Tag Archives: food fraud

Susanne Kuehne, Decernis
Food Fraud Quick Bites

All Bison, No Bull

By Susanne Kuehne
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Susanne Kuehne, Decernis
Bison
Find records of fraud such as those discussed in this column and more in the Food Fraud Database. Image credit: Susanne Kuehne

Bison and other game meats have become increasingly popular over the course of the past years, and these products have enjoyed an increase in pricing as a result. Bison, deer and beef meats have very similar appearances; in addition, bison and domestic cattle can cross-breed and therefore the meat cannot be distinguished by DNA barcoding alone. To ensure that bison meat was not mixed with other red meat species, a specific polymerase chain reaction method (PCR-SFLP) was used in a recently published study. Out of 45 commercial bison meat samples, three samples showed other meat species, which were not identified on the label.

Resource

  1. Scales, Z.M., et al. (February 3, 2021). “Use of DNA Barcoding Combined with PCR-SFLP to Authenticate Species in Bison Meat Products”. MDPI.

 

Susanne Kuehne, Decernis
Food Fraud Quick Bites

The Tale Of The Fraudulent Tail

By Susanne Kuehne
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Susanne Kuehne, Decernis
Yellowtail
Image credit: Susanne Kuehne

Even relatively small instances of food and beverage fraud can have big consequences, all the way down to retailers. A UK supermarket lost its alcohol license after several bottles of a well-known Australian wine brand turned out to be fake, which was confirmed by the wine producer. The license holder did not assist in finding the reason why the counterfeit bottles showed up at the store, blaming the incident on the employees instead.

Resource

  1. Staff Reporter. (February 12, 2021). “Fake Yellow Tail wine costs UK supermarket its license”. Securing Industry.
Susanne Kuehne, Decernis
Food Fraud Quick Bites

The Cherry on Top (But It’s Fraudulent)

By Susanne Kuehne
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Susanne Kuehne, Decernis
Cherry
Image credit: Susanne Kuehne

China and Hong Kong are big markets for expensive high-end cherries from Tasmania in Australia, usually selling for $12–$3 per pound ($26–$39/kg), and especially popular during the Chinese New Year celebrations. It is estimated that fake fruit outsells the real Tasmanian cherries five-fold, in spite of tracking with specific serial numbers on the genuine cherries’ packaging. In the most recent fraud case, an arrest was made and the seized cherries are under investigation.

Resource

  1. Taylor, P. (February 6, 2021). “Counterfeit Tasmanian cherries seized in Hong Kong”. Securing Industry.
Susanne Kuehne, Decernis
Food Fraud Quick Bites

Arrrrr, Rum That Was Not Real

By Susanne Kuehne
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Susanne Kuehne, Decernis
Counterfeit Rum
Image credit: Susanne Kuehne

Blackbeard the Pirate would have refused to drink this: Counterfeit rum worth more than $4 million was seized by the Spanish police, and 24 criminals were arrested. The imitations were so real that the fake rum even made it into Spanish tax warehouses via the Netherlands. No injuries have been reported thus far. However, counterfeit alcohol often contains toxic methanol which can lead to severe injuries and even death.

Resource

  1. Taylor, P. (January 28, 2021). “Spanish police dismantle national fake rum operation”. Securing Industry.
Susanne Kuehne, Decernis
Food Fraud Quick Bites

Getting To The (Expired) Meat

By Susanne Kuehne
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Susanne Kuehne, Decernis
Fly
Image credit: Susanne Kuehne

Several companies were involved in a warehouse operation that was relabeling expired meat or manipulating its best before dates, re-selling the meat to restaurants and other distribution points. Spanish officials seized 122 tons of meat and arrested more than a dozen people. Food fraud on that level endangers the health and, in some cases, even the lives of consumers and urgently needs to be uncovered and prosecuted.

Resource

  1. Warren, J. (January 25, 2021). “Gang in Spain’s Malaga busted for selling out of date meat to takeaways and restaurants”. The Olive Press.
Figure 1. HorizonScan Overview

HorizonScan Hazard Challenge: Quiz 3

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Figure 1. HorizonScan Overview

Food fraud has been estimated to cost our industry over $50 billion per year. Performing a comprehensive fraud vulnerability assessment is now a key requirement of all GFSI standards. Do you know which of your ingredients are the most susceptible to intentional adulteration?

Hazard Question #3 – Which food commodity category has had the most fraud incident reports over the past 20 years?

Hint: If you have access to HorizonScan it takes less than 10 seconds to select a commodity, click the fraud filter and be viewing up to 20 years of food fraud reports. HorizonScan is widely recognized by GFSI auditors as an excellent foundation for performing thorough and compliant vulnerability assessments.

With COVID 19 causing global disruptions to supply chains our key food ingredients are more vulnerable than ever to unscrupulous adulteration and substitution. HorizonScan can help you stay on top of the latest issues and enable you to anticipate them before it’s too late. To request updated pricing information or a free demo, just reply now to this email and we’ll get back to you shortly with answers to all your questions.

