Business & Investment · Food
Thailand's Food Industry
One of the few net food-exporting economies in Asia — a processing, packing and branding base that turns domestic and imported raw material into shelf-stable, chilled, frozen and ready-to-eat products for more than a hundred markets.
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Thailand's Food Sector at a Glance
Thailand's food industry sits one step downstream of its agriculture and fisheries sectors. Its distinguishing feature is not raw production but conversion: canning, freezing, retorting, drying, extruding and packing — often of raw material that the country imports specifically in order to process and re-export it. That structure is visible directly in the trade data further down this page, where prepared and preserved products under HS headings 1602, 1604, 2103 and 2309 each clear the US$1 billion mark in 2024, while frozen raw fish moves the other way as a US$2.1 billion import line.
Institutionally, the sector is governed by a split that matters for anyone entering it: the Food and Drug Administration under the Ministry of Public Health licenses food premises and registers products for sale, while the National Bureau of Agricultural Commodity and Food Standards (ACFS) under the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives sets the Thai Agricultural Standards and acts as the national Codex contact point. Both appear in the ecosystem directory below.
How to read this page. Every number below carries its HS code, year, unit, source and the date the source was opened. Where no clean verifiable figure exists — for example, a single official "total food exports" number for calendar 2024 — none is shown. Nothing on this page is estimated, averaged across conflicting sources, or carried forward from a search snippet.
Key Sub-Segments
The segments below are the ones for which this page carries directly verified 2024 trade figures. They are HS-heading groupings, not marketing categories, and are described here in the terms the Harmonized System itself uses.
Prepared & preserved meat
HS 1602 — cooked, seasoned and further-processed poultry and other meat preparations. Thailand's single largest destination for this heading in 2024 was Japan, followed by the United Kingdom.
Prepared & preserved fish
HS 1604 — canned and pouched tuna, sardine, mackerel and salmon products. Covered in far more depth on T3's Seafood sector page, which treats it as a value chain rather than a food-manufacturing line.
Pet food & feed preparations
HS 2309 — preparations used in animal feeding, the heading under which Thailand's pet-food exports are recorded. The heading is not pet-food-exclusive, so it is reported here as the heading, not as "pet food".
Sauces, condiments & seasonings
HS 2103 — the heading covering fish sauce, chilli and curry pastes, and mixed seasonings. A segment where Thai brands travel under their own names rather than as private label.
Prepared fruit & nuts
HS 2008 — canned and otherwise prepared fruit, historically anchored by pineapple and tropical fruit packing. The United States took the largest share of this heading in 2024.
Noodles & pasta products
HS 1902 — the heading under which instant noodles and rice-noodle products are recorded. Thailand's domestic instant-noodle industry is unusually branded and export-facing for this category.
Thailand's Position in Global Food Trade
Two structural facts about the sector can be shown directly from the 2024 trade record rather than asserted:
A processing hub, not only a producer
Thailand imported US$2,115.10 million of frozen fish (HS 0303) in 2024 — 1,305,430,000 kg — while exporting US$3,212.17 million of prepared or preserved fish (HS 1604). Raw material flows in; processed product flows out. Very few food economies show that pattern at this scale.
Diversified across developed markets
Across the six headings tabulated below, no single destination dominates the sector as a whole. Japan leads HS 1602, the United States leads HS 1604, HS 2309, HS 2103, HS 2008 and HS 1902 — but with shares between roughly 12% and 31%, not concentration.
Share percentages above are computed from the exact reported figures in the tables below (destination value ÷ world total for the same heading and year) — they are arithmetic on published numbers, not a separate estimate.
Verified Trade Data — 2024
Source for every table in this section: UN Comtrade data as compiled and served through the World Bank's WITS interface, reporter Thailand, year 2024, all partners. Each table links to the exact WITS query it was read from. Accessed 17 August 2026. Values are reported by the source in US$ thousand; the US$ million equivalent shown in the summary line is an exact division by 1,000.
