Ministry of Commerce (MOC) will support banks in the provision of loans for planting Myanmar corn due to high demands

The Ministry of Commerce will support banks in the provision of loans for planting Myanmar corn, demand for which is expected to rise in the coming years. The agreement was made between the ministry and the newly formed Myanmar Corn Industrial Association on June 26.

“As we expect demand to be very high, the Ministry of Commerce accepted our request for it to provide government loans or connect us to the banks so that we can obtain the funding we need to expand the plantations,” said U Min Khang chair of the association.

There are about 1.9 million acres of corn plantations across the Ayeyarwady Region, Nay Pyi Taw, Shan State, Kayah State and Kayin State, yielding more than 3 million tonnes a year, according to last year’s data.

Domestic consumption is less than half of what is produced, with the other half of the crop exported mainly to Thailand. Myanmar is currently also the second largest exporter of corn in Asean.

Since the start of the 2019-20 fiscal year, demand for Myanmar corn has risen, particularly from Thailand, where demand for corn as industrial and animal feed is increasing.

According to the Ministry of Commerce, the country has already exported around 1.8 million tonnes of corn this year, which is about a million tonnes more compared to the same period last year. More than 60 percent was sold to Thailand.

Earlier this month, in anticipation of long term growth in demand for corn, the Myanmar Corn Industrial Association said it would register as a private company in July to focus on developing and expanding the domestic corn sector with the aim of becoming a public company by 2022.

A board of directors will be set up to establish the company, which will be responsible for ensuring price stability and conducting market research in the corn sector. “After the organisation is set up, we will be able to organise and integrate the supply chain to ensure prices are fair,” said U Min Khaing.

Corn is currently trading at K590 per viss, up from K550 per viss last year despite COVID-19. Production costs vary between K300,000 and K400,000 per acre, according to the association. - Translated

(The Myanmar Times: https://www.mmtimes.com/news/corn-traders-myanmar-get-organised-anticipation-more-demand.html )

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