New opportunities for rice milling in Thailand under AFTA
By Jon Fernquest
Since
the beginning of this year, the new ASEAN Free
Trade Area (AFTA)
has eliminated
tariffs
on rice shipped between ASEAN countries.Shipping rice to another country for milling only has now become a feasible alternative.
This means that, according to one expert cited in today's article, Thailand "could mill paddy" for other countries and then "export the output, or return the grain to them."
Thai rice mills have massive spare or excess capacity. They mill only 30 million tonnes of paddy per year but have an estimated capacity of 100 tonnes.
Today's article beings after the vocabulary.
Photo on right of workers moving rice in a rice warehouse.
rice milling -
taking raw rice (paddy), processing it and producing a good that can be
sold (dehusked, dried, cleaned, packaged)
tariff - taxes on imports (to make foreign goods less competitive in a country) พิกัดอัตราภาษีศุลกากร
eliminated tariffs - end taxes on imports (or at least reduce to almost zero)
feasible - possible to do or achieve
alternative - one choice among many choices
cite - to mention something as an example, explanation or proof
paddy - rice after it has been harvested from the field ข้าวเปลือก
mill paddy - same as "rice milling" above
massive - large, in very large amounts
spare - not used
capacity - the amount of something that can be produced ความสามารถในการ (ผลิต)
spare capacity - unused capacity (ability to produce in a factory that is not yet used)
excess capacity - more than enough capacity (to produce what needs to be produced now, maybe more will be necessary in the future)
estimated - what people think an amount might be, by guessing or calculating
warehouse - a large building that a business uses to store goods in (see photo of rice warehouse on the right, also see Wikipedia)
ASEAN - the grouping of countries in Southeast Asia for political and economic cooperation, includes Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei, Indonesia, Philippines, Laos, Cambodia, Myanmar and Vietnam (See Wikipedia)
AFTA (ASEAN Free Trade Area) - a trade agreement by the countries in ASEAN to reduce and end tariffs within ASEAN (SeeWikipedia)
free trade - when goods and services can pass between countries without being taxed
Free Trade Agreement (FTA) - an agreement between a group of countries to eliminate many tariffs, quotas and preferences on goods passing between them (See Wikipedia)
trade - the buying and selling of goods การค้าขาย
tariff - taxes on imports (to make foreign goods less competitive in a country) พิกัดอัตราภาษีศุลกากร
eliminated tariffs - end taxes on imports (or at least reduce to almost zero)
feasible - possible to do or achieve
alternative - one choice among many choices
cite - to mention something as an example, explanation or proof
paddy - rice after it has been harvested from the field ข้าวเปลือก
mill paddy - same as "rice milling" above
massive - large, in very large amounts
spare - not used
capacity - the amount of something that can be produced ความสามารถในการ (ผลิต)
spare capacity - unused capacity (ability to produce in a factory that is not yet used)
excess capacity - more than enough capacity (to produce what needs to be produced now, maybe more will be necessary in the future)
estimated - what people think an amount might be, by guessing or calculating
warehouse - a large building that a business uses to store goods in (see photo of rice warehouse on the right, also see Wikipedia)
ASEAN - the grouping of countries in Southeast Asia for political and economic cooperation, includes Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei, Indonesia, Philippines, Laos, Cambodia, Myanmar and Vietnam (See Wikipedia)
AFTA (ASEAN Free Trade Area) - a trade agreement by the countries in ASEAN to reduce and end tariffs within ASEAN (SeeWikipedia)
free trade - when goods and services can pass between countries without being taxed
Free Trade Agreement (FTA) - an agreement between a group of countries to eliminate many tariffs, quotas and preferences on goods passing between them (See Wikipedia)
trade - the buying and selling of goods การค้าขาย
Marketing
Together we can
23/08/2010Walailak Keeratipipatpong
Asean rice millers are joining hands rather than competing in their bid to dominate the global rice trade but some cast doubts on whether the move is in the best interest of farmers.
