At least three soyabean shipments unloaded at the Thai port of Koh Sichang have been unable to clear customs due to uncertainty over import tariff rates and quota allocations, multiple trade sources told Platts, part of S&P Global Energy.
A spokesperson for the Thai Feed Mill Association confirmed that soyabean shipments had not been allowed into Thailand since 1 January 2026.
At the time of the 26 January report, the spokesperson said they were waiting for the Thai cabinet to decide about the 200,000 tonne soyabean shipments waiting for clearance.
A Singapore-based grains and oilseeds trader quoted in the report said three cargoes had been discharged to barges at a Thai port, two for a crushing plant and one for the Thai Feed Mill Association but had been held up in customs.
A Thai cabinet meeting scheduled for 27 January was expected to address the stalled import‑licence issue and potential emergency resolution measures, a decision that would determine if the soyabean supply chain could resume normal flow or remain constrained for weeks, the report said.
The urgency was heightened by the expectation of a further three soyabean shipments due to arrive in February, which could compound congestion if regulatory permissions were not restored, according to a Thai soyabean importer source.
Downstream operations had been affected, with soyabean crushers and feed millers suspending sales and deliveries, a second Singapore-based trader was reported as saying, adding that he had received inquiries for soyabean meal.
The uncertainty over the import duties had “created chaos and [caused] the price of soyabean meal to go up to THB16.1/kg (US$520/tonne) from THB14.25/kg in the first half of January,” a Thai grains and oilseeds trader said.
In a previous report, Platts wrote that following the dissolution of the Thai parliament on 11 December, the country had been under the stewardship of a caretaker government, which did not have the authority to make policy decisions, including the 2026 quota for duty-free imports of soyabeans and tariffs on soyabean meal imports.
Without a new government decree, default World Trade Organization (WTO)-bound tariff rates automatically applied to soyabean imports, the report said.
According to the US Soybean Export Council, an initial quota of 10,922 tonnes can be imported at a 20% duty, with any imports exceeding that volume taxed at 80%.
With Thailand’s total soyabean production around 50,000-60,000 tonnes/year, the situation could push up costs for the country’s crushing sector, according to the US Department of Agriculture (USDA)’s Foreign Advisory Service (FAS).
The USDA said Thailand operated four major soyabean crushing plants with a combined production capacity of 12,500 tonnes/day, which had been running at a utilisation rate of around 70%.
Although Thai buyers were still holding one to one-and-a-half months’ supply of stocks at the time of the report, a resolution on import licences and quotas was needed, a Thai soyabean crusher said.
