The ELIPET project focuses on food fraud prevention in official food control and food businesses. According to the European Commission, food fraud is an illegal, intentional act that misleads the customer and aims at economic gain. Food fraud is a part of the grey economy and it can cause financial losses to customers, as well as a health hazard. We study previous food fraud cases, food control officers’ abilities to detect food fraud during inspections, food business operators’ vulnerability to food fraud, and the food safety culture of Finnish food businesses with a food fraud perspective.
The researcher of the project is DVM, doctoral researcher Jasmin Joenperä. The project is funded by the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry (Makera). Collaborative partners in the project are several authorities (Finnish Food Authority, Regional State Administrative Agencies, Local food control units, police, National Prosecution Authority, Customs, Tax administration), interest organizations of the food sector, and several food companies. Associate professor, docent Annukka Vainio (Faculty of Agriculture and Forestry, UH), university lecturer Tarja Koskela (Faculty of Social Sciences and Business Studies, University of Eastern Finland), and professor Raimo Pohjanvirta (Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, UH) participate in the project.
Publications:
Joenperä, J., Koskela, T., & Lunden, J. (2022). Incidence and characteristics of food-related criminal cases in Finland. Food Control, 134, 108425.