00:03It's been a bumper harvest for rice farmers in Thailand's Ayutthaya province.
00:08But Pairoj Rotpai says skyrocketing prices for fertiliser and fuel have eaten away at
00:15any profits he might have made.
00:18I just hope I don't lose the money.
00:20The cost of everything has gone up.
00:22My only hope is that I get my investment back from this crop.
00:26At the rice mill, the news isn't good.
00:29Pairoj says he spent around $13,000 on fertiliser and other expenses to harvest this crop, but
00:37he earned just under $12,000.
00:40It's a problem many farmers across Asia are facing.
00:44Up to 40% of Thailand's chemical fertiliser comes from the Middle East.
00:49And that's where it's stuck right now because of the blockade on the Strait of Hormuz.
00:53That means farmers are paying double for the fertiliser they can get their hands on.
00:59The fertiliser shortage is hitting fruit and vegetable growers just as hard as it's hitting rice farmers.
01:05If they're not able to grow enough produce pretty soon, we're not going to have enough to buy at the
01:11supermarket.
01:12Farmers say they don't have any savings to dip into.
01:16More than two thirds are already in debt.
01:18The Thai government is negotiating for fertiliser with regional countries like China, but there's been no progress.
01:27Like Pairoj, 30% of Thailand's workforce is employed in agriculture.
01:33After the financial losses he suffered during this harvest, he says he doesn't know when, or even if, he can
01:40afford to plant again.
01:42PANDEMAND
01:42PANDEMAND
01:42For the intentional needs in agriculture, it will benant in drinking water.
01:43Water is the same way he or she is doing what использовать ant impresrian to Part 1
01:45to Part 1
