Falsely labelled toothpaste, cosmetics and brand-name bags, worth about 14 million baht in total, were seized and a Chinese national arrested by consumer protection police and Food and Drug Administration (FDA) officials during raids in Bangkok and Samut Prakan last week.
Behind the brick and wood façade of Thep Thai Restaurant in Fayetteville, 45-year-old Tepthida Gingsumrong prepares pork larb and egg drop soup for a family of six. At 10:30 a.m. on this Monday in early February, the spicy pork salad and soup is the first meal to be cooked in the restaurant. And this particular family of employees, though not blood-related to each other, is the first to taste the fruits of the restaurant ownerâs labors each day.
In August 2020, the atmosphere at Thep Thai was much more somber. Gingsumrong had just laid off four employees over the summer, and she and her employees were struggling to keep their restaurant afloat. She had to look each of her eight employees in the eyes and have an honest conversation with them about potentially closing Thep Thai for good.