Thai agrifood

The Kingdom of Thailand has a large land area - 514,000 sq. km. making it one of the largest countries in South East Asia.
The country is 1,600 km long from North to South, 780 km wide from East to West at the widest point and 10 km at the narrowest (Bang Huai Yang - Myanmar border).
Thailand shares a border with Myanmar to the West, Laos to the North and Northeast, Cambodia to the East and Malaysia to the South.
Thailand is is made up of 76 provinces, which are arranged into four geographic regions - North, Northeast, Central and Southern regions.
The regions reflect differences in population, topography, resources and wealth.

North

The North covers about one third of the country. This region stretches along the Burmese and Lao borders.
The region is characterized by jungle covered mountains (about half of the country's remaining forest are in this region) and fertile valleys.
Separating the mountain ranges are broad fertile river valleys. In this region, the three most important rivers are the Ping, the Yom and the Nan, all drain into the Chao Phraya river.
In these valleys most of the North's crops are grown, which collectively account for the major proportion of Thailand's agricultural output. The region produces over a quarter of the country's rice and half of its maize, sorghum and groundnut, four-fiths of its soybeans and mung beans and nearly all the lychees and longans.
The North is also rich in mineral deposits.

Northeast

This region is bounded by Laos. It is the poorest and driest region in Thailand.
The Northeast is a large plateau which is plagued by floods and droughts. The elevated portions are too salty to allow vegetation to grow.
The only fertile area is that around the sole river system in the region - the Nam Mun river and its tributaries. This river flows into the Mekong River.
About 55% of the country's total paddy land is in this region. Other crops include kenaf, cassava, groundnuts, maize, sugarcane and cotton. Crop yields are the lowest in the country.

Central region

This region stretches along the Gulf of Thailand and connects the other three regions.
This is the wealthiest region, with its expanse of fertile plains drained by Thailand's main river - the Chao Phraya River.
The region occupies only one fifth of the land area but produces 30% of the country's output of rice and cassava, 60% of the sugarcane and 25% of the maize. Crops in this region are the highest yielding in Thailand. The region is major area for livestock production and the home to the greater proportion of food processing industries.
Contained within the central region are Bangkok and the major ports.

South

This region is a long and narrow strip of land bordered by Myanmar to the West and Malaysia to the South.
The agriculture of the South is very different to the other regions. Little or no rice is produced the South, but the major proportion of the country's fruit, coffee, nuts and rubber are.
The South has a large fishing industry, by virtue of its lengthy 1,600 km of coastline. fishing and shrimp farming are major activities in the coastal area.
The South is home to Thailand largest Muslim community.

Thailand has a rich natural resource base - extractive products are numerous and the fertile soil is ideal for the cultivation of a wide variety of cash crops and fruits. Rubber is the most important agricultural product followed by rice, tapioca and poultry.
Thailand also has vast sea resources as its seaboard coastline lies alongside the Gulf of Thailand and the Andaman Sea.
Thailand is strategically located in the center of the Indo-Chinese peninsula. Less immediate neighbors include China, Vietnam, Singapore and Indonesia.
The rich resource base of its immediate neighbors and large population of more distant neighbours provides enticing opportunities for the agri food sector.