Food fraud prevention strategies: Building an effective verification ecosystem

Area of Science:

• Food Science and Technology
• Regulatory Affairs
• Supply Chain Management

Background:

• Food fraud poses a significant threat to regulators, food business operators (FBOs), and consumers.
• Existing research predominantly addresses food fraud detection, neglecting prevention strategies.
• A knowledge gap exists regarding effective food fraud prevention initiatives.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review food-related fraud prevention initiatives.
• To identify successful prevention strategies.
• To develop policy and research recommendations for enhancing food fraud prevention.

Main Methods:

• Literature review focusing on food fraud prevention strategies.
• Analysis of current gaps in integrated food control management systems.
• Assessment of emergent practice models for food fraud prevention.

Main Results:

• Reactive food fraud detection methods are more prevalent than proactive prevention, especially with limited resources.
• Limited examples of integrated food control management systems for prevention exist at FBO, supply chain, and regulatory levels.
• Lack of public/private integration and effective verification weakens current prevention plans.

Conclusions:

• Food fraud prevention requires strengthened strategies, focusing on capable guardians and target hardening.
• Integrated food control management systems and hybrid public/private collaborations are crucial.
• Further research and policy development are needed to enhance food fraud prevention, ensuring food safety, legality, and authenticity.