False products, a very bad deal

A global annual turnover of 200 billions, probably as high as that from drug trafficking; an element of instability and unfair competition for enterprises and a danger for consumers, for employment (child labour and female exploitation), for the state treasury: these are just some of the features characterizing the widespread situation of counterfeited products, which doesn’t stop before national borders and that seriously damages European economy. For this reason the EU Commission a few days ago presented a survey on the market of fake products – ranging from cosmetics, medicines, toys and even car brakes – along with an awareness campaign addressed to the EU market. Fashion goods, medicines, games… Counterfeit products, states the European Commission, “harms the economy” of the old continent, “harming legitimate enterprises and starving innovation”. Moreover, “fake goods compete unfairly with genuine products, putting many jobs at risk in Europe”. Counterfeiters are in the market for medicines, fashion goods, food products, automotive brakes, electrical appliances, cosmetics and our children’s toys”, to name but a few examples. The problem can pose health and safety risks and has become a major handicap to growth and employment. The survey by the executive shows that between 2010 and 2011, the volume of fake articles detained by European customs grew by 11%; fashion and high-end personal products encompass 54% of the total value of goods detained at EU borders. In 2011 alone, 115 million fake goods were detained at the EU borders, with an overall value of over €1.2 billion. Risks for consumers. “Almost one third of the articles detained by EU customs in 2011”, states the Commission’s report, “were found to be potentially dangerous to the health and safety of consumers”. The chapter devoted to toys affirms that they “should be the safest goods as they are made for children”. But if they don’t conform to safety regulations, they can pose a serious danger. Fake toys can contain dangerous materials, like paint containing poisonous chemicals”. They “may be made with detachable small parts, prohibited according to the EU’s toy safety legislation, as they can pose choking hazards to children”. Unfair competition. The campaign’s objectives are “to raise consumer awareness about the dangers of counterfeit goods” as well as “to promote closer cooperation between the European Commission, national authorities – including law enforcement agencies and customs – and consumers, producers and trade associations to stop the production and circulation of counterfeit goods, calling on all Europeans to make a stand against fake products and buy original products. For more information on the Commission’s anti-counterfeiting campaign log on: http://ec.europa.eu/enterprise/stopfakes/en. The Commission points out, inter alia, that “buying fake goods is not a bargain”. In fact, they “are not made to the same standards and typically have to be replaced more often”; Original products must pass a number of quality controls to ensure that they are safe. But why should a rogue trader go to all that trouble and expense?”, the Commission asks. Trade in fake goods also increases tax evasion, and indirectly the “honest” contribution of European taxpayers honest is increased because of fakes. Responsible choices. Avoiding “fakes”, be they t-shirts or purses, corresponds, for the Commission – which in the past years adopted various measures to this regard with the support and the cooperation of EU bodies such as EUROPOL and OLAF (anti-counterfeit body of the EU), the European Observatory on Counterfeiting and Piracy – to a “responsible choice”. The Executive’s report pointed out that “fake health products are dangerous and can do serious harm”. Medicines are tightly regulated for very good reasons: “if citizens take a fake product they can do themselves serious damage”. Unlike original medicines (including generic medicines), “fake medicines can be made out of anything”. Medical devices “are also subject to forgery. Contact lenses and blood testers are just some of the products that have been imitated and sold on the Internet or even in normal shops”; they may cost less, but they can have serious adverse effects “as they can be of poor quality, made of the wrong materials and have questionable effectiveness, if any”.