AgricultureSilver report

Published April 2026Insight Research13 min read2026 Edition12 sources, 12 primary-gradeStrong source depth

Thailand Cassava & Tapioca Starch Export Deep Dive

World's largest cassava exporter. China feed, ethanol ~60-70% of chip/pellet export. Thai Wah, UBE, STIC, Sanguan Wongse. Cassava Mosaic Disease, Chinese demand, biofuel.

Key takeaways

1
Thailand is the world's largest cassava exporter — ~25- tonne/yr fresh root equivalent — and #1 global tapioca native, modified starch producer.
2
Chinese demand ~ of cassava chip, pellet export; used for livestock feed, industrial ethanol, Guangxi, Yunnan biofuel pilots.
3
Thai cassava area ~8- rai; Northeast, North, Central provinces dominant; smallholder-driven cultivation with ~- farmer households.
4
Cassava Mosaic Disease (CMD) spread post-2018 compressed yield from ~3.5 t/rai to ~2.8-3.2 t/rai; Kasetsart, Thai Tapioca Development Institute, DOAE CMD-tolerant variety replacement programme.
5
Listed players: Thai Wah (SET: TWPC), Ubon Bio Ethanol (SET: UBE), Siam Modified Starch (SET: STIC). Private: Sanguan Wongse Industries (largest starch producer). Competition: Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos rising supply.

Executive summary

Thailand is the world's largest cassava exporter with ~25- tonne/yr fresh root equivalent (~8- rai planted) and #1 global tapioca native, modified starch producer. Cassava is a smallholder-driven crop (~- farmer households) concentrated in Northeast (Nakhon Ratchasima, Chaiyaphum, Buriram, Khon Kaen, Ubon, Si Sa Ket), North (Kamphaeng Phet, Tak, Phetchabun), Central (Lop Buri, Saraburi, Kanchanaburi) provinces. Chinese demand drives ~ of cassava chip, pellet export — used for livestock feed, industrial ethanol, Guangxi, Yunnan biofuel pilots; Japan, EU, food-grade buyers drive native, modified tapioca starch demand for food, confectionary, noodle, vermicelli, pharma, paper, textile applications.^{[, , , , ]}

Cassava Mosaic Disease (CMD) is the single biggest supply-side risk — first confirmed in Thailand 2018-2019 (spread from Cambodia, Vietnam), compressed yield from historical ~3.5 t/rai to current ~2.8-3.2 t/rai. Kasetsart University Agricultural Research Development Institute, Thai Tapioca Development Institute, Department of Agricultural Extension (DOAE) CMD-tolerant variety replacement programme (KU50, Rayong varieties, CMD-tolerant cultivar deployment) is multi-year project; farmer adoption, clean planting-material supply are the bottlenecks. Production also faces climate-driven volatility (drought, flooding, shifting monsoon), farmgate price volatility (historically /kg at farmgate; + considered strong).^{[, , ]}

Industry structure: Listed — Thai Wah (SET: TWPC, tapioca, vermicelli, noodle); Ubon Bio Ethanol (SET: UBE, cassava-based ethanol, food starch, biogas); Siam Modified Starch (SET: STIC, modified starch). Private: Sanguan Wongse Industries (Thailand's largest tapioca starch producer by volume), Chaiyaphum Industries, Ratchaburi Starch, hundreds of SME starch mills, pellet/chip plants across Northeast. Thai Tapioca Starch Association (TTSA), Thai Tapioca Trade Association (TTTA) coordinate industry — member consolidation, quality standards, export logistics. Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos rising competing supply: Vietnam production ~ tonne fresh equivalent, Cambodia ~ tonne, Laos small but growing — collectively eroding Thai share of Chinese demand at margin.^{[, , , , , ]}

OAE, TTSA, TTTA, Customs, China MOA, listed producers, DOAE, UN Comtrade, SCB EIC

Data as of: FY2024-Q1 2026

Thai cassava, starch export destination mix (% of FY2024 export value)

China cassava chip, pellet (feed, ethanol)

