The Commerce Ministry is committed to continuing to operate mobile grocery stores in Bangkok and surrounding provinces to help reduce the cost of living.
Goranij Nonejuie, deputy director-general of the Internal Trade Department, said the mobile grocery store initiative, set to operate for its fifth consecutive year, will be deployed at more than 100 locations across densely populated communities in Greater Bangkok.
The endeavour aims to help residents in Greater Bangkok save an estimated 120 million baht annually.
The mobile grocery initiative, where affordable products are sold through mobile stores across Bangkok and its suburbs, aims to ease the cost of living for people during the New Year festival when many regular stores close for several days.
To ensure comprehensive benefits for consumers in communities during the year-end, Mr Goranij said the department collaborated with the National Housing Authority to adjust the distribution points every three days, coordinating with various communities that requested the mobile grocery stores.
"The mobile grocery stores sell 94 essential items for daily use with a maximum price reduction of 55%," he said.
Some of the available products include eggs, sugar, cooking oil, rice, chicken, pork, seasonings and instant noodles.
For people in provincial areas, Mr Goranij said the ministry also pledged to continue offering the Thong Fah (Blue Flag) outlets, which sell food at affordable prices.
The ministry has a network of 140,000 Thong Fah stores, selling affordable consumer goods nationwide, with local outlets representing more than 600 stores.
The local outlets play a crucial role in delivering low-priced products to small-scale retail stores in the ministry's network, which covers communities in every district throughout Thailand, he said.
Moreover, the network is capable of accommodating up to 14 million customers under the state welfare card scheme.
According to Mr Goranij, the ministry plans to expand the Thong Fah food outlets, selling affordable food nationwide.
There are more than 5,000 Thong Fah food outlets nationwide, offering budget-friendly menus at 25-30 baht per dish.
He said the ministry also initiated a scheme linking the food outlets with suppliers of low-cost raw materials.