Food subsidies perpetuate hunger

A sign for the government's Khon La Khrueng co-payment subsidy scheme at a noodle stall. The subsidy offers up to 150 baht cash back per person per day for food, drink and general goods purchases. Arnun Chonmahatrakool

If you want an image of subsidised food in the world, you might think of Egypt, where the price of flatbread is fixed and more than half the population lives on loaves costing just 0.05 Egyptian pounds (8 baht) thanks to heavy government support.

Alms for the needy are one of the oldest forms of charity. The tradition persists to this day, in the form of food stamps in the US, food banks in the UK, free school meals in Japan, direct subsidy programmes like Egypt's, and India's price controls on farm produce.