The junta is being urged not to be too hasty in selling off state rice stocks, while a mechanism to guarantee the quality of the grains put up for auction should be offered to raise the confidence of potential buyers.
"Rice sales should take place in a continuous and regular manner," said Chookiat Ophaswongse, an honorary president of the Thai Rice Exporters Association (TREA).
"They should not be done in a rush as with the previous government to curb price drops, while stock inspection should be simultaneously processed to ensure the quality of the rice put on sale."
Mr Chookiat and some members of the TREA met yesterday with Gen Chatchai Sarikallaya, assistant army chief and the National Council for Peace and Order's deputy chief for economic affairs, to discuss guidelines for disposal of the government's rice stocks.
At the meeting, the TREA also suggested the junta avoid selling its rice stocks on a whole-warehouse basis without paying attention to rice quality, as this would mean participating bidders would be offered a steep discount.
In the event of a legal dispute, an independent arbitration body must be set up to settle the dispute, Mr Chookiat said. If the quality of rice put on sale is substandard, the Commerce Ministry or Public Warehouse Organization should have to pay compensation for this infraction.
He said Thai rice exports had been increasing recently, given the relatively cheap prices.
"Thai 5% white rice is now quoted at US$410 a tonne, on a par with Vietnam and making it very competitive," Mr Chookiat said. "We shouldn't miss this opportunity to step up our sales."
The TREA reported 5% white rice rebounded in the last five weeks after being quoted at $390 on June 4. But Mr Chookiat said a sustained rally looks unlikely as long as the huge stockpile built up under the former government's disastrous subsidy scheme remained unsold.
"We have to admit a stock of up to 18 million tonnes will take time to dispose of," he said.
"At best, we can ship only 10 million tonnes a year, so in a competitive rice market we expect it will take up to three years to sell the entire stock."
Vichai Sriprasert, another honorary president of the TREA, said a hurdle for rice shipments was yet another bumper crop, citing the latest Agriculture Ministry forecast that the rice pledging scheme drove Thai paddy output to 38 million tonnes in the 2013-14 crop year. This paddy could be processed into 25 million tonnes of milled rice.
"Each year, we consume about 10 million tonnes of milled rice in Thailand. That means the country will add another 15 million tonnes to our state rice surplus," he said.