five chang- wads in the central region and therefore may not be fully comparable with the figures given in Tables 17, 18 and 19. A? Table 18 MARKETING COST, PROFIT OF DF ALFRS AND PFR? LIFICE OF MONEY RECEIVED BY E} PO QTERS vOR CORN 0F1AINF RON FAFMLAJ AND DEALERS IN 8 PROVINCE FS III CENTRAL REGION, THAILAND, 1960 ,- a ma, Amount of Money Cost and rrclit (baht/6O kgs) Percent owa .— Corn price (f.o.b. Bangkok) per year obtained by exporter 71.18 100 Average obtained by farmer 44.23 62 Cost 8.80 Cost of outsider middleman 6.80 10 Transportation cost 2.00 3 Profit 18.15 Profit of outside middleman (Profit before depreciation and interest charges are deducted) 4.h8 6 a) capital 1.93 3 b) expenditure for exporter 9.60 13 C) pic-lib 12.1. C} yul CCI 2.11:}- 3 ' Source: Dr. Chaiyong Chuchart and others, Production and Marketing of Corn in Thailand Kasetsart University, Bang1:ck, Thailand, 19b3, p. 177. Table 19 1IATFWFT”I‘C COSCP, I)p01 1T THAILAND, (JU OF D1711, 13L] 1:9 .L\1..' (11"(1 \J- LJ\)(‘ 1 68-11T 1909) AND hFDCI‘ITAI‘E OF I‘IOIIE Y 1111I‘FTIND BY FkPOleFN’S FOR COEII QBTAlITID FEOI1 I?!" AND DEALERS IN 8 PROVIN ‘I'IT‘Q '0 ENE 1N (ENTRAL REGlON, RS Amount of Money Cost and Prellt (baht/60 kgs) Percent Average export price (f.o.b. Bangkok) per year obtained _ by exporter 65.75 100.00 Average obtained by farmer 45.59 69.34 Cost 6.88 Transportation 1.58 2.40 Brokers 0.93 1.41 Wage“ 1.36 2.07 Tam and fees 0.03 0.05 Container cost 2.08 3.16 Office cost (rent, service, etc.) 0.37 0.36 Others 0.53 0.81 Profit 13.28 ‘ Net profit of wholesalers - 5.86 8.91 Total profit of exporter 7.42 11.29 Source: Kasetsart University, Bangkok, Thailand, 1970. 2+9 The following po nts can be noted from Table 20: l. The margin between the price received by the farmer and that received by the local merchant varies between 8.3 baht per 60 kgs. in October and 13.5 baht per 60 kgs. in July. During other months the margin varies according to the availability of corn. However, the two prices show a consid- erable degree of correlation, that is, the price received by the provincial dealer is followed by the price received by the farmer. 2. The wholesale price of corn in Bangkok shows Wider fluctuations during the year than do the prices received by the provincial dealer. Put in terms of concurrent deviation, prices shown in column two and three show a high degree of correlation. . The f.o.b. Bangkok export prices also follow the changes taking place in the wholesale prices in Bangkok but the exporter has to buy corn at a loss in the months of May, November and December when the farmer has no corn to offer, and he has to depend only on other middlemen (see Table 20). The margin between the Bangkok wholesale price and export price, f.o.b. Bangkok, is very low in the month of November presumably because of the lower world corn prices, but in the preceeding month because of lower internal prices the margin is considerably higher. The eXporters have to buy cornfrom the wholesaler at a price lower than they receive in May and December. No definite conclusions can be reached with respect to to these price movements and the marketing margins. It can be only concluded that the mar,in between the emport f.o.b. Bangkok price and price received by the fa mer is a function of world corn prices, flow.of the corn from the farm to the trader and the quantity of corn stored by the wholesalers. PRICES RECEIV LOCAL MERCHANTS , PRICES, EXPORT 51 Table 20 no ov FARMERS, ' . A F.0.B. BANGKOK. conn, (baht per 60 kgs) BY PROVINCIAL DEAL WHOLESALE PRICES IN BANGKOK AND BY MONTHS, 19s8~1969 ""1 1- in} 5 AND i Brice received byi Wholesale Export Month Price receivedi the provincial corn price price by the farmer dealer and local in Bangkok i.0.b. merchant Bangkok June 45.00 58.00 60.00 67.61 July 39.84 53.33 57.00 66.66 August 41.04 52.17 55.20 62.97 September 41.42 51.49 50.40 61.62 October 44.18 52.45 50.40 58.60 November 47.42 57.34 56.40 56.41 December 49.70 59.86 61.80 59.41 January 51.1 60.97 69.00 65.77 February 50.60 52.90 67.80 71.81 March 52.40 61.50 69.60 74.91 April - 65.00 66.50 74.85 May ~ 65.00 72.00 68.27 Source: Column 1, 2, 3, Division of Agricultural Economics, Ministry of Agriculture, Bangkok, Thailand, March 1970. Affairs, Bangkok, Thailand. Column 4, Division of Customs, Ministry of Economic .omm .boz .aoo .wpem .wsq Lawn mesa meg .am4 .Hmz .nmh .qsb r 9... \ / .01 , 4. 