Customs officers from Reunion and Marseille received congratulations from the government, September 19, for a particularly spectacular capture. Following information transmitted by their counterparts in Marseille, On July 7, customs officers from Reunion Island intercepted a container coming from China and destined for Madagascar., declared to contain 1,450 boxes of toys. When opening the first packages, they discovered sachets of powder and 25 ml bottles marked Cola, Fanta, Cola Spray or Sprite Spray appearing to be counterfeits. At the end of the operations, 463,050 sachets and 179,400 bottles were removed from the load. The trademark owner quickly confirmed that it was infringing.. The goods will be destroyed soon. “This seizure alone exceeds the total seizures of counterfeit food and drink products made by all customs services for the year 2022, i.e. 374,253 articles”, according to the government. Since 2019, customs services have the ability to control and intercept counterfeits, even if they are in transit, transshipment and not intended to be marketed in the European Union. This legal provision is particularly useful for controlled flows in Reunion Island., which accommodates significant transshipment traffic to or from neighboring islands.
