Thailand Agriculture and Cooperatives Minister Somsak Thepsuthin wants, according to this story, to allow planting and testing of genetically modified crops in the open field, to boost farm productivity.

The story adds that the minister will also promote farming of new exotic crops and animals.

Mr Somsak was cited as saying his proposed turnabout on GM crops testing would increase the yield of agricultural produce, and it would also help Thailand realise its goal of making one trillion baht in sales of agricultural produce next year, adding, ''Australia and the United States have developed GM crops and commercialised them. If foreign countries can do that, so can we. But we might need to change the law."