Thailand Launches AI System to Predict Rice Price Swings
Thailand is launching an AI system called Near Harvest to forecast rice price swings before they destabilize markets, shifting agricultural management from crisis response to proactive planning. The four-ministry collaboration officially la
Thailand's Office of Trade and Economic Strategy is rolling out an artificial intelligence system called Near Harvest that will forecast agricultural commodity prices before they destabilize the market. Nanthapon Jiralertpongse, director of the Office of Trade and Economic Strategy at the Commerce Ministry, announced that Near Harvest was created at the direction of Deputy Prime Minister Supachai Suthummapanthu to elevate agricultural management beyond reactive monitoring and crisis response. The system uses AI and accurate forecasting data to help the government see situations develop quickly, set timely and precise measures, and reach at-risk areas accurately.
Near Harvest will transform data from backward-looking historical information into forward-looking intelligence by combining inputs from multiple agencies covering production, growing areas, yields, markets, and prices. This gives the state early visibility and time to prepare before situations become crises. The pilot will focus on rice, Thailand's key agricultural commodity, before the annual harvest floods the market later this year. "What we're doing is not building another dashboard," Nanthapon said. "It's changing how we think about agricultural management—from data that tells us what already happened to data that shows us what is about to happen. This covers production, market, and price situations, letting the government see incoming challenges and prepare measures faster."
Near Harvest is a four-ministry collaboration. On September 30, 2025, the system will officially launch with a memorandum of understanding signed by the Commerce Ministry, the Agriculture and Cooperatives Ministry, the Ministry of Higher Education, Science, Research and Innovation, and the Digital Economy and Society Ministry. The partnership will integrate data, technology, and expertise so all agencies work from the same picture and make decisions faster. Near Harvest will be more than a forecasting tool—it will help the government shift from reacting to circumstances to seeing ahead, from waiting to fix problems to using data to manage them before they arrive.
Near Harvest integrates rice data from farm to consumer. It draws on satellite imagery forecasts of rice yields from GISTDA, rice registry data from the Department of Agricultural Extension, paddy rice prices from the Department of Internal Trade, consumer behavior data from the Department of International Trade Promotion, and global rice trade data from the Department of Foreign Trade. AI analysis identifies promising markets with strong demand for premium rice and connects production supply with market demand. This goes beyond simply predicting when and where rice will reach market—it matches that supply to the buyers and markets that will maximize agricultural income and trading opportunities.
