Singapore’s imports of rice from Thailand can be easily met by alternative sources, said the Ministry of Trade and Industry.
“Singapore’s demand for rice is very small compared to total global rice production. For example, we account for only 1.2 per cent, 1.2 per cent and 0.6 per cent of Thailand, Vietnam and India’s total rice exports in 2018 respectively,” an MTI spokesman said.
Singapore imports rice from many other countries, as it has had a policy of import source diversification for some years. Suppliers include Vietnam, India, Myanmar, Cambodia, Japan and the US.