Online campaign kicked off to liberate craft beer making

Thaopipop Limjitkorn, 28, was arrested over the weekend after Excise Department officials raided his three-storey shop house and found tools for making craft beer.
The man, who graduated from a law school, said he loved beer so he invented his own formula for making good-taste craft beer. He decided to bottle them for sale after his friends said they also loved the taste.
The report of the arrest prompted member of online community to cry foul. They wondered why the authorities had to protect a few industrial beer makers and they pointed out that even tech gurus in Silicon Valley made their own beer.
A popular Facebook page, Plik Fuen Puen Paendin Thai (restoring Thailand), posted a message that it was a shame that making craft beer was illegal in Thailand.
“Thailand is a nation with the second largest number of beer drinkers in Asean and the market value of beer sale is higher than Bt137 billion. But it’s strange that the market share belongs just to a few firms.
“But don’t be surprised our law does not facilitate nobody like up to make beer for self-consumption and sale. The law requires that anyone wants to make beer for sale in shops must has at least Bt10 million registered capital and must make at least 100,000 litres of beer a month,” the page states.
Wanchai Tantiwitthayapitak, a well-known author, wondered why Thailand has only two major beer makers while foreign countries have several brands and locally made craft beers.
“I have seen in several nations that making beer is normal activity, not an illegal one,” Wanchai posted.
So far, the campaign on Change.org for the government to liberate craft beer making, has drawn over 6,500 signature of support.
A senior official from the Excise Department said the current alcohol control law does not allow anyone to make alcoholic drink for even self-consumption, let alone for sale, without license.
The official, who cannot be named because of government regulations, said the alcohol control law that has been in use from 1950, has been amended. But the amendments are not for liberating control but for stepping harsher penalties.