On 22 May 2026, the Thai-German Cooperation on Energy, Mobility and Climate (TGC EMC), implemented by GIZ Thailand, organised a stakeholder consultation workshop at VIE Hotel Bangkok. The workshop brought together representatives from government agencies, industry associations, private sector companies, academic institutions and technical experts to validate key findings and gather recommendations for developing a practical pathway towards carbon neutrality in the food and beverage sector.
The workshop forms part of TGC EMC’s broader efforts to support Thailand’s transition towards a low-carbon economy through sector-specific decarbonisation strategies. The food and beverage industry was selected due to its significant role in the national economy and its substantial energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions. The sector currently accounts for approximately 27% of industrial energy use and around 29% of carbon emissions from Thailand’s manufacturing sector, while also representing one of the country’s major export industries.
The event opened with welcoming remarks by Siriporn Parvikam, Component Lead of Decarbonisation in Industry under TGC EMC, followed by presentations from the study consultant team from King Mongkut’s University of Technology Thonburi, led by Associate Professor Pipat Chaiwiwatworakul and Ranee Jan. The roadmap, entitled ‘Transitioning Thailand’s Food and Beverage Industry Toward Carbon Neutrality’, presented key findings on the sector’s energy use profile, decarbonisation opportunities, technological options and policy recommendations.
The study predicts that the energy demand in Thailand’s food and beverage sector will increase due to industry growth, with emissions potentially increasing from approximately 17.4 million tonnes of CO₂eq annually to approximately 23 million tonnes of CO₂eq by 2050 under a business-as-usual scenario.
Improvements in energy efficiency, the adoption of low-carbon fuels, increased access to clean electricity, the electrification of process heating through heat pump technologies, and carbon removal measures are among the decarbonisation measures that have been identified to support the carbon neutrality pathway. Among the proposed measures, clean electricity was determined to possess the greatest potential for emissions reduction.
Participants actively engaged in discussions throughout the workshop and provided valuable recommendations regarding assumptions used in the study, implementation feasibility and policy considerations. Discussions highlighted the importance of adequate industrial data quality, terminology used and scopes on renewable energy and clean electricity, strengthening policy alignment, and considering broader emissions sources and supply chain impacts. Participants also emphasised the need to improve supporting mechanisms for industry, particularly the access to green finance, technology demonstration and piloting as well as enabling infrastructure.
Key policy recommendations discussed during the workshop included the modernisation of electricity infrastructure, implementation of third-party access mechanisms for clean electricity procurement, support for low-carbon fuel standards, promotion of carbon pricing mechanisms, development of financial support schemes such as Carbon Contracts for Difference (CCfD), strengthening ESCO business models, and promoting environmental product declarations (EPD) and circular economy approaches.
This consultation workshop marks an important step in refining Thailand’s first dedicated decarbonisation roadmap for the food and beverage industry. Input collected from stakeholders will be integrated into the study and further presented to the Industry Working Group and relevant steering mechanisms to support the decarbonisation roadmap development and implementation planning.
