The Ministry of Commerce has instructed its southern provincial offices across the region to develop a plan to keep the supply of fruit under control during the rainy season.
Deputy Permanent Secretary to the Ministry of Commerce, Somchart Soithong said an estimated 460,000 tons of monsoon season fruits, including mangosteens, longans, rambutans and durians, are expected to be harvested from July to October.
Meanwhile, Commerce officials will survey demand for this fruit and visit southern provinces to collect data on the fruit supply and farmers. They are also scheduled to travel to Chumpon to identify where 216 containers of fruit originated.
Mr. Somchart said an oversupply of fruit may occur as the country has begun to have good rainfall, adding however, that he believes that any oversupply will only be short lived.
The Ministry of Commerce has already sought cooperation from supermarkets, farm outlets, and fresh food businesses as well as overseas importers as a way to broaden distribution channels to help farmers sell their fruits.
Source: National News Bureau of Thailand