Beware of Food Fraud During the Coronavirus

By Mitchell Weinberg

Crises of an environmental nature, or as in the case of Coronavirus, a pandemic, bring out the best and worst in people. Individuals who are inclined to engage in criminal behavior may be further inclined by such situations, which can increase the likelihood of nefarious acts being committed when the rest of us are vulnerable.

The Coronavirus is the first truly global pandemic in over 100 years. Although the disease is front and center in our minds, is it really the disease, or survival, that is taking up our bandwidth during these unprecedented times? The answer is survival. What do we need to survive? Food. Hunger is a very powerful physical and emotional need.

The Coronavirus has created the perfect storm for those who commit food fraud.

The Coronavirus has created the perfect storm for those who commit food fraud. People who are desperate for food, or fearful that there will be food shortages and hunger, will eat almost anything, depending on how dire their circumstances are. Unfortunately, the Coronavirus has impacted the poor and low-income populations the most. Delivery of food in certain regions of the world that already suffer from compromised or broken food supply chains are even more affected than they were prior to the virus. Those in North America and Europe are seeing shortages of certain commodities while other products are being destroyed because restaurants and foodservice operators that typically use those commodities are currently shut down.