Rice harvest to be lean financialy

Rice

Rice

Resident Smart Arse
With the collapse of the Rice Scheme and the subsequent abysmal failure to artificially raise the world rice price. There has been a collapse in the paddy price. Currently, the rice price is only between Bt4,000 and Bt6,000 per tonne, meaning farmers sold rice at a loss given the average production cost was between Bt7,000 and Bt7,700 per tonne. I wish I could get through to the family that laying fallow maybe a more profitable proposition and only grow for own consumption.

This will trickle through the whole community.

Reference: The Nation.

http://www.nationmultimedia.com/politics/Rice-farmers-seek-40-profit-margin-30235737.html
 
Local rice mills are currently offering 13.80/kg.

It would seem to be only those people who harvest and sell the same day as practically everyone else that get a very poor return.
 
Prakhonchai Nick said:
Local rice mills are currently offering 13.80/kg.

It would seem to be only those people who harvest and sell the same day as practically everyone else that get a very poor return.
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The figures don't add up somewhere.


You are quoting double the figure that is in the article in the Nation.

Are we talking apples and pears ?
 
CO-CO said:
The figures don't add up somewhere.


You are quoting double the figure that is in the article in the Nation.

Are we talking apples and pears ?
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Rice actually, Co-Co.:smile:

The rice mill between Prakhonchai and Buriram has been offering 13.80bt/kilo (Thats 13,800baht/tonne) for the past 4/5 weeks. And I have heard others offer slightly more. Well down on Yingluck's 19,000bt/tonne through the pledging scheme.
 
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rambling maths

Prakhonchai Nick said:
Rice actually, Co-Co.:smile:

The rice mill between Prakhonchai and Buriram has been offering 13.80bt/kilo (Thats 13,800baht/tonne) for the past 4/5 weeks. And I have heard others offer slightly more. Well down on Yingluck's 19,000bt/tonne through the pledging scheme.
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Metric tonne = 1,000 kg

5 kg finished Thai white rice can be purchased in retail outlets at the lowest price of THB100 = THB 20/kg...though most 5 kg bags sell higher.
1,000 kg selling retail at THB 20,000.
The above pricing includes all shipping , blanching, storing, handling, store profit margins ,etc.

Is it possible that many 'contracted' farmers only receive THB 6,000 after paying off their financed land, equipment, crop protection products, fertilizers , labour etc. ?
{According to the OP's attached 'The Nation' news article farmers received between THB 4,000 and THB 6,000 per tonne.}

A 40% increase would only provide the farmers with an average of THB 7,000/tonne , still considered their break-even price.

I was wondering how much an 'non-indentured' rice farmer receives...anyone know ?
 
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Coffee said:
I was wondering how much an 'non-indentured' rice farmer receives...anyone know ?
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That's what everybody has been telling you, Coffee! (Retail prices are irrelevant)

It is possible that farmers in the two/three crop areas such as Suphanburi are getting less than those in largely one-crop areas where there will currently not be a great deal of rice available from the farmers, but the difference could not be so large. If it were, the Suphanburi-ites would be sending lorryloads this way!
 
Has anyone computed a simple per rai "typical" inputs/yield/receipts/net profit analysis?
 
Did it once some years ago, did the maths on paper, quickly reached for a bottle of Jack, got roaring drunk and luckily forgot all about it ... since then we "rent" our land out = no hassle, no worries about drought - plowing - planting - fertilizing - harvesting - thrashing - transporting - storing --- what can I say more ...
 
Croc said:
Did it once some years ago, did the maths on paper, quickly reached for a bottle of Jack, got roaring drunk and luckily forgot all about it ... since then we "rent" our land out = no hassle, no worries about drought - plowing - planting - fertilizing - harvesting - thrashing - transporting - storing --- what can I say more ...
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Most Thais that grow rice have all the above problems to deal with , exacerbated with having to borrow money to pay for it all. Most pay 5% a month up for loans, with full repayment required immediately the rice is harvested. Not much left after all that.
 
Prakhonchai Nick said:
It needs a rice grower to compute the costs. Perhaps you and your good lady Co-Co could come up with some figures.
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Not until we have first hand experience - that is why I am labouring the question - someone must have some robust numbers.
 
Croc said:
Did it once some years ago, did the maths on paper, quickly reached for a bottle of Jack, got roaring drunk and luckily forgot all about it ... since then we "rent" our land out = no hassle, no worries about drought - plowing - planting - fertilizing - harvesting - thrashing - transporting - storing --- what can I say more ...
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Unfortunately I did the same figures and did the same thing!!
I guess no one has ever got rich growing rice in Thailand. Its all the hangers on that do.

That what brings me back to my original statement. What is going to happen locally that concerns me. I really feel for my local community. We only get one crop a year here, and can't make up for the losses with two or three. Mind you the places that do crop more then once are using up water resources that the country just does not have at a frightening rate.
 
