According to an NGO, food fraud "is on the increase" in Europe and France
In a supermarket in Germany.
According to the European Commission, the losses for the industry linked to these food frauds are estimated at nearly 30 billion euros each year in Europe.
Wolfgang Rattay / Reuters
Text by: RFI Follow
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According to the NGO Foodwatch, food fraud "is increasing" in Europe and France.
This one launches, Thursday, March 25, a campaign in the Hexagon to obtain from the French authorities more “transparency” in particular on the companies “caught in default”.
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According to the NGO Foodwatch, food fraud is a subject that remains “
taboo
” in France.
“
At best, we only have access to very general information on the conclusions of certain investigations carried out by the fraud control (DGCCRF) or the General Directorate for Food (DGAL).
But the names of the brands concerned by fraud, that of the products, manufacturers, quantities and places of sale for example, are most of the time kept secret
”, regrets this NGO in a letter, made public, addressed to the Minister of Economy Bruno Le Maire and Agriculture Julien Denormandie.
Horse meat turned into beef
“
Nothing justifies the current opacity.
It is above all a political choice, today in your hands,
”wrote the Foodwatch organization.
For its campaign, which is accompanied by a petition, the organization relies on a book entitled
Manger du fake pour de real
(Robert Laffont), the result of an investigation into food fraud in Europe led by Ingrid Kragl, in charge of investigations for foodwatch.
On 400 pages, it lists the food scandals of recent years in Europe: horse meat sold as beef, sunflower oil suddenly become olive oil, much more expensive, thanks to the addition of chlorophyll , spoiled tuna injected with dangerous additives to make it appear fresh and which caused food poisoning ...
It also evokes Languedoc wines that have become pomerol or margaux, falsely organic products, those which arrogate to themselves a protected designation of origin (PDO) without being able to claim it or even heavily chemically sweetened honey.
"
I wanted to create an electric shock,
" Ingrid Kragl explains to AFP.
"
Especially with the Covid-19 epidemic, things are not getting better, the control authorities being focused on other priorities related to the health crisis
," she said.
Ireland and Denmark "set
an example for all of Europe
"
The author agrees, however, that in general in France, “
we are not the worst off
” when it comes to food fraud.
But in the area of transparency, Ireland and Denmark "
have taken the lead
" and "set
an example for all of Europe,
" says
Foodwatch
.
According to the European Commission, the losses for the industry linked to these food frauds are estimated at “
around 30 billion euros each year
” in Europe, recalls the organization born in 2002 in Germany and established in France since 2013. The NGO adds that "
organized crime networks have understood that there is a vein to be exploited in food trafficking with little risk of getting caught and a godsend for money laundering
".
(
with AFP
)
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