Thai minister 'shocked' by rotting rubber in store

ERJ staff report (BC)

Bangkok – Thai deputy agriculture and cooperatives minister Yuthapong Charassat said he was startled to find 10,000 tonnes of rubber left to rot in warehouses in three northeastern provinces of Bung Kan, Udon Thani and Si Sa Ket under the government's pledging scheme, reports the Bangkok Post.

The rubber was pledged under the government's scheme to stabilise prices in more than 56 provinces nationwide.

Over 10,000 tonnes of rubber was left to decay, causing about one billion baht in damage, according to Yuthapong.

The biggest loss was in Si Sa Ket, where up to five million kilogrammes of rubber was left to rot, resulting in an estimated loss of 530 million baht (Euro 13.4m).

The deputy minister said the rotten rubber would be shifted to private factories to be processed into blocks before being stored in warehouses.

There will be an investigation of why such a large amount of rubber was not properly cared for, Yuthapong added, with legal sanctions if appropriate.

The deputy minister is reported to have said earlier that the pledging scheme would not be extended once it expires in March, as rubber prices had rebounded sufficiently.

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