From: Europe Online
Author: Alexandra Mayer-Hohdahl
Brussels (dpa) – European Union customs agents seized 115 million counterfeit products in 2011, with medicine, packaging material such as cereal boxes and cigarettes topping the list of faked goods, the bloc‘s executive said Tuesday.
“Theft of intellectual property is a serious crime. Fake goods that enter the EU market rob EU companies of legitimate revenue and can pose a potential threat to the safety of consumers in the EU,” said European Commission spokesman Jonathan Todd.
China continued to be the top supplier, with 73 per cent of goods seized at the EU‘s external borders stemming from the Asian country.
Turkey was the main source for counterfeit foodstuffs, while most fake alcoholic drinks came from Panama, most soft drinks from Thailand and most mobile phones from Hong Kong.
The EU recorded 15 per cent more cases of seized fake goods in 2011 than the year before, with the value of the products reaching almost 1.3 billion euros (1.6 billion dollars).
