The Commerce Ministry is collaborating with the Agriculture Ministry to develop a sandbox project to address unsuitable rice-growing areas.
This initiative is expected to concentrate on three specific types of areas: those prone to flooding, those vulnerable to drought, and areas affected by both flooding and drought.
Commerce Minister Jatuporn Buruspat said the two ministries had discussions on establishing the sandbox, with an initial survey identifying roughly 10 million rai of such land.
The plan is to start with pilot areas and select suitable alternative crops for cultivation in those locations.
"These crops must have strong future potential and can become product champions within five years," he said.
Mr Jatuporn said the crops must be future-oriented, in high market demand and based on the concept of market-led production or producing what the market wants.
The sandbox project will integrate the Agricultural Map for proactive agricultural management (Agri-Map) with the Ministry of Commerce's marketing plan (Commerce Map) and the Environmental Map, which assesses whether areas are suitable or unsuitable for rice cultivation.
He said this approach will not force farmers to stop growing rice but will show through clear examples how switching to other crops in unsuitable rice-growing areas could increase their income and encourage voluntary change.
The government will continue to support rice farming in suitable areas but with a focus on premium rice varieties that are in high market demand.
Mr Jatuporn said the two ministries are working on developing rice strains that meet market needs and to promote their cultivation among farmers.
Moreover, the government has initiated projects to reduce farmers' production costs such as chemical fertilisers and pesticides.
Deputy Commerce Minister Chantawit Tantasith said in the short term, the Department of Foreign Trade is seeking export markets to ensure Thailand meets its 2025 rice export target of 7.5 million tonnes.
In the first half of 2025, Thailand exported 3.73 million tonnes of rice worth 75.6 billion baht, a 27.3% year-on-year decline in volume and a 36.5% dip in value.
