Finally, food fraud is being taken seriously
New technology and attitudes are good start, Sylvain Charlebois writes.
Food fraud is becoming a noticeable issue as another company has been slapped on the wrist for violations. A court recently fined Creation Food, an Ontario-based company, $25,000 for forging a kosher certificate for food that wasn’t kosher, which it delivered to Jewish summer camps. It is believed to be the first time in Canadian history the judicial system has enforced kosher labelling laws.
In spite of hundreds of investigations, this is only the second time this year that a company has been fined in a food fraud case. Last year, Mucci Farms, another Ontario-based company, was fined a record $1.5 million for selling Mexican tomatoes as Canadian over a three-year period. Food fraud is complicated, as just a handful of cases ever end up in court. But it is just a matter of time before we see more companies getting fined for contravening regulations.
Recent estimates suggest it represents a $70-billion problem worldwide — more than the heroin trade and firearms trafficking combined.
Food fraud has become mainstream for two reasons: supply chain transparency, from fork to farm, and consumer expectations empowered by social media.
With mislabelled seafood, adulterated sauces, oils and vinegars, selling food labelled as organic when it is not, the world is seeing more incidents of food fraud. One of the most famous cases is the 2008 scandal in China, where manufacturers added melamine to baby formula to trick protein tests. The 2013 European meat scandal has also become a classic. Processors replaced several meats, mostly beef and lamb, with horsemeat and it had been going on for years.
A significant amount of research has gone into developing technologies to protect the public. These include mobile detecting devices to validate labels, solvents to protect the integrity of packages against counterfeiting and new block-chain technologies allowing companies to protect themselves from fraudulent suppliers. Laws are also becoming more accommodating for regulators, allowing them to act more effectively. Canada too will benefit from this.
But in Canada, where there hasn’t really been a major food fraud crisis yet, our regulatory framework is underdeveloped and untested. Collecting the evidence to build a case has been anything but straightforward. Whistleblowers are reluctant to come forward and consumers have not known where to register concerns. Now, however, Ottawa has a bureau that accepts complaints. In fact, in 2016, Ottawa received more than 130 complaints related to food fraud cases, and the number is likely to increase this year. Concerns are being accommodated, but we still have a long way to go.
The CFIA and the provinces now look through the eyes of food integrity and prevention, not just protection or defence. An intentional act is an inherent part of food fraud, which makes most cases unique. To address food fraud, a food-centric approach is just not enough — an intricate understanding of human behaviour and how companies operate are essential. This represents a significant paradigm shift.
Food fraud is essentially inviting regulators to redefine what science means to them, which in turn will impact how they find the remedies needed to solve the problem.
The same goes for industry, which is now realizing that turning to food scientists, quality assurance professionals and microbiologists is no longer enough. To detect cases, they now draw on cross-curricular expertise from throughout the enterprise. Suppliers, buyers, technical managers, laboratory analysts, agronomists and legal advisers are also getting involved.
Food fraud is about deception through food, regardless of where the company operates within the food continuum. The guilty ones are fooling the public, but they are also fooling the industry. Regulatory compliance is becoming a major focus for industry, since its reputation is at stake. For a while, it was the elephant in the room for industry, but not anymore. They are making more of an effort, which is reassuring. We will never find our way to a system free of food fraud, but every little bit helps.