Counterfeiters are increasingly turning their activities to consumer goods, including foodstuffs, according to the European Commission.
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Figures just published by the Commission show that customs seized almost 85 million counterfeit or pirated articles at the EU’s external border in 2002 and 50 million in the first half of 2003.
“The latest figures speak volumes: all everyday consumer products are now potential targets for counterfeiting and pirating,” said EU customs commissioner Frits Bolkestein. “We are increasingly finding ourselves seizing everyday products: tea, spinning tops, mobile phones. These products are dangerous because there is no guarantee that they meet safety standards. We must therefore be vigilant, and we are doing everything we can to this end.”
As for the provenance of these goods, most counterfeit goods (66%) seized in 2002 came from Asia (Thailand and China in particular). This was also the case in 2001.
“Counterfeiting is no longer confined to luxury goods. The figures for 2002 show that foodstuffs, cosmetics, toys, medicaments and car parts all figure prominently among the goods seized,” the Commission said.
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