5 00WLPHW. PrHOOerHr \\ momma Heoog ooflpm ofiomeaoga /////// \\\\ . a . moms ow arm psmnv mmlwmma mmezoz Mm “moo mommasm .m.o.h maummm emooxm Qz< momwzam 2H mWUHmm mg¢mmqoma mazHmomm mmowmm m gashw ~‘--r ~~ - w---———--'°-\n “om-M U\ f"‘\ ow mw mm \n \x‘ gagyggll Traprgxmgtgtigwxfhgndition; Transportation plays a vital role in national develOp- ment, particularly in the process of integrating rural and. "urban sectors. The flow of agricultural products from the village to the marketing center, and that of agricultural inputs to the farmers depend largely on the transportation network. Among the principal transportation routes, railroads account for nearly 42 percent of the movement of all types of goods, about one-third of the goods move through waterways and the remaining goods move through the highways.3 Road maintenance in Thailand is generally poor and during the rainy season large sections are impassable because of floods. The drainage is poor and construction is defective in most parts of the country. In 1965, out of 7,800 miles of road only one third were suitable for all weather travel and movement of cargo.[Jr This is true despite the fact that during the last two decades the government has made some effort to improve the roads especially under the seven years Provincial Highway Deve10pment Program (1964-1970). Some new roads have been built and some roads have been paved but most of this improve- ment remains confined to the urban areas. In 1953, the mean distance between the farm, markets and the highways in different 3J. R. Behrman, Supply Response in Underdeveloned Agriculture, North-Holland Publishing Company, Amsterdam, 1968, p. 51. b. . ' ., .. . ~ . 'H. B. Smith and others, Area and Bock 3or Thailand; Porn fiégn Area Study, The American University, flashington, September 00 ,1 o 51+ 0 regions varied between 6 and 15 kilometers (see Table 21). As Table 21 reveals, the average distance between the village and highway in Thailand was 10 kilometers. Table 21 MEAN DISTANCE IN KILOMBTERSl 0F FARMS FROM MARKET AND TRANSPORT FACILITIES ACCORDING TO 1953 FARM SURVEY, THAILAND Mean Distance in Kilometers From Region Market Tour Waterway Highway §::%igid Central Region, excluding southeast coast 6.0 11.1 5.8 17.4 Southeast Coast 5.8 5.1 5.6 180.2 Northeast 1£,6 7.1 14.7 64.5 All Thailand 9.0 3.1 10.2 71.7 1A kilometer is equal to five-eighths miles. Source: J. R. Behrman, Supplngesponse in UnderdevelOped égriculture, North-Holland Publishing Company, Amsterdam, 1968. p. 54. Moreover, most of these roads could be used only during the dry season. Since 1953, not much has been done to improve this situation. Waterways: As has been stated above, one-third of the goods in Thailand are carried through waterways. Waterways are more pepular in the Chao Phaya low land, north of Bangkok where ' ‘ i n__ m- \J": \ 1r 1' 7 lkl'. [U P LOCATION OF CORN PRODUCTION ARFA IN THAILAND Burma Gembod is 1 I Changwads: LOp Buri Nakhon Sawan Saraburi Nakhon Rachaisima Phetchabun Phitsanulok Phitchit Sukhothai Kamphang Phet \OOON'ImUH-‘KNNH Source: Drawn from the information contained in Eact and Figure of Thailand, Ministry of National DevelOpment, Bangkok, Thailand, 1965. th (O y constitute an interconnected network of the work canal «J ‘ and branch systems. Fcr the m vemznt of agricultural (4 products, waterways are most commonly used with respect to rice. However, only Nakhon Sawan is in a favorable position to m'ke a good use of waterways for the transportation of corn. As can be seen on Map 2, Nakhon Rachasima and Petchabun have no direct access to any river. 