Mirjana Kašaj, Nada Knežević

European Food and Feed Law Review, Volume 17 (2022), Issue 6, Page 407 - 413

Food fraud is a deliberate violation of food law in order to achieve economic gain. Food fraud incidents can negatively affect consumer confidence in food products, as well as regulatory bodies that need to prevent or mitigate food fraud. For this reason, it is important to have information about consumers' perceptions of food fraud, and to restore consumer confidence in food safety and quality. Production chains often involve more countries, and the more complex the production process, the greater the potential for fraud. To ensure safety and increase consumer confidence in the food they buy and consume, there are food regulations. However, due to multiple scandals related to food fraud, some regulators are not instilling public confidence. This paper aims to present the impact of food fraud on the perception and attitudes of consumers in the EU and the world.

Nada Knežević, Slavka Grbavac, Marina Palfi

European Food and Feed Law Review, Volume 14 (2019), Issue 6, Page 528 - 532

Country of Origin Information is a significant external information sign for consumers' perception and assessment of a food product. According to European regulations, the indication of the country of origin or place of provenance of the food is obligatory, where its omission could mislead the consumer of true country of origin or place of provenance. The indication of origin is currently mandatory for some food groups, such as beef and beef products, honey, fruit and vegetables, fish and olive oil, and additionally when food declaration contains statements, pictures, terms or symbols of some specific country. The country of origin or place of provenance of the primary ingredient must be indicated when it is different from the country of origin of the final product. A new EU regulation, which enters into force in April 2020, prescribes the manner of declarations of the primary ingredient origin. Voluntary indications, such as geographical labeling included in or accompanying the name of the food, may also be part of product designations protected as geographical indications, according to specific EU legislation. Origin labelling of food should additionally help consumers to make decisions about buying quality and safety food products in the future.