Every month, the European Commission publishes a brief overview of suspected cases of fraud and misleading practices in the European agri-food chain. These are reports received via iRASFF, the European network for notifications and information exchange. These monthly publications are intended to help regulators and supply chain stakeholders identify emerging patterns more quickly: which product groups are becoming “hotspots”, which tricks are recurring, and where controls need to be tightened. It is explicitly not a list of proven fraudsters, but a radar image. In December 2025, 196 suspected cases were selected from 798 iRASFF notifications.
December 2025 reveals a large number of suspicious products. The highest concentration of suspicions is not found in “traditional” fraud, such as relabelled meat. It is now concentrated in the area of supplements, fortified products and dietetic foods. With 87 reports, this category dominates the month.
Health has become a key selling point, and that can quickly lead to temptation.
The largest category of fraud is known as “implicit claim violations”. These are violations where you suggest something without stating it explicitly. Examples include labels, product names, website copy, images, influencers, “medical jargon”, before-and-after stories, and quasi-scientific wording.
Be wary of terms such as “boost”, “detox”, “hormonal balance”, “immune system”, “anti-…”, “therapeutic” and “clinically proven” that are not backed up by solid evidence.
December has seen numerous indications of record tampering. This involves the manipulation of records such as: temperature, origin, identity, import documents and supply chain traceability.
The reports reveal familiar patterns such as: adding water, tampering with the glaze on fish and prawns, and fiddling with net weight or proportions. It is a type of fraud that the EU has flagged, yet which the trade has actually come to regard as somewhat “normal” because it happens everywhere. Until someone actually starts measuring it.
Substitution remains a classic tactic: replacing more expensive ingredients with cheaper ones, whilst the story remains the same. Think of coffee (Arabica/Robusta), oil (quality and origin), and meat (type, composition, DNA traces).
The reports highlight substances and issues such as E171-related notifications, suspected cases of ethylene oxide, and questionable “enhancements” in fish. According to the EU, this is typically the area where international trade, cost pressures and rapid e-commerce intersect.
The advice here is: ensure you have clear specifications, certificates of analysis (CoAs) and traceability. And check that they are consistent. Be aware of relabelling: if something suddenly has a “different name”, it’s useful to know why.
Look out for these patterns in your own supply chain or sector:
Fraud evolves alongside the market: moving into healthcare terminology, online sales and document manipulation. Companies must remain vigilant in order to stay within the EU’s regulatory framework.
