Police inspect intensively marketplaces on holidays

On the eve and in the run-up to winter holidays the police have intensified the inspection of goods in the marketplaces to protect the local consumer against counterfeit production. According to the Interior Ministry (IM), representatives of the General Trade Division, National Scientific-Practical Centre for Preventive Medicine, Standard and Metrology Service, Public Food and Service Provision, as well as the State Sanitary-Veterinary Service undertake measures to counter the illicit trade. This period witnesses the most attempts of putting for sale in the marketplaces, commercial centres and shops food products of bad quality, which are counterfeit and do not comply with the standards. Representatives of Transborder and Information Offence Department of IM assert that these inspections are not organised only on the occasion with the winter holidays. Operations and special raids are carried out permanently, both under the aegis of the Interior Ministry and invested structures with specific functions. In 11 months of 2006 there were traced 215 clandestine lines, of which 55 – of counterfeiting and bottling alcoholic drinks, 60 – of manufacturing food products illicitly and 100 – of counterfeiting consumption goods. In the reference period there were drawn up more than 10,000 reports, set fines of about 2 mln 300 thousand lei and confiscated production valued at about 13 mln lei.