The co-operation would pool the capacites of rice millers among Asean members, which together produce 25% of the world's total output of 448 million tonnes and supplies up to 65% of the 29-million-tonne global rice trade. Two of the group's members, Thailand and Vietnam, also rank the biggest and second biggest rice exporters respectively.
joining hands - working
together to achieve goals, cooperating
bid - an attempt to do something ความพยายาม
dominate - to be the most powerful or most important thing in an area or situation มีอำนาจเหนือ
global - throughout the world ทั่วโลก
trade - the buying and selling of goods การค้าขาย
doubt - feel uncertain and question whether something is really true
doubt - not know for sure if something is true or false, uncertain
cast doubts - makes you uncertain, makes you believe that something might not be true
the move - the action
in the best interest of - benefits
co-operation - working together to achieve goals
capacity - the amount of something that can be produced ความสามารถในการ (ผลิต)
pool the capacities - combine the capacities of different producers
rice millers - factories that take raw rice and produce a good that can be sold (dehusked, dried, cleaned, packaged)
rank - level or order compared to others (example: the company is ranked third among all producers)
bid - an attempt to do something ความพยายาม
dominate - to be the most powerful or most important thing in an area or situation มีอำนาจเหนือ
global - throughout the world ทั่วโลก
trade - the buying and selling of goods การค้าขาย
doubt - feel uncertain and question whether something is really true
doubt - not know for sure if something is true or false, uncertain
cast doubts - makes you uncertain, makes you believe that something might not be true
the move - the action
in the best interest of - benefits
co-operation - working together to achieve goals
capacity - the amount of something that can be produced ความสามารถในการ (ผลิต)
pool the capacities - combine the capacities of different producers
rice millers - factories that take raw rice and produce a good that can be sold (dehusked, dried, cleaned, packaged)
rank - level or order compared to others (example: the company is ranked third among all producers)
The move came after Asean has done away with the import tariffs on many farm products including rice. The six original Asean member countries - Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, the Philippines and Brunei - have applied the scheme since the start of this year.
The other four members - Burma, Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos - will only join the zero-tariff scheme in 2015.
Significantly, the rice milling industry of Asean members is a mixed bag of technologies - from the most advanced rice mills to small operations with a few tonnes of milling capacity.
import
- goods and products coming into a country from other countries, to be
sold in the country
tariff - taxes on imports (to make foreign goods less competitive in a country) พิกัดอัตราภาษีศุลกากร
scheme - a plan that is developed by a government or large organisation in order to provide a particular service for people แผนการ โครงการ
applied the scheme - carry out and do the plan
a mixed bag - many different kinds in a group
milling capacity - the amount of raw rice (paddy) that can be processed by a factory (mill) and turned into a product which can then be sold
tariff - taxes on imports (to make foreign goods less competitive in a country) พิกัดอัตราภาษีศุลกากร
scheme - a plan that is developed by a government or large organisation in order to provide a particular service for people แผนการ โครงการ
applied the scheme - carry out and do the plan
a mixed bag - many different kinds in a group
milling capacity - the amount of raw rice (paddy) that can be processed by a factory (mill) and turned into a product which can then be sold
With the closer co-operation, he expects a technology transfer and the benefits Thai rice mills will have from the combined milling capacity of more than 100 million tonnes a year, while having only 30-32 million tonnes of paddy input.
In Thailand, there are about 4,000 rice mills capable of milling 30 to 1,000 tonnes of paddy per day. It is also estimated that more than 10,000 small-scaled and community millers also operate throughout the country.
transfer
- to move something from one place to another ย้าย
technology transfer - when a country or company that does not have a technology yet, gets the technology
benefits - goods things that can happen from anm activity ผลประโยชน์
paddy - rice after it has been harvested from the field ข้าวเปลือก
input - production input, some item used in the production of a product or good (examples: labour, land, capital and machines)
capable - able to do something มีความสามารถ
community - local people, the people living in one particular area ชุมชน
technology transfer - when a country or company that does not have a technology yet, gets the technology
benefits - goods things that can happen from anm activity ผลประโยชน์
paddy - rice after it has been harvested from the field ข้าวเปลือก
input - production input, some item used in the production of a product or good (examples: labour, land, capital and machines)
capable - able to do something มีความสามารถ
community - local people, the people living in one particular area ชุมชน
Burma, the former world's top rice exporter, have about 9,900 rice mills, most of which are small with capacities ranging from three to 10 tonnes," said Mr Charnchai [President of the Thai Rice Millers Association], who has visited the country several times.