0n the other hand Phit- sanulok, Phitchit, Sukhothai and Kamphang Phet have small rivers which are not navigable during most part of the year because the four rivers, Ping, Vang, Yum and Nahn are rain-fed rivers and become shallow during the period when corn needs to be transported. For this reason waterways are not pepular for the transportation of corn. The railroad system in Thailand is also not very well develOped. In 1966, the total mileage of railroads was less than 2,300, and all lines were single track except a 56~mile double track stretch around Bangkok.5 Most of the railroads link the big cities or towns and as Table 21 indicates the average distance of the village to the railroad station is about 72 kilometers which means the farmer is not in a position to use railroads for transporting his produce. The transport system therefore is not favorable to the farmer, especially for corn. The only important route acces- sible to the farmer is the read. As has been pointed out _b. 5H. H. Smith, pm, (2:15., p. 53+. 57 earlier, most of the roads are only fair-weather roads, and therefore, most of the corn is shipped from the village to the market in bullock-carts during the dry season. he cost of transportation is high and involves a great deal of time. It appears that corn was not considered an important product, hence the neglect in the improvement of its transportation. It would appear that the transport facilities for corn need to improve in the future if its potential importance as an export crOp is to be realized. Storaag: Since most of the small producers work on a small scale and since corn is not used for consumption, the whole of the output is sold to the middleman immediately after the harvest. A small amount Of corn is seld to dairy farms, swine farms and poultry farms. Up till now no serious thought has been given to the question of storing the corn. Since farmersido not have storage facilities, they are compelled to sell their pro— duce immediately after the harvest. It appears that.the large fluctuations in the price of corn shown in Graph 3 and Table 16 (Chapter III), are due to heavy arrival of corn in the market during the postnharvest month. The small quantity which is produced by the small farmer precludes any effort on his part to build warehouses at the farm level. 'The local and the outside middleman also seem to have no inducement to store the corn because of the pressure of demand from exporting firms. Since more than 90 percent of the corn is exported, the whole stock of corn is brought to .58 Bangkok where the exporting firms keep it in their warehouses. To sum up, it can be stated that the stor ag ge of corn is done only by the eXporter and the farmers and middlemen have practically no storage facilities. During .he last 12-15 years farmer COOperatives have built some storage barns at the village leVe' l to facilitate the storage of agricul tural products at t‘ne farm level. But these storage barns are very few in numbers, their capacity is very small and they do not have any scientific way to preserve the quality of the produce. Credit: The greatest need for credit to the farmer is at the time of growing and harvesting the creps. Most farmers do not hDV‘D afloan-l‘n thrfihfi‘r‘. ."ghrq fhornf‘pnn hrs-urn to An “A Cmd Cw . ‘ _- -_ ~ VJ . '. . .. .. .,_-. U1- - - - v . _ ‘ J.‘ s- .... . I \V- I , ml" M (‘7? viv viz» u. .1.; “AV \- lenders and/or the middleman Usually the local as well as Ithe outside middleman finance the farming Operations with tacit understanding that the farmer will sell their produce to them. Even though from h2 to 52 percent of the loans (in different regions of the country) are taken for family living, weddings or funeral services, the farmers are obliged to sell their produce to the money~lender cum-middleman.6 The following table gi es an account of the various sources cf credit in the four_important regions in Thailand and their relative importance. _As the above table indicates, 6Pantum Th13ayamondol and others, fifriCultnre Credit in Thai_land, Kasetsart University, Bangkok, Thailand, 1965, pp. 22—23. local stores and crOp buyers provide about 22 percent of the credit in the Central regions Which is the corn-producing area. In other regions, however, farmers rely more heavily on their relatives. About 63 percent of the traders in the 7 Central region advance loans to the corn producer. However, the fact remains that they are obliged morally, or otherwise to market their produce to the middleman. The c00perative and other institutions are still in the initial stages and do not help the farmers in obtaining credit on fair and reasonable terms.