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Since February 2006 until the end of the year, the Czech Agriculture and Food Inspection Authority (CAFIA) has carried out a special inspection action. It was focused on control of food supplements and some food for particular nutritional uses intended for sportspeople. Such products are marketed at fitness centres and some specialized shops.

In samples checked, laboratory analyses did not detected any unauthorized anabolic steroids. However, in a number of cases, the real content of such supplements did not correspond to the information specified on the packaging.

Within this action, CAFIA checked 414 food samples marketed by 155 establishments. No sample contained unauthorized anabolic substances. However, laboratory analyses proved that 1 sample contained progesterone which must not be present in food supplements.

The situation in the field of labelling was significantly worse as the consumers were misleaded. Of 83 samples, 38 samples were unsatisfactory as to their content of substances given on the packaging of the products. For example, there was a significant difference between data on amino acids specified on the packaging and the real content.

Of 331 samples assessed in relation with labelling, 58 samples failed to comply. The most frequent deficiency was that information on the packaging was in different language than Czech.

Within the control action, the Inspection Authority imposed 90 bans on marketing of 154 foodstuffs, of which 29 bans were imposed on domestic products and 61 bans were imposed on products originating from the EU and from third countries.

The Anti-Doping Committee of the Czech Republic has been dealing with the matter of anabolic steroids in our country for years, which, however, checks their presence directly in body fluids. More than one year ago, the Inspection Authority obtained a series of suggestions from representatives of various bodies and from consumers as well, who had a suspicion that food supplements for sportspeople might have contained anabolic steroids too. Thus, CAFIA made an effort to buy a laboratory device (a two-dimensional gas chromatograph GCxGC/TOF) which enables effective detecting of anabolic steroids. After obtaining standards for detection of these substances and accreditation of the method, CAFIA commenced performing analyses focused on detection of anabolic steroids in food.

CAFIA will carry out a similar inspection action in this year as well. However, it will have a broader scope than inspections carried out in the previous year.