The new law could be a game changer in opening up the Thai market to craft beer production
Thailand’s House of Representatives has passed a bill to promote small-scale liquor production, making it easier for small craft brewers to compete in the country’s beer market. According to Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra, the new regime will loosen the grip of Thailand’s alcoholic beverage oligopoly and support the rural economy.
The Community Liquor Bill makes it easier for individual entrepreneurs, cooperatives and farmers’ groups, among others, to secure licences to produce and trade all types of liquor. The bill was passed with an overwhelming majority. 415 lawmakers out of the 420 that were present voted for the bill, which will now be forwarded to the Senate for its consideration.
Included among the key initiatives of the proposed legislation are support for cooperatives, farmer groups, community enterprises and small entrepreneurs to obtain commercial production licences. It also makes it easier to receive permission to produce various types of alcoholic beverages, as long as production standards and necessary social impact controls are maintained, and mandatory registration with government authorities for production and equipment possession is complied with.
The new licensing regime introduced by the bill should also encourage the opening of more microbreweries and small distilleries that should eat into the duopoly of Thai Beverage Company and Boon Rawd Brewery that dominate the country’s beer and spirits sectors. It should also help restaurants and brewhouses in developing niche alcoholic beverages that better serve the tastes of millions of foreign tourists who visit the country each year.
Once the bill becomes law, several ministerial regulations will still need to be issued before authorities can begin issuing permits, said Chanin Rungtanakiat, a member of the governing Pheu Thai Party who chaired the panel steering the bill. It is expected, however, that it may come into effect by October if the Excise department and related agencies issue rules in a timely manner, according to Taopiphop Limjittrakorn, a member of the opposition People’s Party, who has led a years-long campaign to dismantle the stranglehold of the liquor duopoly.
