food fraud News and Research

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Food fraud costs the UK up to £2 billion a year

Researchers developed the first model to estimate the total annual economic cost of food fraud in the UK, placing it between £0.4 billion and £2 billion. Although food fraud appears relatively rare, individual crime schemes can cause substantial harm, with businesses bearing most costs and strong quality controls helping protect major supply chains.

17 Aug 2026

Foodborne threats demand stronger pandemic planning, review says

A Perspective review in npj Science of Food argues that pandemics can weaken food safety systems even when the pathogen is not foodborne. The authors call for One Health planning that integrates food safety into pandemic preparedness, surveillance, laboratory capacity, workforce readiness, and regulation.

2 Jul 2026

AI could help food systems detect pathogens, fraud, and contamination faster

A systematic review of 161 peer-reviewed publications found that AI research in food safety has expanded rapidly, rising from one study in 2012 to 46 in 2023. The review shows that machine learning and deep learning are being studied for pathogen detection, chemical contamination prediction, food fraud screening, outbreak surveillance, and regulatory decision-making, but data gaps, class imbalance, privacy limits, and model interpretability remain major barriers.

15 Jun 2026

Leveraging the Radian ASAP in standard casework

Explore how the Radian ASAP mass spectrometer is being used to streamline and enhance seized drug screening.

From Waters Advanced Diagnostics 30 Apr 2025

Lead contamination in South Asian turmeric sparks urgent health concerns

The Biden administration's recently announced plan to replace all lead pipes in the U.S. is a reminder that the toxic metal remains a threat, even in a country that has largely banned its use.

5 Nov 2024

International approaches to tackling food fraud

In this interview, we spoke to key members of the Food Authenticity Network to find out more about the increasing problem of food adulteration and the collaborations being made to address it.

From Bruker BioSpin Group 11 Jan 2022

Collaborative approaches to honey adulteration detection

In this interview, we spoke to Marisa Amadei and Professor Norberto Luis Garcia to explore the impact of honey fraud on global food supply chains.

From Bruker BioSpin Group 10 Jan 2022

New model can help determine the origin of food in an efficient and low-cost manner

Fraudulent practices in food production, especially false claims of geographical origin, cause billions of dollars in economic damage every year. Botanists at the University of Basel have now developed a model that can be used to determine the origin of food in an efficient and low-cost manner.

11 Oct 2021

Addressing Honey Fraud in Global Food Chains

In this interview, Peter Awram is an expert from the Worker Bee Honey Company, the largest apiary in British Columbia, Canada, and Gillian Wade, an expert in consumer class action litigation, discuss the issues facing honey producers.

From Bruker BioSpin Group 22 Sep 2021

Research surveys hygiene practices in food supply chains during COVID-19 pandemic

Researchers survey hygiene procedures in food supply chains implemented during the COVID-19 pandemic.

5 Apr 2021

Investigating Food Fraud in the Honey Industry

In this interview, News-Medical talks to Ron Phipps about food fraud within the honey industry and the methods for investigating it.

From Bruker BioSpin Group 16 Mar 2021

Bayreuth researchers develop a rapid test to detect quality and authenticity of olive oil

Extra virgin olive oil is extracted from cold-pressed, high-quality olives and is one of the most popular foods in Europe. However, inferior counterfeits are coming onto the market in increasing number.

3 Mar 2021

What safety measures have food suppliers implemented in response to COVID-19?

Researchers surveyed small to large food companies in 16 countries on food safety attributes and emergency plans. They found that less than half the food companies had documented putting emergency plans in place for pandemics and public health crises.

9 Dec 2020

Food sellers across Sub-Saharan Africa are using toxic chemicals to improve the look of meat, fish

Toxic chemicals are being used by food sellers across Sub-Saharan Africa to improve the look of meat and fish, scientists and food inspectors say, putting the health of millions at risk.

3 Jul 2020

Fighting for Change: Detecting Fraudulent Honey using NMR

In this interview, Peter Awram discusses the benefits of NMR spectroscopy as an analytical technique for the honey industry, in the fight against fraud.

From Bruker BioSpin Group 2 Oct 2019

New technique detects fake drugs from video taken as sample undergoes disturbance

If we could tell authentic from counterfeit or adulterated drugs and foods just by looking at them, we could save money and lives every year, especially in the developing world, where the problem is worst.

21 Mar 2019

New institute for food safety to be established in Netherlands

RIKILT Wageningen University & Research and the Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority's Laboratory for Food and Feed Safety will merge into a new institute effective 1 June 2019.

14 Jan 2019

Pittcon Release eBook Featuring the Latest Scientific Advances

Ahead of the 2018 conference and expo, Pittcon has released an eBook that highlights the latest advances in a range of scientific disciplines. It is an ‘ultimate compilation’ of scientific articles and interviews with some of the worlds leading scientists.

From Pittcon 19 Dec 2017

Researchers outline strategy to address vital measurement challenges in allergen analysis

A Manchester scientist has contributed to a review of allergen analysis that aims to improve the situation for those living with food allergies - preventing food fraud and protecting consumers.

27 Apr 2016

Criminology theory to combat counterfeit, sub-standard medicines

Around the world, especially in developing nations, counterfeit medicines are a real problem. Until now, in many countries there hasn't been a standard protocol to conduct investigations and pursue prosecution.

26 Apr 2016