HS 1602 — Prepared or preserved meat, meat offal or blood
World total 2024: US$3,106,456.55 thousand (US$3,106.46 million), 704,808,000 kg. Excludes fresh, chilled and frozen poultry meat, which falls under HS 0207 and is covered on T3's Agriculture page.
| Destination | Value (US$ thousand) | Quantity (kg) |
|---|---|---|
| Japan | 1,488,498.63 | 316,870,000 |
| United Kingdom | 829,261.97 | 201,403,000 |
| Netherlands | 189,683.83 | 45,371,000 |
| Korea, Rep. | 131,223.59 | 29,378,000 |
| Singapore | 127,583.96 | 26,379,000 |
WITS query — Thailand exports, HS 1602, 2024 · accessed 17 Aug 2026
HS 2309 — Preparations of a kind used in animal feeding
World total 2024: US$3,023,108.00 thousand (US$3,023.11 million). The source did not publish a single world-total quantity for this heading and year; destination-level quantities are shown where the source reported them.
| Destination | Value (US$ thousand) | Quantity (kg) |
|---|---|---|
| United States | 873,924.41 | 148,355,000 |
| Japan | 332,730.98 | 119,880,000 |
| Australia | 173,084.49 | not reported |
| Italy | 165,433.86 | 33,341,800 |
| Malaysia | 158,421.31 | 93,093,300 |
WITS query — Thailand exports, HS 2309, 2024 · accessed 17 Aug 2026
HS 2103 — Sauces, mixed condiments and mixed seasonings
World total 2024: US$1,057,854.97 thousand (US$1,057.85 million). Heading also covers mustard flour and prepared mustard, so it is not Thai-cuisine-exclusive.
| Destination | Value (US$ thousand) | Quantity (kg) |
|---|---|---|
| United States | 134,370.66 | 62,358,600 |
| Australia | 79,151.25 | 29,499,600 |
| Japan | 75,738.08 | 24,334,800 |
| Philippines | 70,541.46 | 28,283,400 |
| Netherlands | 67,008.17 | 27,003,500 |
WITS query — Thailand exports, HS 2103, 2024 · accessed 17 Aug 2026
HS 2008 — Fruit, nuts and other edible plant parts, otherwise prepared or preserved
World total 2024: US$977,350.60 thousand (US$977.35 million), 476,254,000 kg.
| Destination | Value (US$ thousand) | Quantity (kg) |
|---|---|---|
| United States | 306,172.08 | 131,434,000 |
| China | 122,073.94 | 30,486,200 |
| Japan | 54,517.32 | 29,431,400 |
| Malaysia | 41,112.13 | 15,646,100 |
| Indonesia | 32,883.63 | 12,282,500 |
WITS query — Thailand exports, HS 2008, 2024 · accessed 17 Aug 2026
HS 1902 — Pasta, whether or not cooked or stuffed; couscous
World total 2024: US$738,906.14 thousand (US$738.91 million). The source did not publish a single world-total quantity for this heading and year.
| Destination | Value (US$ thousand) | Quantity (kg) |
|---|---|---|
| United States | 119,939.46 | 36,337,700 |
| Cambodia | 61,912.89 | 20,137,800 |
| Netherlands | 61,550.32 | 22,058,600 |
| Australia | 59,062.34 | 16,373,200 |
| Lao PDR | 55,613.36 | 21,677,000 |
WITS query — Thailand exports, HS 1902, 2024 · accessed 17 Aug 2026
Import side — HS 0303, frozen fish (excluding fillets)
World total 2024: US$2,115,097.92 thousand (US$2,115.10 million), 1,305,430,000 kg. Included on this page because it is the raw-material line that makes Thailand's processed-fish export position possible — the same figure is discussed in context on T3's Seafood sector page.