Share %

52%

Notes

Guangxi, Yunnan biofuel, livestock feed

China native, modified starch

Share %

18%

Notes

Food, flavoring, paper, textile

Japan, Korea food, confectionary

Share %

10%

Notes

High-spec food-grade, confectionary

EU, US food, industrial modified starch

Share %

Notes

Food, pharma, industrial

ASEAN, MENA, other

Share %

12%

Notes

Vietnam, Philippines, Indonesia, UAE, Egypt

Destination, grade	Share %	Notes
China cassava chip, pellet (feed, ethanol)	52%	Guangxi, Yunnan biofuel, livestock feed
China native, modified starch	18%	Food, flavoring, paper, textile
Japan, Korea food, confectionary	10%	High-spec food-grade, confectionary
EU, US food, industrial modified starch	8%	Food, pharma, industrial
ASEAN, MENA, other	12%	Vietnam, Philippines, Indonesia, UAE, Egypt

Customs, UN Comtrade, TTSA, TTTA triangulation

Data as of: FY2024

Analyst framing

Why this report

Thai cassava is China-demand-driven, CMD-compressed, competing-supply-pressured. Thai Wah, UBE, STIC, Sanguan Wongse lead production; Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos erode Thai share at margin.

China demand, producer, CMD, regional competition playbooks

China demand: ~60-70% of Thai cassava chip, pellet export lands in China for livestock feed (swine, poultry), industrial ethanol, Guangxi, Yunnan biofuel pilots. China Ministry of Agriculture, China National Grain, Oils, Foodstuffs Corp, Sinograin regulate import allocation, Guangxi, Yunnan regional ethanol mandate. Chinese corn, sorghum availability, price set substitution floor for cassava chip — when Chinese corn prices firm, cassava imports rise; when Chinese corn is abundant, cheap, cassava demand softens. E10/E85 ethanol mandate, Chinese fuel-ethanol roll-out pace are the medium-term swing factor.

Producer economics: Listed — Thai Wah (SET: TWPC) — tapioca starch, vermicelli, noodle (Wai Wai, Mama competitors); revenue ~THB 7-10B, EBITDA margin volatile with cassava farmgate, export price cycles. Ubon Bio Ethanol (SET: UBE) — cassava-based ethanol, food starch, biogas; revenue ~THB 5-7B; leverages ethanol fuel mandate, food starch dual-play. Siam Modified Starch (SET: STIC) — modified starch specialist; revenue ~THB 3-4B; higher-margin modified starch vs native starch. Private: Sanguan Wongse Industries — Thailand's largest tapioca starch producer by volume; multi-plant Northeast footprint. Hundreds of SME starch mills, chip/pellet plants across Northeast supply the bulk commodity grade; consolidation via TTSA membership, quality standards gradual. Modified-starch margin ~30-50% higher than native-starch; Japan, EU, food-grade buyers drive modified-starch demand.

CMD, variety replacement, regional competition: Cassava Mosaic Disease (CMD) first confirmed in Thailand 2018-2019 (spread from Cambodia, Vietnam); yield compression from ~3.5 t/rai historical to ~2.8-3.2 t/rai current. Kasetsart University, Thai Tapioca Development Institute, DOAE, ACIAR (Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research) collaborative CMD-tolerant variety breeding, clean planting-material supply programmes. Farmer adoption of CMD-tolerant cultivars (new KU, Rayong strain) is multi-year; bottleneck at clean planting-material supply, farmer extension. Regional competition: Vietnam production ~10M tonne fresh equivalent (rising), Cambodia ~10M tonne (rising), Laos smaller but growing — collectively eroding Thai share of Chinese demand. Thai comparative advantage is scale, producer/trader infrastructure, TTSA, TTTA export-logistics coordination; competitors catching up on both volume, price.

Scenarios to 2031

Bull: China ethanol scale, CMD replaced, modified-starch premium

Export THB ~200B

China E10/E85 ethanol mandate expands; cassava share of Chinese feed, ethanol rises; CMD-tolerant variety replacement completes; modified-starch premium expands; Thai #1 global position reinforced.

Base case

Export THB ~160B

China demand steady; CMD yield recovery partial; Vietnam, Cambodia compete on margin; modified starch growth offsets chip/pellet commodification; Thai position stable.

Bear: China corn surplus, CMD persists, Vietnam/Cambodia scale

Export THB ~120B

Chinese corn availability depresses cassava substitution; CMD yield compression persists; Vietnam, Cambodia take material share; Thai farmgate price compressed; smaller mills exit.

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China demand, ethanol, biofuel, CMD, variety replacement, listed producer economics, regional competition, scenarios.

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