MANILA, Philippines--After wrapping up business in Malacañang, this prime minister went to market.

Thai Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej dropped by the Guadalupe wet market in Makati City early morning Friday and was greeted by a scene so familiar it was like he was back in Bangkok.

"Just like home," he said after his hour-long visit to the crowded and ever busy public market, where he purchased fresh vegetables, chicken breasts, pork tenderloin and shrimp.

Samak arrived Thursday and met with President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, where the leaders tackled common interests including food security.

"I'm going to cook fried noodles with pork, shrimp and five vegetables," said Samak, a celebrity chef in his native country. He added that he would prepare his specialty, pad thai, for his hosts at the Thai embassy later in the day.

Unlike local market-goers, the Thai head of state did not haggle with vendors and spent a little over P1,000.

No matter, Samak said the prices of the produce were very similar to those in Thailand--even that of rice.

"He was very happy that the prices were the same [as in Thailand], including rice," said Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap, who accompanied Samak on the trip, along with local and Thai officials, security escorts and journalists.

"Considering that Thailand is a rice-exporting country, and the Philippines is a rice-importing country, this is a good thing," Yap told reporters.

TV chef

Asked if Samak had made any promises to supply the Philippines with rice should the need arise, the agriculture secretary said: "Yes, yes. He will help. He will assist us."

Thailand became the second country to officially commit to supply rice to the Philippines this year, but no volumes or prices were discussed during talks between the leaders of the two countries in Manila, it was reported Thursday.

Samak became prime minister in January this year. Apart from his political life, he is a well-known chef in Thailand, having hosted a cooking show on television.

His trip to the market began at a little past 7 a.m. Friday. Surrounded by officials and bodyguards, he checked out the stalls, starting at a rice-selling booth, where he noted the similar prices.

He, however, did not buy rice.

Handling, smelling produce

The marketplace was abuzz with media attention on the 72-year-old Samak, who was wearing a gray long-sleeved shirt. Many were curious about the identity of the man who was attracting such fanfare.

"Yan daw yung prime minister ng (That's the prime minister of) Taiwan," an elderly woman was overheard saying, drawing some chuckles for the mistake.

Samak proved no stranger to fresh food, handling produce with his hands, smelling and checking them before making his picks.

He bought a kilo of pork tenderloin from a meat stall, a kilo of native tomatoes and half-a-kilo of green chili peppers from a vegetable stand.

At another stand, he bought 1.2 kilos each of broccoli and American tomatoes, and another kilo of white onions. "He did not haggle but I gave him a discount anyway," said vendor Ine Lansang.

Forget 'bagoong'

Samak also bought a kilo of shrimp for P400, asking the vendor, Paz Gabriel, to remove the heads, tails and shells before packing them in a plastic bag.

He stopped for a moment at a stall selling different kinds of bagoong (fermented fish or shrimp paste). He held up a ladle of the Filipino delicacy to his nose and decided he did not like it.

"Maybe he thought your bagoong stinks," a neighbor told the vendor, laughing.

Fresh seafood

Samak said the market looked very similar to the ones in Thailand.

But he said the Guadalupe market had at least one advantage: Fresher seafood.

True enough, Samak saw catfish, tilapia and other seafood still alive and wriggling.

He observed that in Thailand and in the Philippines, the people could still buy fresh meat, vegetables and seafood in wet markets. Almost everywhere else, Samak said, "people are buying everything in supermarkets."

25-hour stay

Samak and his entourage of almost 30 Thai officials left Manila on a Thai Airways commercial flight at 2:30 p.m. Friday after a 25-hour stay.

Agriculture Secretary Yap and Air Force chief Lt. Gen. Pedrito Cadungog led send-off honors at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia) along with Manila-based Thai officials.

Samak is the highest official of the world's biggest rice exporter to visit the country. The Philippines is the largest importer of the food staple, amid soaring rice prices and shrinking supply.

10 countries want rice

In Bangkok, at least 10 countries have approached the government of Thailand, the world's biggest rice exporter, seeking to buy the staple at favorable prices, Thai Commerce Minister Mingkwan Sangsuwan said Friday.

Mingkwan declined to name the volumes or prices sought through government-to-government contracts from Thailand, but named the potential buyers, which span Southeast Asia to the Middle East and Africa.

"I can't disclose any more details of the deals as we have to find out whether these requests will match our supplies," he told reporters after a meeting with rice millers to assure them of strong demand for Thai rice this year.

Price of rice

Among the countries seeking government-to-government contracts were Malaysia, the Philippines, Indonesia, Timor, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Oman and South Africa, Mingkwan said.

The price of Thailand's 100 percent B grade white rice rebounded to near a historic high on Thursday, fueled by strong demand from traditional buyers, exporters said.

The benchmark rice price was quoted at $1,030-$1,050 per ton, up from $1,000 a ton last week. It reached an all-time high of $1,080 a ton in April.