- The monthly rate of interest varies between 1.8 percent and 3.5 percent for the individual's source, though the institutional sources (such as government, COOperatives and banks) provide loans at 0.8 percent.8 The very fact that 53 percent of the corn is sold by the farmers to local middlemen and 39 percent to the outside middlemen (figures relate to 1968-69) gives an indication that in the marketing of corn, farmers are under the pressure of the middleman who provide loans to them in cash as well as in kind. 7Dr. Chaiyong Chuchart and others, op..git., p. 1&2. 8Dr. Chaiyong Chuchart, 2p. cip., pp. 39mh0, 60 Table 2 SOURCE OF CREDIT BY REGION IN THAILAND (in percentage of total) Source of Credit 0:32;:1 ' North Northeast South i Relative 22.6 47.0 58.5 43.0 Neighbor 16.7 19.9 4.3 12.? Local Store 13.9 3.0 4.6 10.9 CrOp Buyer .7.9 10.1 -6.5 13.8 Landlord 10.7 0 5.2 0 Money Lender 14.2 8.9 7.5 1.5 Institutional Lenders (Gov't, COOp, & Bank) 3.0 9.8 10.8 13.7 Others 11.0 _ 1.3, 2.6 40.4 Total 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 Source: Pantum Thidyamondol and others, Agricultural Credit in Thailand, Kasetsart University, Bangkok, Thailand, p. 57. MONTH T“; J.:.. Type of Lender Relative Neighbor Commerci Lender Local al Store CrOp Buyer Landlo Money Lender Other Institut Lender Credit COOp. Other Gov't. Agency Commer Bank Weight Average Rate. rd ional cial ed —. __._. -.- _— -n--.—-- _4 “' Tf’jTII \‘(1 (V [f1 1.1‘I .L 4".) L.: J‘Jo ) J. L ..—. _.—_ --.——- m- 61 d v 1 flanle ‘~.-r\'1,'n(l I~1T 4'..‘"...J;IQ a.) 23 2 131710 1 01“? I N T H A: L AN D AND TIPE 1? LENDER Region ,-__., -.—._-~—-———v~—- .. —.-—-—-- ----—--—--—-- ‘0 . Central Plain 1.7 2.4 2.3 2.2 _.-.. North ...._ —-.¢_—_—.~--..——o—- 2.6 3.3 1+.8 5.4 4.7 N.A. 5.0 3.4 0.8 0.8 0.8 N.A. 3.3 Northeast (\ 1.0 3.3 4.3 6.2 3.9 1.8 7.3 7.0 South _-_ ~— -.._-_._,,..._ A“ ...._ .- 1.1 2.3 2.0 2.7 1.3 N.A. 3.6 2.2 0.8 Mean for All Areas A...-— —n--———-*——’<-— - « - 1.8 2.6 2.9 3.5 2.9 3.5 3.3 2.5 0.8 0.8 0.8 2.4 4N.A. Source: - Not available. Pantum Thidyamondol and others, Agricultpral Credit in Thailand, Kasetsart University, Bangkok, Thailand, p. 40. .-_-.-_~——-—-—-—..--_-. ‘ * 'I We...“ _-*_——’ ,m -w. CHAPTER v SUMMARY, IMPLICATIONS AND SUG CHANGING THE MARKETING STRUCTU " ! GESTIONS FOR RE nND POLICY The previous chapters have focused on the trends in pro» duction, acreage, yield, prices, exports, and the marketing system of corn. Some of the implications of the-foregoing analysis follow: 1. OVer the last 16 years, corn production and yield have recorded substantial increases. The yield of corn, however, is still low as compared to other principal corn pro~ ducing nations. Since corn is primarily an export crep, this has far reaching implications for the export price and demand in the future. ~2. Production of corn in Thailand is centralized in the central region because Of the soil and other physical conditions. This suggests that the supply of corn depends on the weather and other exogeneous factors mostly beyond the control of man. In short, the corn producing sector in Thailand suffers from all the drawbacks Of a localized industry. 3. The rholesale price of corn fluctuates over the different months in a year, but as has been explained in Chapter II, the seasonal price index shows two phases of price movement, an upward movement, (October-May) and a declining 62 trend, (mid May«September). This eXplains the lack of stability in the supply of corn during different months in a yeare—stemming mainly from lack of storage facilities at the farm level. 