| Source | Value (US$ thousand) | Quantity (kg) |
|---|---|---|
| Other Asia, nes | 276,948.78 | 170,803,000 |
| Micronesia, Fed. Sts. | 212,742.27 | 131,783,000 |
| Korea, Rep. | 172,852.00 | 115,168,000 |
| Nauru | 153,994.73 | 100,042,000 |
| India | 135,717.53 | 76,230,200 |
WITS query — Thailand imports, HS 0303, 2024 · accessed 17 Aug 2026
BOI Investment Incentives for Food
Food manufacturing is promoted by the Thailand Board of Investment under Section 1, "Agricultural, Food and Biotechnology Industries". The activities, conditions and incentive tiers below are transcribed directly from BOI's Investment Promotion Guide 2026 (dated July 2026), read at source. BOI's tier letters (A1 to A4, B) determine the level of corporate income tax exemption and other benefits attached to a promoted project.
| Activity | Key stated condition | Tier |
|---|---|---|
| 1.2.5 Manufacture or preservation of food, beverages, food additives, food ingredients or dietary supplement products using modern technology | Manufacture of sugar, sport drinks, diluted juices, energy drinks, alcoholic beverages, drinking water, flavoured and non-flavoured soda, carbonated beverages, vitamin water and flavouring drinking water is expressly not promoted under this activity. | A3 |
| 1.2.6.1 Manufacture of food with health claims | Products must pass health-claim assessment by the Food and Drug Administration or another body with an internationally accepted standard, completed before the full operation deadline. | A2 |
| 1.2.6.2 Manufacture of novel food | Products must be registered as "novel food" with the Food and Drug Administration or another body with an internationally accepted standard. | A2 |
| 1.2.6.3 Manufacture of organic food | Project must be certified to an international organic agriculture standard such as IFOAM, Canada Organic Regime (COR) or the US National Organic Program (NOP). | A2 |
| 1.2.6.4 Manufacture of medical food | Products must be registered as "medical food" with the Food and Drug Administration or another body with an internationally accepted standard. | A2 |
| 1.2.8.1 Manufacture of therapeutic pet food | Registration as specifically controlled animal feed for pet food (therapeutic pet food), plus certification to a food-safety management system standard such as ISO 22000 or another GFSI-accepted standard. | A2 |
| 1.2.8.2 Manufacture of animal feed or animal food ingredients certified by a food-safety management system standard | Certification to ISO 22000 or another GFSI-accepted standard, completed before the full operation deadline. | A3 |
| 1.2.8.3 Manufacture of animal feed or animal food ingredients certified by a global standard | Certification to international standards such as HACCP and GMP. | A4 |
| 1.2.8.4 Manufacture of animal feed or animal food ingredients | No additional certification condition stated in the guide for this sub-activity. | B |
| 1.4.3.1 Grading and storage of agricultural products using advanced technology | Must use advanced technology such as fruit-ripeness sensors, radio-frequency pest control, nuclear magnetic resonance or x-ray. | A2 |
| 1.4.4.1 Cold storage, or cold storage and cold storage transportation, using natural refrigerants | Must use natural refrigerants; where ammonia is used it must not exceed 49% of total refrigerants in the system. | A4 |
| 1.4.5 Trading center for agricultural goods | Total area not less than 50 rai; at least 60% of land area used for agricultural-goods operations; must provide inspection, grading and pesticide/hazardous-residue inspection services. | A3 |
| 10.4 Scientific laboratories | Listed under Section 10, "Professional services" — the route by which food-testing and analytical laboratories are promoted. | A1 |
Source: Thailand Board of Investment, Investment Promotion Guide 2026 (July 2026), boi.go.th/upload/content/BOI_A_Guide_EN.pdf — Section 1 activity tables (guide pages 84-93) and Section 10 (guide page 190). Accessed 17 August 2026. Conditions are summarised; the guide's own wording governs.
Confirm before relying on this. Eligibility, tier and the exact incentive package depend on the applicant, the specific activity, the technology used, the project location and BOI's rules current at the time of application. Investors should confirm directly with the Thailand Board of Investment.
