The world’s largest rice processing
facility, in Nakornluang, serves as CP’s headquarters. Today, we got the
opportunity to visit and tour the facility. In the morning, Mr. Thammavit and
Mr. Surachai spoke with us about the rice improvement process, relationships
with the farmers, and sustainability. CP believes strongly in tradition and
purchases the rice directly from Thai farmers. Their strategy to ensure quality
engages farmers throughout the entire growing season; they visit rice paddies, offer
free seminars, and sell fertilizer to help produce quality rice.
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From left to right: Mr. Paradon Munro, Maria Jose Sanchez Arietta, Adriana Arango, Mr. Surachai, Samantha Yellen, Maira Zamir, and Margaret Lynch |
Afterwards we toured the facility
with our first stop at the administration room.
Huge computers lined the room; it seemed as if we had been
transported to NASA or the CIA. Next CP set up a rice tasting in order to
compare taste, texture, color and aroma of different rice varieties and crop
years. It was amazing how much age changed the qualities in the rice- the older
crop had much more texture. I definitely preferred the sticker and lighter new
crop. My favorite part of the trip was the lab techniques that CP technicians
showed us. A number of lab tests collected data about the rice to analyze the
quality. For example, we saw how a colorimeter measured the colors of rice and
iodine revealed the difference between white and jasmine rice grains. We ended
the excursion with a visit to the older factory in Wang Daeng to get in touch
with the company’s history.
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