4. The price fluctuations are also the result of an inadequate transport system in the countryside. Lack of good feeder roads and inaccessibility of th> farmer to main street and the highway is another major factor explaining the instability of the prices. 5. The marketing channels for corn are undergoing basic changes, yet the marketing margin has declined due to improve- ment in the system. Still, the share of the farmer in the wholesale price or the f.o.b. Bangkok export price of corn is only 69 percent. Moreover, the export prices do not follow the trend in the wholesale price in Bangkok or the price received by the provincial dealer, (Graph 4). In certain months, (September-December), the export prices stay below the level of prices received by the provincial dealers because during these months the eXporter has to buy corn frOm other channels at the going price in order to fulfill his export agreement. Obviously, during the above months, the provincial dealer and wholesaler would prefer to charge high prices for corn. 6. The margin betnecn f.o.b. Bangkok eXport price and Bangkok wholesale price of corn is low in certain months, while very high in others, depending on the demand for exporting corn. ’- 01+ 7. The fact that institutional credit is not adequate in Thailand, provides some explanation of the high cost of credit with the rate of interest varying from 0.8 to 3.5 percent per month, coupled with an obligation for the farmer' to sell his produce to the lender. 8. Little effort has been made to meashre the demand for corn in the domestic market, especially for cattle feed- ing. The residual nature of such demand has an implication of unstable supply in the domestic market and the resulting variations in the price. I 9. Since corn is mainly.an export crOp, any unusual gap between the f.o.b. Bangkok export price and the domestic price of corn is likely to have serious implications for the quantity of corn exported. Whether or not the contract for export is fulfilled by the exporter will depend on the difference between the two prices. Whenever the wholesale. price in Bangkok of the provincial prices of corn are higher than the f.o.b. Bangkok (eXport) price, the exporters do not hesitate to go back on their export commitments, on the other hand, when prices within the country are lower than the f.o.b. Bangkok export price, they try to persuade importers abroad to buy larger quantities. 10. Thai corn exporters depend very heavily on Japan for the export of corn, albeit the Thai preportion of Japanese corn imports is declining. There has been very little effort on the part of the exporters to search for new markets. 65 11. There has been very little effort to diversify the use of corn in the domestic market. The emphasis so far has been on exporting the grain, rather than the processed corn or canned meat which could be obtained sy expanding the c ttle feeding industry. In short, no effort has been made 9) to increase the use of corn at home and increase the export of corn-based products. The world demand for Thai corn may not be significant in the future due to the high cost of corn production and rising competition in the world market. Recommendations: It seems apprepriate to assume that the corn producing sector will continue to occupy an important place in Thai agriculture, and that the export of corn and corn-based products (meat, corn oil and processed corn) will remain important in the future. Therefore, it is desirable to introduce certain changes in the system to improve its per- formance. The following suggestions can be made to change the structure of the corn producing sector and to increase its efficiency: l.A Intensive Cultivation of Corn: All efforts should be made to increase the yield of corn in Thailand by providing better inputs such as improved seed and fertilizers. The Guatemala variety has increased the yield substantially, still there is