The Ministry of Commerce is proposing to the Cabinet a "Thai Rice and Curry to Help Thais" scheme, offering a plate of rice for 40 baht to freeze the cost of living for three months.

The Commerce Ministry is preparing to propose the "Thai Rice and Curry Helps Thai People" scheme, supporting over 200,000 local restaurants and offering affordable menu items for 40 baht for three months. This initiative aims to reduce the cost of living for citizens and office workers. The proposal will be submitted to the Cabinet.

11 July 2569 – Ms. Supajee Suthamphan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Commerce. Regarding the price situation following the decrease in fuel prices, it was revealed that the prices of some goods have now decreased, such as cooking oil and fertilizer.

Meanwhile, the price of prepared food, which has increased by 5-10 baht following the violence in the Middle East in late February, shows no sign of decreasing. This is because prepared food, as well as other products, have hidden costs, such as eggs, which currently cost 6 baht per egg but have increased by 20 satang.

Due to low yields and high feed prices—because Thailand suspended imports of burnt-farm animal corn from neighboring countries, coupled with insufficient domestic animal corn production to meet demand—animal feed prices have risen. Furthermore, the volatile situation in the Middle East, despite a period of calm, necessitates close monitoring by the government and the Ministry of Commerce. This requires controlling prices to reflect market mechanisms rather than intervening by adjusting prices directly.

Regarding the à la carte dishes, the prices have been increased as mentioned above. The Ministry of Commerce is not sitting idly by and is preparing to propose the "Thai Rice and Curry Helps Thai People" project to the Cabinet within July, hoping to help reduce the cost of living for the public, including office workers who are the main customer group for Thai restaurants and rice and curry shops.

This project will provide subsidies to over 200,000 registered entrepreneurs in the Thai Help Thai program to offer special menus at reduced prices (40 baht/dish or other rates depending on ingredient costs at that time). However, the number of subsidies and the amount of funding will be decided after further consideration by the Cabinet meeting. The project is expected to provide subsidies to entrepreneurs to help reduce the cost of living for the public for a period of 3 months, using funds from the 400,000 billion baht emergency loan or from the 70 fiscal year budget.

Regarding Thailand's export situation, despite facing geopolitical volatility, exports are showing positive trends. In the first quarter of 2026, exports grew by 23%, and in May, they grew by 17%. This is due to the United States being unable to impose its own arbitrary tariffs on all countries worldwide as ordered by the court, but instead continuing to use Section 122 to enforce a 10% tariff. This prompted Thai businesses to accelerate exports in the early part of the year, resulting in higher export figures. However, the situation in the remaining two quarters still needs to be closely monitored, but export growth is expected to remain at a similar level.

Furthermore, Ms. Supajee clarified that her disappearance from the media spotlight has only been accompanied by information provided online. Ms. Supajee stated that she continues to perform her duties at the Ministry of Commerce, which encompasses a wide range of responsibilities from grassroots level and agricultural sectors to marketing and international negotiations. However, she acknowledged that the public may have misunderstood her absence as simply a lack of public statements.

Having now acknowledged my own shortcomings, I would like to clarify that, as Minister, I must work in conjunction with public relations. Previously, some matters were delegated to directors-general of various departments or the ministry's spokesperson, who may not have conveyed the same information as the Minister directly. This is why I felt the need to issue clarifications through the media. Going forward, I will work more closely with public relations to ensure the Ministry of Commerce is well-informed, for the benefit of the public.

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