ORGANIC FRAUD UNCOVERED IN ITALY

Seven people, 5 owners or directors of a dozen companies and two employees of a control body, were arrested by Italian police last week, accused of having committed fraud by selling conventional products as organic products with false invoices and certification documents.

That's according to a statement last week by IFOAM, the International Federation of Organic Organic Agriculture Movements.

The 2500 tonnes of products seized in Verona included “field beans, soybeans and corn (for animal feed) and lesser amounts of wheat. The majority of products came from Bulgaria and Romania”said IFOAM. They continued: “The fraud dates back to a period between 2007 and 2009. The inspection body has fired and reported to the authorities two employees involved as soon as its internal audits identified the criminal activity.” according to the IFOAM statement.

Press agency AFP reported that “police said 700,000 tons of illegal organic products valued at 220 million euros ($295 million) had been sold over several years across Italy and to Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Hungary, the Netherlands and Switzerland.”

IFOAM stressed that “over the last year, all Italian certification bodies have worked closely together with the Guardia di Finanza (Italian
Revenue Guard Corps), having provided supporting documentation and data that has facilitated and deepened the investigation.”

“There is no space for criminals in the organic sector who think that fraudulent business is the way to make easy money”, stated Christopher Stopes, president of the IFOAM EU Group. “We are glad that thanks to tight organic controls in place, the investigations of the Italian justice in cooperation with the Italian organic sector that provided the necessary documentation and data, have seen an end to this incredible case”, adds Marco Schlüter, Director of the Group. The organic market is worth E3 billion per year in Italy.

Italian organic certification association AIAB pointed out that “Italian farmers are not only totally free of responsibility, but victims of this fraud” . They also pointed out that they had been warning the authorities about the problem of organised crime's recent involvement in the profitable organic food business area and of the need for stronger inspection procedures as a result. They expressed concerned regarding criminal infiltration of the inspection and certification procedures off farm: for imported feed ingredients and long chain commodities such as pastas and breads.

Both Irish organic certification bodies, IOFGA and the Organic Trust were “appalled” at the situation. IOFGA say that they are “appalled at the alleged scandal in Italy involving fundamental structural corruption resulting in the fraudulent labeling of organic produce. The growing popularity of organic food has seemingly encouraged Italian organised crime to take full advantage”.

They also pointed out that the scandal appeared to involve “produce bound for animal feed, or composite ingredients such as wheat used for breads and pasta.”

“Irish organic certification has a rigorous inspection process that ensures the integrity of organic produce from farm to fork. Irish organic farms and food processors receive comprehensive inspections at least once a year to ensure integrity through absolute compliance with the standards”.

Colin Keogh of the Organic Trust added that the Department spend “an inordinate amount of resources establishing and verifying the authenticity of not just the producers but the companies certifying them.” He added: “businesses wishing to conduct this type of import have to comply with stringent documentation requirements which require the certification body responsible for licencing the proposed imports to submit precise details of their systems and summary reports from the last inspection of the producers concerned.”

According to Keogh “a Director of a Certifying Body was also arrested – this being the case, it is hard to point fingers at the system of certification if some of those responsible for administering it are corrupt themselves. No system can legislate for the actions of corrupt individuals.”

It is also worth adding that the Irish organic inspection and certification system, often considered overly bureaucratic and time consuming, is also considered the strictest in the world.