enough room for improvement. Hybrid varieties of corn should be deve10ped, and be made avail- able to farmers in adequate quantity. Research stations and demonstration farms to this effect should be set up in.order ! to CUVQlOp high yielding varieties, (H.Y.V,) of corn. Further improvement in yield of corn appears to be a precondition for maintaining a competitiv position for Thai corn in the international market. Besides establishing a researcx and experiment station for the H.Y.V., simultaneous efforts should also be made to increase the supply of H, (D H tilizers and better plovs. This will require extensive credit programs for the corn producing sector. The intensive cultivation program should, therefore, include better and more intensive cultivation of land. 2. Experiments for gr wing corn in the changwads outside the central region should be established. New varieties may be develOped for these changwads that have relatively less favorable physical condition for corn production. This will help in increasing an aggregate output of corn in Thailand. 3. For the stabilization of corn prices, a comprehensive storage program should be suggested both at the farm level as well as in the provincial markets. A warehousing pregram on a large scale can be undertaken either by the government or by the government—sponsored farm cooPeratives.. The farmers may be allowed to keep their produce in these warehouses during the loan months, (May-September) against a nominal payment on warehousing cost. The storage program should be given high riority in the next five year plans. It might be pointed out "(:5 n this context that a large scale storage program can be P. completed only over the long run. 4. DevelOpment of feeder roads and an improved transport system is also urgently needed for improving the efficiency 0 of the corn producing sector. These will be omplementary to the wareh0*sing program and will pr sumably help in t.e stabi- lization of prices. Very little progress has been made in the direction of developing feeder roads in the countryside and masing the provincial highways workable for year around use. It seems that the seven year national highway construction and rehabilitation program (1965-1971) is biased toward national highw'ys and little thought has been given to the develOpment of roads in the countryside. During the Second Plan, (1967-1971) out of 7.31 billion baht envisaged, 6 billion baht have been allocated for the develOpmeqt of national highways.2 It can therefore be suggested that in the next Five Year Plan 40 to 50 percent of the transportation outlay be devoted to provincial highways including the feeder roads. The warehousing program coupled with the plan for develOping provincial highways will bring forth further improvement in the efficiency of marketing system for corn. It may also be heped that this will reduce the marketing margin and it is likely to benefit farmers as well as other participants in the system. 1The Second National Economic and Social Devplgpment Plan (1967—1971), 0p. cit., p. 13”. r cEEh.£i£n1 p. 137. TT‘5 Institutional changes for improving the farm credit 'structure should also be given serious consideration and still more encouragement is needed for the coOperativos because they can provide cheap credit to the farmer without any strings. In the develOpment plan a subsidized credit program. should be included as to enable the farmer to obtain credit at a low cost. The above preposals are likely to improve the internal conditions of the corn procucing sector. However, for improving the foreign trade in corn, the following suggestions can be presented. a) The marketing of corn_in the external as well as in the domestic market can be improved by introducing grading and standardization for corn. The ministry of agriculture should appoint the necessary personnel to grade the various categories of corn on the basis of norms set by the govern- ment. It appears that the exportable corn is not subject to strict quality control and this may affect