How to Assess for Food Fraud in Packaging Materials

Supplement for paying subscribers

Table of Contents

• Introduction

• Vulnerabilities for food companies purchasing packaging materials

• Vulnerabilities for packaging companies purchasing raw materials

• Examples of packaging fraud

• Mitigations

• Checklist for vulnerability assessments

• Resources and further reading

Introduction

In February, the Corporate Manager of Food Safety and Quality Assurance from a famous American turkey brand and a student in my food fraud prevention programs training, asked me how to approach packaging fraud in their supply chains.

Packaging fraud has not been widely studied, and to my knowledge, my company is the only food fraud organisation that tracks fraud in packaging materials (Check out the packaging list in our free database).

Packaging materials are likely to be susceptible to food fraud, although there is little information available. This estimate of susceptibility is based on the following factors:

• packaging materials are unlikely to be tested for the purposes of fraud detection;

• substitution of cheaper, low-grade raw materials for 'food-grade' materials such as resins and masterbatches would be both profitable and difficult to detect;

• the cost of raw materials for packaging is rising;

• the demand for post-consumer recycled resins far outstrips supply in many countries.

In this supplement for paying subscribers, I explain some of the possible vulnerabilities in packaging and share mitigation approaches and a checklist for performing vulnerability assessments.

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Fraud in Packaging: Considerations for Food Companies

Food companies that operate food fraud prevention programs should include primary packaging materials in their vulnerability assessments. 

Primary packaging materials are materials