A notorious coffee shop sold over 17 tons of counterfeit coffee to the market.
In just a few months, the Dạ Thảo brand coffee production facility released more than 17 tons of counterfeit coffee onto the market, raking in nearly 1.3 billion VND.
On June 9th, the Investigation Police Department of Phu Yen province issued a decision to prosecute, prohibit from leaving her place of residence, and prohibit from leaving the country against Ms. Dang Thi Hoa Hiep (born in 1972, residing in Tay Hoa district, Phu Yen province; owner of Dai Chung - Da Thao Private Enterprise) for the crime of "Producing and trading counterfeit food products".
Authorities conducted a search of the production facility of Dai Chung - Da Thao Private Enterprise in Phu Thu town (Tay Hoa district), which is also the residence of Ms. Hiep.
Previously, through intelligence gathering, the Economic Police Department of Phu Yen Provincial Police discovered that the processing and trading of coffee under the brand name "Da Thao" by this enterprise showed many irregularities, so they established a special investigation case.
On April 11th, authorities conducted an administrative inspection at the facility and seized 6,845 bags of powdered coffee (total weight over 3.45 tons), one pickup truck with license plate 78C-064.94, along with various production and packaging equipment and containers of additives used in coffee processing.
After collecting documents, evidence, and requesting expert opinions, the investigating agency determined that from December 2024 to April 2025, Dai Chung - Da Thao Private Enterprise adjusted the production formula, reducing the caffeine content in Da Thao brand powdered coffee products, which did not meet the quality standards as advertised.
The total amount of coffee produced by this business during that period was over 21 tons, equivalent to 42,187 products. Of that, more than 17.6 tons, equivalent to 35,342 products, were sold on the market, generating nearly 1.27 billion VND in revenue. The remainder was seized by the authorities.
Ms. Hiep admitted to producing and selling coffee that did not meet the advertised quality standards, falsifying product quality information, and causing damage to consumer rights. Ms. Hiep voluntarily paid 590 million VND to mitigate the consequences.
