As part of this year’s World Anti -Court Day, the European Union’s Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) poses the following question: “What is on your table?” This question is not a simple slogan but a ‘danger bell’ in order to raise awareness of consumers about the food that we put on our table.
The new data from the EUIPO report reveal that the falsification of food and drink in Europe has been alarming. Distributed wines, distorted oil and fake children’s pastries are on the agenda.
In collaboration with Europol, food is now the second most common category of fake products seized at the EU’s external border, the report said.
In essence, it is a systematic action of organized circuits, which exploit e -commerce and social media to promote dubious quality products.
Europol’s Socta 2025 report records that through e-commerce falsies find New ways to channel fake foods to unsuspecting consumers.
The falsification concerns the packingthe labelseven the raw materials, With the aim of high -value and trust products such as wines, drinks, olive oil and pasta, Iatropedia.gr reports.
Opson business: 91 million in seizures
The extent of fraud is revealed through the annual joint company Europol and Interpol called Opson.
In 2024 alone, the authorities seized fake and degraded foods worth € 91 million.
Behind these numbers are dangerous practices. In the latest Socta report (2021), cases were identified where fake food contained toxic and prohibited substances, such as methanol (in drinks), fipron (in eggs), Mercury and dangerous pesticides.
Distributed food: Damage to health but also economy
The risks are primarily public health, but food falsification directly affects the European economy and agri -food sector.
As highlighted in the Europol and Euipo reports, falsified drinks containing methanol- essentially toxic- can cause blindness or even death even in small quantities.
In other samples, mercury, insecticides and pesticides have been found that are normally not allowed to be in human food. Substances like Fipronil, which had been detected in egg batches in 2017, may cause Nervous system damage, especially in children and vulnerable groups.
The problem is that falsified foods They do not look dangerous. They are circulated in packages that are perfectly authentic and consumed without a second thought. The risk is invisible until the consequences are manifested.
The wines and alcoholic It was one of the most “hit” sectors in 2013-2017, with losses of € 2.28 billion and nearly 5,700 lost jobs per year.
In addition, nearly 2 billion euros were lost in taxes due to this criminal activity, damaging both public revenue and legal, small production units that cannot compete with the cost of fraud.
Consumers are the last mound
EUIPO points out that protection starts with the consumer’s hand. It recommends market attention, especially on online platforms, and suggests:
- Purchases only by official channels
- Control on the packaging and label for spelling errors or odd signals
- Search of European Quality Signals (POP, PGI,
- Use of authenticity tools such as QR Codes and holograms
The message is clear: At our table we can put quality and fraud. And it’s up to us to choose the right one.