Author Topic: Chinese Fraudsters Relabel Ctrus With Australian Labels  (Read 2600 times)

Millet

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Chinese Fraudsters Relabel Ctrus With Australian Labels
« on: March 12, 2015, 12:45:00 PM »
Citrus Australia said Chinese counterfeiters had been relabeling Chinese fruit with Australian labels to collect higher prices and sales,
and there was not much they could do about it. China is Australia's fastest-growing and highest-valued citrus export market, valued at about $30 million. The rise was driven largely by the "sweet, safe and healthy" profile of Aussie citrus, but that was being stolen to raise the value of Chinese fruit. Citrus Australia said some Chinese citrus was illegally being sold in wholesale markets with Australian-branded boxes and stickers, and, in some cases, given away by spelling mistakes and images of lions or tigers. Some of the fruit was even dipped in dye to enhance its color.

Queensland grower Ian Shepherd co-owns citrus packing company Gaypak, which exports half its volume to China, and claimed he'd personally witnessed a rip-off of his brand in China six years ago"...the reasons why I know it was counterfeited was because of spelling mistakes and street address being wrong. The Australian citrus industry's reputation would suffer greatly if the fake Aussie fruit was found to be treated with illegal chemicals. "If they put our logo on local fruit and there is (a chemical residue) issue... the ramifications... could be monumental.

"What we've been doing is trying to get a full understanding of who is actually importing our product, and selecting various importers who are ethical," he said.  Andrew Harty, the market development manager with Citrus Australia, told ABC Radio National that the industry would now consider what legal action it could take. "We're looking at it on a number of fronts: one is to see what are the legal approaches we could take, and quite honestly, that's going to be very difficult. Those brands have got very little legal protection in China."  It is now even believed some of the fake Australian citrus in China is being exported to other countries.

Milet
« Last Edit: March 12, 2015, 12:51:26 PM by Millet »

jcaldeira

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Re: Chinese Fraudsters Relabel Ctrus With Australian Labels
« Reply #1 on: March 12, 2015, 04:03:57 PM »
A similar problem exists with Chinese honey.  It is often relabeled, and sometimes even rerouted, through a third country to avoid the stigma of being Chinese honey.   Chinese honey has been found to sometimes be adulterated with cheaper syrups, and its pesticide and antibiotic concentrations are sometimes above U.S. regulatory limits.  Some countries have an outright prohibition against Chinese honey imports.
Applying laws and rules equally to all is a cornerstone of a civilized society.

Riverland

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Re: Chinese Fraudsters Relabel Ctrus With Australian Labels
« Reply #2 on: March 12, 2015, 06:19:23 PM »
I'm not surprised.
I tried Chinese oranges when I was in HK.
They were terrible with a chemical after-taste.

plantrant

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Re: Chinese Fraudsters Relabel Ctrus With Australian Labels
« Reply #3 on: March 12, 2015, 06:22:59 PM »
Well, at least the doggie treats and baby toys are safe enough that they do not need to be formally, thoroughly inspected before being sold here. We have the best legislators that money can buy.

fyliu

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Re: Chinese Fraudsters Relabel Ctrus With Australian Labels
« Reply #4 on: March 12, 2015, 08:02:32 PM »
Chinese honey: I think it's safer that they're using something other than real honey, since there's the pesticide issue with honey. I can't say for sure if there's actually unsafe levels of pesticides since groups making those claims usually have financial(honey cartel?) or political (government protectionist) interests.

Chinese oranges: they actually taste much better in China than US oranges in the US. Maybe just a coincidence?

jcaldeira

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Re: Chinese Fraudsters Relabel Ctrus With Australian Labels
« Reply #5 on: March 12, 2015, 08:07:13 PM »
Chinese honey: I think it's safer that they're using something other than real honey, since there's the pesticide issue with honey. I can't say for sure if there's actually unsafe levels of pesticides since groups making those claims usually have financial(honey cartel?) or political (government protectionist) interests.

U.S. honey almost NEVER will have significant pesticides.  Nobody puts pesticides on clover.  Or on citrus when it's blooming.  Read the label and buy U.S. honey. 

If you think corn syrup is safer, go ahead and buy it but let's not call it 'honey'.
Applying laws and rules equally to all is a cornerstone of a civilized society.

fyliu

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Re: Chinese Fraudsters Relabel Ctrus With Australian Labels
« Reply #6 on: March 12, 2015, 09:39:40 PM »
Chinese honey: I think it's safer that they're using something other than real honey, since there's the pesticide issue with honey. I can't say for sure if there's actually unsafe levels of pesticides since groups making those claims usually have financial(honey cartel?) or political (government protectionist) interests.

U.S. honey almost NEVER will have significant pesticides.  Nobody puts pesticides on clover.  Or on citrus when it's blooming.  Read the label and buy U.S. honey. 

If you think corn syrup is safer, go ahead and buy it but let's not call it 'honey'.
I agree. They're labeled as "honey flavored syrup" these days. You can still dig up older products that claim they're honey I'm sure. It's probably cane sugar syrup since they don't grow corn for sugar like we do here. The US may be the only country to do this.

It just feels like people make contradictory statements on certain topics. Like saying honey contains lots of pesticides from farming, and then say bees are really sensitive to pesticides and will get wiped out. I get that the goal is to try to get people to agree that pesticides are bad.