Bangkok: Egg farmers are voicing their opposition to the potential liberalization of breeding stock imports, asserting that the current practices of the "Egg Board" effectively balance import quotas, market-driven production, and price stability, while respecting their constitutional rights to earn a living.

According to Thai News Agency, a recent online seminar was organized to gather feedback on a study concerning policy, regulatory measures, and supply chain management in the egg industry. The study, conducted by Mr. Nipon Puapongsakorn and his team from the Thailand Development Research Institute (TDRI) and the Agricultural Research Development Agency (Public Organization) or ARDA, surveyed stakeholders to analyze the industry's structure and the impact of regulatory policies by the Egg Board on independent farms. The study aimed to provide policy recommendations to the Office of Trade Policy and Strategy (OTPS).

During the seminar, representatives from various cooperatives, including Mae Nam Noi Egg Farmers Cooperative in Ang Thong Province, Southern Egg Farmers Association in Surat Thani Province, and Central Region Small-Scale Egg Farmers Trade Association, expressed their opposition to the liberalization proposal. They argued that the Egg Board's current plan to import 440,000 parent stock (PS) chickens annually for 16 operators was sufficient to maintain price stability for small-scale farmers. They also noted that new importers could enter the market by submitting their farming plans to the committee for consideration.

Mr. Chaiyapoom Banchasak, a lecturer at the Faculty of Agriculture, Kasetsart University, and former Egg Board member, explained that the board's management has historically been guided by supply and demand principles. He pointed out that high chicken egg prices are primarily due to costly animal feed policies. Additionally, Dr. Kitti Sapchukul, an expert in chicken egg production and marketing, emphasized that chicken eggs are a unique economic animal that can generate profit without legislative intervention, based on the sufficiency economy model. He suggested using historical data to plan production, noting that a quota for breeding stock import was initially allocated to 19 businesses, but only 16 remain operational.