€95m in illegal food and drink seized in latest Opson

It has been 14 years since the first Operation Opson was carried out against counterfeit and substandard food and drinks, and the latest reveals just how much the scale and scope of the crackdown have evolved.

Operation Opson XIV has resulted in the seizure of more than 11,500 tonnes of food and 1.4m litres of beverages with an estimated value of €95m ($110.5m) across 31 countries worldwide, a world away from the €300,000 value of goods intercepted from 10 European countries in 2011.

The latest crackdown resulted in 631 individuals being reported to judicial authorities, 101 arrest warrants issued, and 13 organised crime groups disrupted, according to Europol, which orchestrates the operation alongside EU fraud group OLAF and the European Commission's health unit DG Sante.

One of the main trends identified this year was organised crime groups infiltrating waste disposal companies with the intent to get access to expired food awaiting destruction, according to Europol.

The criminals remove the original 'best before' or expiration dates using solvents, print new, falsified dates on the packages, and then reintroduce the items into the supply chain.

"In terms of quality, they may not only be poor but often also pose a health risk, as seen in cases involving canned fish," said the agency. "As a criminal modus operandi, the practice of relabelling expired food is not entirely new, but its current scale is unprecedented."

Among the individual cases investigated by the authorities was one in Italy in which a criminal organisation operating in Umbria and Puglia clandestinely slaughtered horses treated with pharmaceuticals, posing a significant public health risk.

Authorities seized staples such as fruits, vegetables, poultry, meat, meat products and seafood. The list of food items also covers confectionery, fats and oils, with a special focus on olive oil. In addition, food supplements and additives were covered over the course of OPSON XIV.

Counterfeiting of food and beverages and the abuse of geographical indications are amongst the most common fraudulent tactics. As far as counterfeit and wrongly designated foods are concerned, olive oil and wines featuring a protected designation of origin remain strongly affected types of products.