STUDYING THE POTENTIAL FOR ENHANCING LOCAL DEVELOPMENT BASED ON THE BCG ECONOMY CASE STUDY: “POWDERED BEVERAGE MADE FROM LONGAN EXTRACT AND ADDED DIETARY FIBER IN THE LONGAN LARGE-SCALE FARMING GROUP” WIANG NONG LONG DISTRICT, LAMPHUN PROVINCE

Abstract

This research is a participatory action research with the objectives of 1) Studying the market situation of longan, 2) Analyzing business strategies for producing powdered beverages made from longan extract fortified with dietary fiber, and 3) Developing powdered beverage products from longan extract fortified with dietary fiber for the longan large-scale farming group in Nong Yuang Subdistrict, Wiang Nong Long District, Lamphun Province. A purposive sample of 20 individuals involved in large-scale agricultural projects was selected. The research tools included focus group discussions, training and brainstorming, and interviews. Transcription, data coding, and data storage were used to manage the research data. This study found that 1) Thailand's longan market still generates significant export revenue for the country. Although large-scale farming groups have the potential to produce 19,000 tons of longan annually, there are 1,900 tons of grade C longan that the market does not want. Therefore, there is a need to process longan to increase its value. 2) An analysis of the new business strategy using SWOT and the Five-force model revealed that production is feasible due to the product's health benefits, its popularity among consumers, limited competition, sufficient supply, reduced production costs, support from North Chiang Mai University in terms of knowledge, technology, and innovation, the ability to solve community problems, and the members’ readiness for product development and 3) The development of longan yield by large-scale longan farming groups involved training and practical experience with standardized equipment, resulting in a powdered beverage made from longan extract fortified with dietary fiber. This successful application of the BCG (Bio-Circular-Green) economic model, particularly the use of technology to add value to the product and reduce agricultural waste, contributed to the success of this project.