Sweet-corn farmers from Suphan Buri and Kanchanaburi handed a petition yesterday to the European Commission and the French Embassy in Bangkok, calling for the reversal of a decision to impose a

The association of exporters yesterday submitted a petition to the European Commission and the French Embassy in Bangkok, calling for the decision to impose a 13.2-per-cent duty on Thai sweet corn to be reversed.

The association will also take the issue to the World Trade Organisation.

Association president Vilai Kiatsrichart said the anti-dumping duty would force more than half of all Thai sweet-corn companies to shut down since the duty will make effectively prevent them from exporting to Europe.

"The unfair measure will cause difficulty for Thai exporters and allow French exporters ... to monopolise the [European] market," she said.

The EU announced its decision to impose the duty on Thai canned sweet corn last December, forcing most EU importers to temporarily cancel their orders for Thai sweet corn.

More than 50 per cent of production remains stockpiled by private Thai exporters.

The EU will finalise its decision within two months.

Pornchai Pinvises, chairman of the Thai Food Processors' Association's sweet-corn packers group, said the duty would create a price gap between Thai canned sweet corn and rival products, particularly French corn, that would damage Thai exporters.

Thai sweet corn exports have grown significantly in Europe and French exporters have sought measures to protect their business, he said.

The association said Thailand's sweet-corn exports rose an average 30 per cent a year between 2001 and last year, from 35,000 tonnes to 125,000 tonnes.

Exports to the EU rose from 9,500 tonnes to 42,000 tonnes a year during the period. The EU is the top importer of Thai canned corn.

Pornchai said the gradual growth of exports to the EU was the result of improvements in the quality of the product.

Michael Joseph Guss, director of business development at River Kwai International Food, Thailand's leading sweet-corn exporter, said the EU should not impose the anti-dumping duty on Thai sweet corn as French exporters had not faced any real injury from the Thai product.

"French exporters are enjoying triple profits compared to Thai sweet-corn producers. Two major French exporters have a cartel to dominate the sweet-corn market in the EU," he said.

Roj Burusratanabhand, CEO of River Kwai International Food, said the sweet-corn market in the EU is guided by market mechanisms. "Thai exporters have not dumped [their product] on the market as the EU claims. The EU decision to impose anti-dumping measures is unfair," he said.

Thailand is the third-largest supplier of sweet corn to the EU, after France and Hungary. "French exporters enjoy more than 80 per cent of the market, while the French are taking over Hungarian industries. Thailand has only a 12.7-per-cent market share," Roj said.

Petchanet Pratruangkrai

The Nation