Severe drought will probably weaken Thai agriculture for another year, and the phenomenon could derail growth of the country's farm economy.
A sign at Kokmatum market in Phitsanulok province gives the price of a lime as six baht, up from four or five baht last month and three baht earlier this year. Chinnawat Singha
The dry spell present in 18 provinces, mainly in the North and Northeast, could also drive up prices of farm produce.
The Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Department attributed the scarce rains this year to unusual heat. Officials have named 4,105 villages as drought-hit areas. The list of villages is expected to grow as the hot season gets underway in the next few months.
Lersak Liewtrakulpaibul, deputy agriculture permanent secretary, said water reserves in major reservoirs nationwide remain sound at 47.7 billion cubic metres or 64% of capacity, with the amount of available water for use at 23.8 billion cubic metres or 47%.
But the Royal Irrigation Department is concerned about depletion at four big dams — Bhumibol, Sirikit, Khwae Noi and Pasak — that supply water for most of the planting in the country.
The department says the water has dropped to 45% of capacity, while water available for use is at just 28%.
Mr Lersak said the excessive use of water for planting second-crop rice was another reason for the depleted water reserves. He called on farmers to refrain from planting second-crop rice, especially in the central plains where water from dams is used.
An Agriculture Ministry source said the drought conditions could cause the farm economy to miss its 3-4% growth target, though this year's outlook is better than last year's. Thailand's farm economy grew by 1.1% last year, compared with 4% in 2012.
The Agricultural Economics Office blamed the slowdown on the lengthy drought in many parts of the country since late 2012, with the resulting slashed production of maize, second-crop rice and pineapple. This year, growth is expected to improve with better output of sugar cane, rubber, palm and main-crop rice.
The outlook for shrimp farming is positive after local shrimpers discovered methods to eradicate the disease known as early mortality syndrome.
February's inflation rate was 1.96% as several food items rose in cost.
Prices for vegetables and fruits sold at bargain markets like Talad Thai have risen sharply in recent weeks, most notably for tomatoes, kale and limes.
A bulk of 100 limes cost 600 baht last week, compared with 500 baht in February and 300 baht in January.