The government is upbeat that food exports will fare better than the 10% growth target for this year once Food Innopolis is in place.
Food Innopolis is billed as an innovation and development centre aimed at increasing the value of the country's abundant crops.
The Science and Technology Ministry will sign a memorandum of understanding tomorrow with stakeholders to establish Food Innopolis, Deputy Prime Minister Somkid Jatusripitak said yesterday at Thaifex -- World of Food Asia 2016,
Stakeholders comprise more than 30 leading agencies including 13 food companies, 12 universities and government agencies.
"The purpose of Food Innopolis is to develop foods of the future and bio–based industries to keep competitiveness and enhance the entire value chain from soil to waste," Mr Somkid said.
"Thailand will also be looking at functional foods to meet specific requirements for the elderly, athletes or patients, with supporting innovations for packaging, information technology and logistics as well as research and development into food ingredients and additives."
Public, private and education partnerships will create the synergy to drive innovation in the food industry, he said.
Food is earmarked by the government to be the first of its industrial clusters given Thailand's rich supply of farm and food products.
The cabinet endorsed a plan in November to attract investment in 10 clusters after a Finance Ministry study found private investment had receded for a decade. The industries are next-generation cars; smart electronics; affluent, medical and wellness tourism; agriculture and biotechnology; food; robotics for industry; logistics and aviation; biofuels and biochemicals; digital; and medical services.
In the same month, the cabinet approved in principle a Finance Ministry proposal to set up a 10-billion-baht fund to support investment in the clusters.
Investors in the clusters are entitled to full corporate income tax exemption for eight years followed by a 50% reduction for five years, with tariff waivers for imported machinery.
The food industry is a major driver of the economy, fetching about US$26 billion in 2015 that represented 12.3% of total exports and 6.7% of GDP.
Mr Somkid predicted food exports will achieve growth of about 10% this year despite weak global demand.
Food products with high export value on the world market include chicken, canned seafood, processed and frozen prawn and seasonings.
Thailand's strength lies in having a variety of raw materials, an experienced production sector and the expertise to adopt modern technology in food processing to add value.
"Thailand has the potential to become the kitchen of the world. To realise the potential and retain its position in the global market, Thailand must keep building a competitive edge to stay ahead of the curve," Mr Somkid said.