Minister Helps Udon Thani Small Businesses Cut Costs, Grow
Minister Naphinthorn and OSMEP officials visited Udon Thani to help small businesses tackle high costs, labor shortages, and low productivity. At a community rice cracker enterprise, new machinery boosted monthly output from 6,000 to 20,000 packs and raised revenue. The government is also linking farmers with local firms and promoting student internships to keep income circulating locally.
Minister Attached to the Prime Minister's Office Naphinthorn Sri-sra-pang, along with executives from the Office of Small and Medium Enterprises Promotion (OSMEP), conducted a field visit to Udon Thani province to listen to small business operators' problems — including raw material costs, transport expenses, labor shortages, and inability to meet demand. The goal is to develop targeted assistance for each business.
This visit aims to help small businesses sell better, maintain appropriate costs, and grow sustainably, while connecting local procurement and job opportunities to keep income circulating within communities. At Biyon Cafe, the delegation monitored OSMEP's assistance with accounting systems and raw material stock management, helping the owner understand per-item costs, pricing strategy, and reducible expenses, while preparing systems for branch expansion. OSMEP also supports collaboration with educational institutions for student internships, giving youth practical skills before entering the workforce and helping businesses develop local talent.
The delegation then visited the Sai Ruang Watermelon Rice Cracker enterprise in Pon Bok community, which had strong demand but couldn't produce fast enough due to manual processes. OSMEP recommended joining its SME Quality Upgrade project using digital technology and innovation, introducing machinery and conveyor systems. After the upgrade, monthly production capacity rose from 6,000 to 20,000 packs, and revenue increased from 140,000 baht to around 200,000 baht per month, enabling more orders and reducing manual production limits.
Next steps include discussions with Kasetsart University to develop raw material grinders and rice cracker forming machines suited to the business, improving convenience and reducing direct hand contact with food. Minister Naphinthorn also proposed that entrepreneurs agree to purchase raw materials like sticky rice and taro from community farmers, or engage in contract farming, so farmers know in advance who will buy their produce while businesses can plan procurement clearly, with mutually agreed prices, volumes, and terms.
This approach links income from shops and small factories back to community members: when businesses sell more and produce more, they buy more agricultural products and create local jobs, further stimulating the local economy. OSMEP will use the problems and suggestions from this field visit to develop assistance covering cost reduction, business system organization, machinery adoption, and market access, so small operators receive support tailored to their needs. Entrepreneurs facing similar issues can contact OSMEP for consultation and project information by stating the problems they want to solve, allowing officers to recommend suitable services and conditions.
