The National Rice Policy Committee has approved the 16.56-billion-baht sale of 1.66 million tonnes of old rice to auction winners, leaving only 160,000 tonnes of edible rice in the stockpile.
Duangporn Rodphaya, director-general of the Foreign Trade Department, said on Wednesday the committee endorsed the sale of the rice that 24 bidders won in the second auction of old government rice this year, on May 24.
She said 90.84% of the 1.82 million tonnes put up for auction were sold.
This leaves only 160,000 tonnes of edible rice in the government's old stockpile, and means the government has for the most part solved the stockpile's influence on rice markets, and the burden its storage, Mrs Duangporn said.
The government has yet to release 2.7 million tonnes of deteriorated rice to the industrial sector. It would organise auctions for the inedible rice in June and July, she said.
The government's rice stockpile soared due to the rice-pledging scheme of the previous government. This affected the price and competitiveness of Thai rice, which plunged on global markets on oversupply and concerns about the quality of the ageing stockpiled grain.
Since the May 2014 coup, the military government has sold more than 14 million tonnes of old rice by auction, fetching about 130 billion baht.
The Commerce Ministry plans to call for bids for old rice fit for animal feed this month, and for ethyl alcohol production next month.