NAKHON RATCHASIMA: About 200 farmers, mainly from northeastern provinces, gathered outside an agribusiness company in Pak Thong Chai on Monday morning, demanding the firm honour contracts to buy Japanese sweet potato slips at the guaranteed price.
Sakulwong Sukyoo, a 35-year-old farmer from Nakhon Sawan, said the PP Ten Group owed her 469,439 baht for a total of 80,325 sweet potato slips she handed over in February and March.
She had signed the contract in November last year after being promised a return of 4.5 baht per slip and now she wanted her money so she could pay off investment and labour costs.
Under a contract, farmers would buy slips from PP Ten at 10 baht apiece so they could grow their own and sell the harvested slips back at a guaranteed price of 4.50 baht apiece as long as they were healthy, Ms Sakulwong said.
One slip when planted and grown could produce 10-20 slips, which are shoots from a mature sweet potato.
Ms Sakulwong was among 200 farmers from 12 provinces, mostly in the Northeast, who signed contracts with the agribusiness firm to supply Japanese sweet potato slips who say they did not get payment. They put their total losses at 20 million baht.
Some farmers said the company also failed to collect slips from their farms as promised, but agreed to pay a fuel subsidy of 1 baht/km if they were delivered. Those in Nakhon Ratchasima did not get the subsidy.
Thanchanok Ritbamrung, 51, said she was among those who signed contracts to supply sweet potato slips, and was also acting as a coordinator between the farmers and the company.
She said the farmers were asked to go to PP Ten today to negotiate with the firm, but there was still no explanation or progress.
The company said it was not ready to give media interviews when contacted, but said it had agreed to talks and to negotiate with the farmers.
