The Commerce Ministry and private sector are joining forces to develop the future food industry to add value to agricultural products, aiming to introduce a new growth engine to the Thai economy.
Following a meeting with Visit Limlurcha, president of the Thai Future Food Trade Association (TFA), along with the association's committee members, Poonpong Naiyanapakorn, director-general of the Trade Policy and Strategy Office (TPSO), pointed out that the future food industry is a prominent sector which would help add value to agricultural products as demand for healthier and more environmentally-friendly food options grows in the country.
Future food refers to innovative food products that are safe to eat, traceable and environmentally friendly, responding to emerging trends concerning good health and well-being.
Focusing on three broad themes -- wellbeing, sustainability and innovation -- future food is currently categorised within four distinct groups: functional, medical, organic, and alternative protein.
In 2023, the value of future food exports tallied 143 billion baht, up 1.1% year-on-year.
The most popular segment of future food was functional food and functional ingredients, valued at roughly 128 billion baht, accounting for 89.7% of all future food exports.
The second most popular segment was medical food, worth 6.39 billion baht (4.5%), followed by alternative protein, valued at 6.35 billion baht (4.5%), and organic food, valued at 1.97 billion baht (1.4%).
Key markets for future food exports include the US (13.8% of the total), Vietnam (10.7%), China (10.3%), Myanmar (7.8%), and Cambodia (7.5%).
In the first four months of this year, the value of future food exports tallied 51.6 billion baht, up 11% year-on-year.
The most popular segment of future food was functional food and functional ingredients, valued at 46.9 billion baht, accounting for 90.8% of all future food exports.
The second most popular segment was medical food with a value of 2.24 billion baht (4.3%), followed by alternative protein, valued at 2.04 billion baht (3.9%), and organic food, valued at roughly 460 million baht (0.9%).
The TPSO, in collaboration with the TFA, is actively developing a future food dashboard through its Trade Intelligence System website, which provides in-depth trade information to entrepreneurs and the public, including data pertaining to the country's export situation with key products and export markets for making informed policy decisions with regard to trade and investment.
