Eg. product name, manufacturer, dealer, ...

MENU Close

• Entrepreneurs
• Business information
• Certification
• CAFIA laboratories
• CAFIA opinions
• More information
• Consumers
• How to know the food market
• Results of CAFIA inspections
• Consumer rights
• List of risky sites
• Hoaxes
• Other visitors
• Press Releases
• Internships at CAFIA
• Public contracts

The Czech Agriculture and Food Inspection Authority carried out repeatedly the control of instant coffees that became the subject of adulterations in the past. The previous control performed in 2000 showed that one third of the products – mostly the unknown brand names – were manufactured with the addition of chicory, malt, figs or cereals. This is what the legislation does not allow and similar acts are classified as adulterations.

The product can be classified as instant coffee only if it does not contain any admixtures of coffee substitutes. As to the mixture of coffee extract and coffee substitute, it must be labelled as a coffee substitute.

The detection of impermissible items in a sample of instant coffee is performed on the basis of determination of some selected sugars, whose low contents are characteristic for pure coffee. If the laboratory analysis proves increased contents of saccharides that are typical of the coffee substitutes, it is then possible to talk about adulteration.

CAFIA focused during the inspection on the less known brand names of domestic and imported instant coffees that are normally offered in shops and marketplaces. This time the results of laboratory analyses showed adulterations in 21% of the samples taken, i.e. in six cases out of twenty-eight:

• 100% Instant Coffee (Produced by: 2F Sverige HB, Sweden)
• Instant Coffee (Produced by: KAFFA s.r.o.,CR)
• “Brazil” Instant Coffee (Produced by: PIKA KAVA, CR)
• Caffe FORT WAYNE (Produced by: P.W.ALCOR, Poland)
• LE CAFÉ EXCLUSIVE (Produced by: RSX Katowice, Poland)
• Instant Coffee (Imported by: I.I.P. Business Services Prague, CR, imported from Israel).

A ban on the release into circulation was imposed in all the above products and the cases have to be settled down directly in the premises of producers or importers.

Detection of deceptive consumer transactions is one of the priorities of the CAFIA control activities. According to the statement of Mr. Jakub Šebesta, CAFIA General Director, ”…the consumer has a right to such food that basically conforms to the data declared on the label. Therefore, CAFIA will go on applying severe penalties for food adulterations, whose only scope is to make a profit at the expense of the consumer’s purse. ”