Vietnam's rice mills have strong capabilities and are run by the state while those in Cambodia and Laos are in the development stage.
We could mill paddy and help them export the output, or return the grain to them," Mr Charnchai added.
It is considering a zoning system to provide milling service to ensure consistent rice quality where broken rice, the result of poor polishing facilities, is kept at a minimum.
capabilities
- tasks or activities that someone is able to do
state - government รัฐ
development - the process of creating something new
stage - a part of an activity or process or a period of development ระยะ, ช่วง, ตอน, จังหวะเวลา
in the development stage - still in the process of creation, not yet finished
grain - the seed from cereal crops such as rice, wheat, or corn เมล็ดพืช
zoning - diving an area into smaller areas, each with a specialised use (for example, this part of town is zoned as a commercial area with shops, that area of town as a residential area with homes) การแบ่งโซน
provide - to give someone something that they want or need
ensure - to make certain that something happens or is done รับรอง ให้ความมั่นใจ ให้การยืนยัน
consistent - doing a task the same way (not changing all the time) อย่างสม่ำเสมอ อย่างเสมอต้นเสมอปลาย
polish - to rub the surface of something repeatedly to make it shine
rice polishing - rice buffed with glucose or talc powder in a special machine to make it shiny and better to eat (See Wikipedia, Google Images, and Youtube)
facilities - the buildings, equipment and services provided for a particular purpose สิ่งอำนวยความสะดวก
minimum - lowest possible amount or level
state - government รัฐ
development - the process of creating something new
stage - a part of an activity or process or a period of development ระยะ, ช่วง, ตอน, จังหวะเวลา
in the development stage - still in the process of creation, not yet finished
grain - the seed from cereal crops such as rice, wheat, or corn เมล็ดพืช
zoning - diving an area into smaller areas, each with a specialised use (for example, this part of town is zoned as a commercial area with shops, that area of town as a residential area with homes) การแบ่งโซน
provide - to give someone something that they want or need
ensure - to make certain that something happens or is done รับรอง ให้ความมั่นใจ ให้การยืนยัน
consistent - doing a task the same way (not changing all the time) อย่างสม่ำเสมอ อย่างเสมอต้นเสมอปลาย
polish - to rub the surface of something repeatedly to make it shine
rice polishing - rice buffed with glucose or talc powder in a special machine to make it shiny and better to eat (See Wikipedia, Google Images, and Youtube)
facilities - the buildings, equipment and services provided for a particular purpose สิ่งอำนวยความสะดวก
minimum - lowest possible amount or level
But some rice experts cast doubt on whether the development misses one crucial step - the upstream development where the qualities of the grain and the production are improved, which could help eradicate poverty among farmers in the region.
Thai farmers received the lowest income of about 5,200 baht per rai with 1,700 baht in profit, compared with 11,600 baht in earnings and 4,000 baht in profit from sugarcane farming. Growers of several other cash crops such as rubber and oil palm also enjoy earnings three to four times higher than rice farmers do.
crucial
- extremely important because it effects the result of something
สำคัญยิ่ง
upstream - at an early stage in the process of producing a product for sale (early in the supply chain)
eradicate - to get rid of completely or destroy something bad กำจัดจนหมดสิ้น
poverty - being poor ความจน
income - money that people receive from work or some other source, used for household consumption and savings
profit - money that you make from selling goods and services after all your costs have been paid กำไร
cash - money เงินสด
cash crop - a crop grown to sell rather than as food for the farmer's family or as feed for animals being raised (opposite: subsistence crop) (See Wikipedia)
enjoy earnings - receive and gain money (not lose money)
upstream - at an early stage in the process of producing a product for sale (early in the supply chain)
eradicate - to get rid of completely or destroy something bad กำจัดจนหมดสิ้น
poverty - being poor ความจน
income - money that people receive from work or some other source, used for household consumption and savings
profit - money that you make from selling goods and services after all your costs have been paid กำไร
cash - money เงินสด
cash crop - a crop grown to sell rather than as food for the farmer's family or as feed for animals being raised (opposite: subsistence crop) (See Wikipedia)
enjoy earnings - receive and gain money (not lose money)
(Source: Marketing, Together we can, 23/08/2010, Walailak Keeratipipatpong, link)
