Joint studies by the OECD and the EUIPO (European Union Intellectual Property Office) “estimate the share of imports into the European Union involving counterfeit goods at around 5%”.
From toys to automobile parts, fashion but also medicines, cigarettes and foodstuffs, counterfeiting, partly boosted by online commerce, is everywhere.
According to the 2024-2026 national plan, more than 20 million counterfeits were removed from the French market in 2023, a “historic, record” number of seizures which “almost doubled” compared to the previous year.
“The doubling of seizures reflects the effectiveness of our response and that we are facing an increase in counterfeit products,” explained Thomas Cazenave, the delegate minister who is due, this Friday, to go to Aulnay-sous-Bois (Seine- Saint-Denis) to present the new national plan to combat counterfeiting for the period 2024-2026 and take stock of 2023.
Games, toys and sporting goods top the list
“Counterfeiting is a form of triple punishment,” he added, estimating that it is “an economic problem with injured businesses and tax revenue not collected” as well as a “health issue” while one of the first categories of counterfeit products concerns toys.
It is also “a security issue”, this traffic “feeding criminal, mafia and terrorist networks”, said the delegate minister.
In detail, games, toys and sporting goods top the list of counterfeit products seized in France (more than 8 million in 2023), according to the document presenting the national anti-counterfeiting plan 2024-2026.
This is followed by packaging items (alcohol bottles, cartons of perfume bottles, etc., around 4.7 million seizures) then food and beverages, personal care products, clothing and accessories (more than one million for each category).
The Minister Delegate spoke of “the new situation of counterfeiting” which is “developing a lot in online commerce”.
Another point of vigilance for the government: “new counterfeiting chains with workshops on our national territory”.
This new national plan to combat counterfeiting is presented “in a particular context”, that of the Olympic Games, “which represent a challenge in terms of counterfeiting” of all products linked to the sporting event, said the President. minister.