Tag Archives: health hazard

Susanne Kuehne, Decernis
Food Fraud Quick Bites

Deadly Fraudulent Libations

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

Counterfeit alcoholic beverages keep claiming lives, like in this latest case in the state of Punjab in India. To curb the consumption of alcohol, the Indian government has imposed high taxes on alcoholic beverages, with the effect of increased illegal alcohol production. Often, the alcohol is from a variety of sources like nuts and sugar cane and of poor quality, posing a health hazard. Officials raided numerous operations and arrested multiple suspects, including police officers and customs officials.

Resource

  1. Jamshaid, U. (August 2, 2020). “India’s Death Toll From Counterfeit Alcohol Rises To 86 – Authorities”.
Susanne Kuehne, Decernis
Food Fraud Quick Bites

Not in Good Spirits

By Susanne Kuehne
No Comments
Susanne Kuehne, Decernis
Food fraud, brandy
Find records of fraud such as those discussed in this column and more in the Food Fraud Database. Image credit: Susanne Kuehne

Fake brandy based on corn distillate was purchased by a Spanish company based in Georgia and was exported to other EU countries with falsified documentation. Fortunately, this alcohol fraud did not pose a health hazard like many other alcohol fraud cases. However, the economic gain for the fraudulent brandy was going to be huge, since a volume of 4 million liters of “brandy” was exported. EU regulations state that brandy is supposed to be based on wine distillate only, which costs up to four times more than distillate made from corn.

Resources

  1. Herraiz, P. El Mundo (September 16, 2019). “La trama del brandy español falsificado exportó cuatro millones de litros ilegalmente”.