Like some of you I did the calculations a few years back and decided it was just not worth it. Another factor that has been missed is theft. Quite frequently my wife says lets grow some mangoes, jack fruit, lemons, rice or any other crop that comes to mind. Each time I say that you can not be an absentee farmer. To start with who is going to look after the crop and water and fertilise when necessary. Secondly, it's the surest way I know to lose the lot. Too many people want what you have and if you are not there to look after it you will lose it in the middle of the night. Sayonara or goodbye!
 
try of a calculation

nomad97 said:
Like some of you I did the calculations a few years back and decided it was just not worth it. Another factor that has been missed is theft. Quite frequently my wife says lets grow some mangoes, jack fruit, lemons, rice or any other crop that comes to mind. Each time I say that you can not be an absentee farmer. To start with who is going to look after the crop and water and fertilise when necessary. Secondly, it's the surest way I know to lose the lot. Too many people want what you have and if you are not there to look after it you will lose it in the middle of the night. Sayonara or goodbye!
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2 years ago we had rice (hom mali) on 28 rai. Harvest was less then 500kg per rai what you should expect when you are not planting. Seeds were free as we used the crop from the mother in law from the previous year. Fertilizer, diesel ( own tractor ), workers 45000 baht. Combined harvester 600bht per rai + truck and helpers 20000 baht. We kept some rice as seeds and some to eat, sold 10 tons for 11baht / kilo, makes 45000 left. Seeds free, tractor free, work of family members free, land owned.
 
Marlino : that is a low yield - the thai yield - I had the land properly leveled, gotten all the treetrunks out, made proper dams and my yield went up to 1.000 kg/rai. Okay, I spend about 250.000 baht to get it done but since the yield has been the same. It is a very long time investment but it works. But still it is no moneymaker !!!!
 
Croc said:
Marlino : that is a low yield - the thai yield - I had the land properly leveled, gotten all the treetrunks out, made proper dams and my yield went up to 1.000 kg/rai. Okay, I spend about 250.000 baht to get it done but since the yield has been the same. It is a very long time investment but it works. But still it is no moneymaker !!!!
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So what you're basically stating is the rice scheme is just smoke and mirrors to keep the masses occupied in the fields and living season-to-season all the while leaving it up to the next generation to support their aging parents.

Shit ...sounds a lot like the U.S. Social Security scheme Crazy1
 
marlino said:
2 years ago we had rice (hom mali) on 28 rai. Harvest was less then 500kg per rai what you should expect when you are not planting. Seeds were free as we used the crop from the mother in law from the previous year. Fertilizer, diesel ( own tractor ), workers 45000 baht. Combined harvester 600bht per rai + truck and helpers 20000 baht. We kept some rice as seeds and some to eat, sold 10 tons for 11baht / kilo, makes 45000 left. Seeds free, tractor free, work of family members free, land owned.
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That is very useful and interesting information. The yield is much as I hear from the locals in my area -a very far cry from Crocs 1000kg/rai, which in Thai speak is somewhere around 11/12 bags/rai!

Most Thai villagers would have to borrow money for fertiliser, tractor, sowing and harvesting, and based upon your costs they would likely need to borrow around 60,000baht for varying periods of 1-4 months at a rate of 5-10%/month Even at 5% a month I would estimate the total interest to be around 15,000baht, leaving them with 30,000baht. Far less if they rent the land, and since most work in Bangkok whilst the rice is growing, there is the additional expense of probably 4 monthly return trips and loss of Bangkok income whilst back home.

Just enough for a few bottles of lao kow!

Is it worth it?
 
Croc said:
Marlino : that is a low yield - the thai yield - I had the land properly leveled, gotten all the treetrunks out, made proper dams and my yield went up to 1.000 kg/rai. Okay, I spend about 250.000 baht to get it done but since the yield has been the same. It is a very long time investment but it works. But still it is no moneymaker !!!!
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Croc, your yield is amazing. I have never heard of more than 6 bags* a rai in all my years here, and that is in a good year!

*1 bag = 80/90kgs
 
Croc said:
Marlino : that is a low yield - the thai yield - I had the land properly leveled, gotten all the treetrunks out, made proper dams and my yield went up to 1.000 kg/rai. Okay, I spend about 250.000 baht to get it done but since the yield has been the same. It is a very long time investment but it works. But still it is no moneymaker !!!!
Click to expand...


I am quickly learning that - surprise, surprise - there is no true median figure.

I have heard that you should expect 3 to 6 bags per rai - that puts Marlino in the ballpark.. I have also been told that bags are 80 kg, 90 kg and Got Losts are 100 kg!

If you are getting yields of 1,000kg/rai you must be Belgian - or worse Dutch - to be renting out for 1,000 Baht/rai ??

From Thai Visa:-

As others stated depends on how many harvests you can get in your province. But for argument sake say 2, for average soil releatively even planting lines, good season anywhere from 250kilos to 500 kilos a rai per harvest. Someone claimed 1k kilos a rai. I have never seen anyone grow that much in one harvest I don't disbelieve but that would be an incredible harvest.

If you are only get 30 100 kilo bags from leasing out 22 rai, and the harvest is 10k kilos then it is fair, but if they are pulling 20k kilos then you are getting short changed. I would do some research amongst other farms in the area to find out the average harvest.
 
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