Bangkok: The Dairy Farming Promotion Organization of Thailand (DFPO) is advancing with an auction for expired milk, with plans to destroy it if no buyers emerge. According to Thai News Agency, the Director of the DFPO has outlined the strategy to handle over 2.2 million cartons, approximately 80 million boxes, of expired UHT milk. This follows two unsuccessful auction attempts. The organization will destroy the milk if it remains unsold, to comply with legal requirements. The director emphasized that keeping the milk in storage incurs warehouse rental costs of over 1.5-1.8 million baht monthly.
Ms. Watcharee Wannasri, Director of the DFPO, detailed the stock management plan for the expired Thai-Denmark UHT milk. The central Saraburi-Muak Lek area holds around 1.4 million cartons, while the northeastern region in Khon Kaen province houses approximately 805,848 cartons. The minimum bid price is set at about 5 baht per carton, valuing the entire stock at roughly 11 million baht. Failure to clear the stock would lead to storage expenses exceeding 18 million baht annually.
The DFPO has previously conducted two auctions with no bids received. Consequently, continued auctions may be necessary as per regulations. The process must remain transparent and aim to minimize organizational losses. Any objections to the expired milk management approach should be accompanied by practical alternatives, considering timeframe, costs, and expense responsibility during the interim period. Halting the process without solutions would result in ongoing storage burdens for the DFPO.
The Director of the DFPO stressed the importance of devising a practical solution compliant with regulations, rather than merely agreeing or disagreeing with the distribution method. If selling the expired milk proves impossible, the DFPO might resort to licensed waste disposal services, costing approximately 450 baht per pallet. With around 15,000 pallets, disposal costs would approximate 6.75 million baht.