BANGKOK (Xinhua) — Thailand’s Ministry of Commerce on Friday introduced a fleet of mobile shops selling fruit and vegetables in response to the stay-home guidelines recommended by the Thai government in a bid to contain COVID-19.
“The mobile fruit store initiative was also an idea to market the abundance of fruit during the picking season,” said Commerce Minister Jurin Laksanawisit. “This is one way to find work for the agricultural sector. The mobile fruit stores can mobilize into the alleys of residences, so that consumers won’t need to travel too far to do their fruit shopping.”
It was also an employment opportunity for pickup truck owners to join the ministry’s scheme.
Already 350 participating vehicles have participated in the program and have been driving into alleys and communities to sell fruits and vegetables.
The ministry said that to participate, people must have their own trucks and 8,000 baht (246 U.S. dollars) to 15,000 baht (461 U.S. dollars) to buy fresh food, vegetables and groceries.
The return on daily investment would average 2,000 baht (61 U.S. dollars) perday.
Jurin said that he understood the hardships during the economic downturn and the impact from the COVID-19 outbreak, and that he is trying his utmost to find business opportunities for the Thai people during this difficult period.
