The government will introduce agricultural zoning for six main crops in a bid to boost farm incomes and cut the burden of long-term subsidies.
The crops are rice, tapioca, sugar cane, maize, rubber and oil palms, all of which are vital contributors to the economy.
They account for up to 54.7% of farm GDP and involve 3.7 million farmers on 107 million rai of farmland.
Thailand has a total land area of 321 million rai including 113 million rai of forest and 180 million rai of agricultural land.
Only 34.3 million rai are irrigated.
Agricultural zoning refers to designations made by local jurisdictions that are intended to protect farmland and farming activities from incompatible non-farm uses.
It is mainly about managing farm products, livestock and fisheries to conform to the land's potential, the environment, weather and market demand.
Crop zoning will help farmers to predict the quality and volume of their yields while also reducing risks from fluctuations in global prices and logistics costs.
Zoning is also aimed at tackling agricultural problems such as low yields, surpluses that pressure the government to offer subsidies and imbalances between energy and edible crops.
Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, who chaired a meeting on crop zoning yesterday, tasked relevant agencies with formulating a more detailed action plan.
A meeting on the issue will be held next month.
The National Economic and Social Development Board is also required to conduct a business model for each zone, while map-related agencies have been assigned to integrate existing maps now prepared and available from various agencies into a "master map".
This master map will be used to manage land use, said Nirut Kunnawat, an adviser to the science and technology minister.
He said farmers growing crops on inappropriate land should be encouraged to raise more appropriate crops or perhaps use the land for other purposes.