the Thai corn eXports in the years to come. ' o b) Detailed programs should be made for extending corn' eXports to other countries. Efforts should be made to have trade negotiations with such countries, and unnecessary dependence on Japanand Taiwan should be avoided for the GXport of corn. The Board of Trade should be made responsible for Opening new markets for Thai corn. c). Long term trade agreements should be made with the importers of Thai corn so that the eXporters, the middlemen 69 m .nd producers of corn can plan their Operations in advance. This would insure more stability in the f.o.b. Bangkok export price, would provide a guarantee to the exporter with respect to the quantity to be exported, and would therefore, give an incentive to all other participants in the corn sectors. d) There should be effect to promote diversification in the use of corn. It seems reasonable to believe that Thailand cannot depend definitely on the eXport of corn in the grain form. Effort should therefore be made to make an increasing use of corn in the domestic market. A pragmatic approach would be to encourage the cattle feeder industry under the next Economic and Social DevelOpment Plan. The emphasis should be shifted from exporting corn to the eXport of meat. Supplementary industries using corn could be the cereal industry and corn oil industry. Encouragement should be given to the use of breakfast cereals (such as corn flakes) within the country. In the initial stages promotion of these products could be confined to the urban populations but gradually their use might be extended all over the country. 'The fact that between 1960 and 1966 the per capita GNP in Thailand increased by 30 percent (from 2050 baht to 2628 baht), gives rise to an Optimism that the demand for breakfast cereal can be increased with intensive promotional effort.3 The marketing channel for corn has shown considerable I”— at..-“ )The National_Economic and Social Develonment Plan, Op. Cit., p. 13. 7O '1' ,0; years a. mprovenent during the past few i- I. continue to improve, and L received by the wholesaler or exporters will continue hopefully will the share of the farmer in the price to rise. BIBLIOGRAPHY Japaane Efforts to Di v: rsify .ourc«s of :~-— 0 Agricultural Imports, USDA, LhS — Foreign 292 . The Agrigulturgl_§ituation fn the Far East and 0ce>ra USDA, BBS m Foreign 262. __. The Ir‘-c134'rel Situatioq in the_Far East and chgna, U6 Dfl, LBS - foreign 2.00. . The Aer 1C11lvl'7 Situation in the Far East and chana, USDA, LCRS - lQIOiI—gn 29:3. . Pro ducti on, Con. eumntionA and Trade of Goa so , ERS ~ boreign 2/2. 1,.- (LfdlllS mm The Sec ond 1'1ione] Vcoioric and So 'al Devele— pent Plan (lg6; 9—19Yl), 'lhe National Economic DeveIOpment DU“... L1, v.1 llbb‘ UJ. 1.116” r J' MU 11lfil Seer , .L’vtllb-LU1\., lllclllo’ll‘. . . Ehog Production Year Book, 1967, vol. 21. . Agricultural Statistics of Thailand 1966, Nizistry of Agriculture, Bangkok,l Thailand . The L3end: F"cts and Pisuree 19 65, nistry of Nati onal DLVLlOpuent Bangkok, Thailand. . World Agricultural Production and Trade: Statistical Report, USDA, September, 1969. . Thailand Monthly Report, Bank of Thailand, September 1966, Vol. VIII, No. 9. . FAO Monthly Bulletin of Agricultural Economics and Statistics, Julywhugust 1966. ~ . Global CrOp Paper Corn, Agency for International DevelOpment, May 1969. Behrman, Jere R. Supply Response in Under ev North-Holland Publishing Company, Amst e1 Q>Ted iIgriculture, 71 L. , Smith, U. H. and others, Area ar3 Lam” for The ila 9nd,,Foreign 1 [1339.11- 319.135.1261 The American U11... ». {31.1.1-1}; , '1'."'11131'1f‘111[3LOI1 , ’u ca..."- --‘- fr r If ( 130111Lm3l‘ -9U ‘. Se; Thiayahondol, Pantum and oth6rs,“vr16111rro Credit in Thailand, Kac.ts art Unive1ui1 B:‘.ng ;1:ok, 1na11cho, 1965. i Corn Fvnort Pro1lem Kasetsart Tongpa1, Sopin, The University w’é ngnok, and Dr. Delane E. 6d Sorehum Develo Bangliok, Thailand. @97101’14. U 1hallaud l9/O. for Plenntne orn Kazsetsart University, 1:03: 11;81"C}“_ Thailand, others, in