Standards & Certification
Three layers of requirement apply to food produced in or exported from Thailand, and they are administered by different bodies. All three bodies appear in the ecosystem directory below with their verified contact details.
Domestic market authorisation
The Food and Drug Administration (สำนักงานคณะกรรมการอาหารและยา), under the Ministry of Public Health, handles food premises licensing, product registration and the Food Serial Number used to identify authorised products.
National standards & Codex
The National Bureau of Agricultural Commodity and Food Standards (ACFS) under the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives issues Thai Agricultural Standards and serves as Thailand's Codex Alimentarius contact point.
Buyer-driven schemes
BOI's own promoted-activity conditions repeatedly name the schemes international buyers expect — ISO 22000, standards accepted by the Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI), HACCP and GMP — making them a practical entry requirement, not only a commercial preference.
How to Enter Thailand's Food Sector
General orientation only. The sequence below reflects the bodies and instruments identified and verified on this page; it is not legal, tax or regulatory advice, and no step here should be treated as a substitute for professional counsel or direct confirmation with the authority concerned.
Step 1 — Decide the entity and register it
Company registration in Thailand runs through the Department of Business Development (DBD) under the Ministry of Commerce. Foreign-shareholding limits under the Foreign Business Act apply by activity and are one of the main reasons applicants look at BOI promotion, which can carry foreign-ownership permission for promoted activities.
Step 2 — Check whether the activity is BOI-promoted
Match the intended operation against the Section 1 activity list above. The distinction that matters most in practice is between activity 1.2.5 (general food manufacture or preservation using modern technology, tier A3) and the four "future food" sub-activities under 1.2.6 (tier A2), which carry higher benefits but require a specific FDA registration or international certification to be completed before the full operation deadline.
Step 3 — Obtain food premises licensing and product authorisation
Food premises licensing and product registration are handled by the Food and Drug Administration. Note the sequencing implied by BOI's own conditions: several promoted activities require the FDA registration (health claim, novel food, medical food) to be in place before the corporate income tax exemption can be exercised.
Step 4 — Align to the standards your buyers require
Thai Agricultural Standards are issued by ACFS, which is also the national Codex contact point. Export buyers typically layer ISO 22000 or a GFSI-recognised scheme on top. If the target market is an OIC member state, halal certification runs through an entirely separate system — see T3's Halal sector page.
Step 5 — Plug into the trade infrastructure
The Department of International Trade Promotion (DITP) runs Thailand's export promotion machinery, including the Thaitrade.com B2B marketplace, the Thai SELECT programme and the country's participation in international trade fairs. Sector representation runs through bodies such as the Thai Food Processors' Association and the Thai Frozen Foods Association.
Trade Events
THAIFEX – Anuga Asia 2027
25–29 May 2027, IMPACT Muang Thong Thani, Bangkok. Asia-Pacific's largest food and beverage trade exhibition and the single most significant sector event held in Thailand.
Source: official event site thaifex-anuga.com. Dates confirmed via the site's own listing pages; a direct fetch of the "Date & Opening Hours" page returned truncated content in this session, so treat the dates as confirmed-by-listing rather than read line-by-line, and re-check with the organiser before booking.
Fi Asia Thailand 2027
1–3 September 2027, Bangkok. The regional food-ingredients exhibition, organised by Informa Markets, aimed at B2B ingredient sourcing rather than finished product.
Source: organiser site figlobal.com/asia-thailand. Venue deliberately not stated here — independent listings disagreed on whether the 2027 edition is at BITEC or the Queen Sirikit National Convention Center, and that conflict was not resolved at source. Confirm the venue directly with the organiser.
Explore More of Thailand with T3
Business in Thailand
Sector directories, business networks and the wider commercial landscape.
Investment
Priority investment sectors, incentives and the institutions behind them.
Halal & Seafood
Two sectors that overlap directly with food manufacturing, each with its own certification and trade structure.
Partner with T3
Work with us on market entry, sourcing introductions and sector intelligence.