Kind regards,
The HorizonScan Team at FoodChain ID

Figure 1. HorizonScan Overview
Figure 1. HorizonScan Overview

 

Answer to last week’s Quiz – Which country of origin has been cited by global inspection agencies the most times in the past year for adulteration/contamination issues in pepper?

Historically, India has been cited the most times for issues in pepper but in the past year it has been surpassed by Brazil, with 56 new incident reports being added to HorizonScan. The bar chart below shows the top five offenders over the past 12 months.

Hazards in pepper
Figure 2. Hazards in Pepper over the past 12 Months.
Susanne Kuehne, Decernis
Food Fraud Quick Bites

The Not-So-Green Pistachio

By Susanne Kuehne
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Susanne Kuehne, Decernis
Pistachio, food fraud
Find records of fraud such as those discussed in this column and more in the Food Fraud Database. Image credit: Susanne Kuehne

Organic produce is a lucrative and growing market and an easy target for food fraud. Mislabeled organically certified pistachios were bringing in up to 80% more revenue than conventional nuts, resulting in a €6 million profit. European officials including Europol uncovered the illegal operation and made 14 arrests in Spain. Forensic analysis showed that the pistachios contained illegal pesticides.

Resource

  1. Europol. (December 18, 2020). “€6 million in illegal profit of fraudulent of fraudulent organic pistachio sales”. Press release. Europol.
Food Fraud: A Global Threat with Public Health and Economic Consequences

Fundamentals of Food Fraud Explained, Global Threat Cannot Be Ignored

By Food Safety Tech Staff
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Food Fraud: A Global Threat with Public Health and Economic Consequences

Food fraud is a global problem, the size of which cannot be fully quantified. A new book edited and authored by experts on the topic seeks to comprehensively address food fraud, covering everything from its history and mitigation strategies, to tools and analytical detection methods, to diving into fraud in specific products such as ingredients, meat, poultry and seafood.

“As we point out in the first sentence of the introduction to Food Fraud: A Global Threat with Public Health and Economic Consequences, food fraud prevention and risk mitigation has become a fast-evolving area. So fast, in fact, that some people may question the value of publishing a comprehensive resource focused on these issues for fear that it will be outdated before the ink is dry. The co-editors of the book disagree,” says Steve Sklare, president of The Food Safety Academy, chair of the Food Safety Tech Advisory Board and co-editor of the book. “This book was written with the goal of providing a solid resource that is more than an academic exercise or reference. The discussion of the fundamental principles of food fraud mitigation and real-world application of this knowledge will provide a useful base of knowledge from which new information and new technology can be integrated.”

Sklare co-edited the book with Rosalee Hellberg, Ph.D., associate director of the food science program at Chapman University and Karen Everstine, Ph.D., senior manager of scientific affairs at Decernis and member of the Food Safety Tech Advisory Board. He hopes that offering access to the book’s first chapter will help communicate their message to the folks responsible for addressing food fraud, whether they are members of the food industry, regulators or academics, or professionals at small, medium or large food organizations.

Complimentary access to Chapter 1 of Food Fraud: A Global Threat with Public Health and Economic Consequences is available in the Food Safety Tech Resource Library. The preview also includes the book’s Table of Contents.

Susanne Kuehne, Decernis
Food Fraud Quick Bites

Four Decades Of Food Fraud

By Susanne Kuehne
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Susanne Kuehne, Decernis
Malaysian beach
Find records of fraud such as those discussed in this column and more in the Food Fraud Database. Image credit: Susanne Kuehne

For more than 40 years, a syndicate of bribed government and custom officials and slaughterhouses did lucrative business by smuggling fake halal meat into Malaysia. The meat originated in unapproved slaughterhouses in several countries that produced not halal-certified and low-grade meat from a variety of animals. This scandal was a setback on Malaysia’s goal to become one of the world’s main halal meat exporters, which is a multi-billion dollar business.

Resource

  1. South China Morning Post. (December 30, 2020). “Malaysian cartel allegedly sold fake halal meat to Muslims for 40 years”.
Susanne Kuehne, Decernis
Food Fraud Quick Bites

The Golden Goose, A Timeless Moneymaker

By Susanne Kuehne
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Susanne Kuehne, Decernis
Donkey, Decernis
Find records of fraud such as those discussed in this column and more in the Food Fraud Database. Image credit: Susanne Kuehne

Grimm’s Fairy Tale got it right after all: The “Golden Donkey” (German expression for “Golden Goose”) does indeed exist. In India, officials shut down a factory producing fake turmeric, chili powder and other spices and condiments. Authorities confiscated mostly inedible and hazardous ingredients, which included man-made pigments and colorants, acids, hay and last but not least, donkey dung. The health impact and where the “spices” were sold in retail are under investigation.

Resource

  1. Mishra, S. (December 16, 2020). “Police raid factory making counterfeit spices ‘out of donkey dung and acid’”. Independent.