Food Ecosystem Directory
Manufacturers, trade associations and regulators verified during research for this page. Each entry links to the organisation's own official website; contact details shown are those published by the organisation itself. Directory inclusion is informational and does not indicate endorsement, membership or partnership with T3.
Betagro Public Company Limited
Protein, feed and food company
Charoen Pokphand Foods Public Company Limited
Integrated agro-industrial and food company
Department of International Trade Promotion (DITP)
National export promotion agency
Food and Drug Administration (Thailand)
National food safety and licensing regulator
Malee Group Public Company Limited
Fruit juice, beverage and dairy manufacturer
National Bureau of Agricultural Commodity and Food Standards (ACFS)
National agricultural and food standards body
- Location:
- 50 Phaholyothin Road, Ladyao, Chatuchak, Bangkok 10900, Thailand
NR Instant Produce Public Company Limited
Ethnic, plant-based and functional food maker
- Location:
- 99/1 Moo 4, Khae Rai, Krathum Baen, Samut Sakhon 74110, Thailand (Bangkok office: 518/5 Maneeya Center Building, 6th floor, Ploenchit Road, Lumphini, Pathumwan, Bangkok 10330)
Osotspa Public Company Limited
Beverage and consumer health products maker
- Location:
- 348 Ramkhamhaeng Road, Huamak, Bangkapi, Bangkok 10240, Thailand
Sappe Public Company Limited
Functional beverage manufacturer and exporter
- Location:
- 71 SP Arcade Building, Ramkhamhaeng Road, Hua Mak, Bang Kapi, Bangkok 10240, Thailand
Thai Food Processors' Association (TFPA)
Food processing industry trade association
- Location:
- 170/21-22, 9th Floor, Ocean Tower 1 Building, New Ratchadapisek Road, Klongtoey, Bangkok 10110, Thailand
Thai Frozen Foods Association (TFFA)
Frozen food processors and exporters association
- Location:
- 92/6, 6th Floor, Sathorn Thani II Building, North Sathorn Road, Silom, Bangrak, Bangkok 10500, Thailand
Thai President Foods Public Company Limited
Instant noodle and packaged food manufacturer
Sources, Methodology & Data Coverage
Every figure on this page was opened at its source on 17 August 2026. Nothing was estimated, averaged across conflicting sources, or reproduced from a search-result snippet without opening the underlying page.
Sources used
- World Bank WITS interface (UN Comtrade data) — all 2024 trade tables (HS 1602, 1902, 2008, 2103, 2309 exports; HS 0303 imports). wits.worldbank.org. Accessed 17 Aug 2026. This is an international statistical database, not a Thai government publication.
- Thailand Board of Investment, Investment Promotion Guide 2026 (July 2026) — all promoted activities, conditions and incentive tiers. boi.go.th. PDF downloaded and read directly, 17 Aug 2026.
- Company and institution official websites — each directory entry carries its own "verified via" note and date; where only the organisation's name and domain could be confirmed, the entry says so rather than filling in unverified details.
- Thai Food Processors' Association (TFPA) — thaifood.org, monthly export reports. Consulted for sector context.
Deliberately omitted
- A single "total Thai food exports 2024" figure. No official aggregate was opened at source that defines the sector boundary consistently. The HS-heading tables above are shown instead, and are never summed together.
- TFPA's own headline export total. The association's most recent figure located in this session covers January–May 2025, not calendar 2024, and was seen only in a search summary of its monthly-report PDF rather than opened. It is therefore not reproduced as a page statistic.
- Employment, GDP share and factory counts. No primary-tier source was opened for these, so none is shown.
- The Fi Asia Thailand 2027 venue. Independent listings conflicted; the conflict was not resolved at source, so the venue is left blank rather than guessed.
- Company-level revenue, capacity and market-share claims, except where a company published the figure on its own site — in which case the directory entry says so explicitly and attributes it to the company rather than presenting it as independently verified.
Page last updated: 17 August 2026.
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