The European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) received a prestigious award from the Association for the Defence of Trademarks (ANDEMA), Spain’s leading industrial property body, in recognition of its outstanding commitment to combating counterfeiting and defending intellectual and industrial property rights across Europe.
The award was presented during a ceremony held on 27 November in Barcelona, as part of the European Industrial Property Forum. OLAF accepted the honour, underscoring its enduring role in safeguarding a fair, safe and competitive European market.
“ANDEMA’s recognition is a tribute to the work carried out by OLAF across borders to uphold legality and protect fundamental rights in the internal market. It also reinforces the importance of sustained cooperation with our partners. Our joint expertise and commitment make it possible to fight against increasingly sophisticated counterfeit networks,” said Ernesto Bianchi, Director of Investigations and International Operations at OLAF.
OLAF’s work in protecting intellectual property and tackling counterfeits is essential for building trust among EU citizens, businesses and institutions. Counterfeits undermine legitimate economic activity and erode confidence in the internal market. Even more worrisome, counterfeits pose serious risks to consumer health and safety, as well as to the environment, because they often bypass quality controls, use hazardous materials and generate untraceable waste. By coordinating effective, cross-border actions with partners such as EUIPO, customs authorities and international stakeholders, OLAF helps ensure that European industry and consumers are shielded from the damaging effects of counterfeits.
In recent years, OLAF has stepped up joint efforts with the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) in strategic initiatives tackling some of the most pressing threats such as online counterfeiting and e-commerce fraud, counterfeiting of construction materials as well as everyday products.
Background
Counterfeits pose a wide range of risks. Beyond economic harm, counterfeits can threaten consumer health and safety, distort competition, and damage technological innovation and job creation. OLAF’s interventions help preserve consumer trust in markets and foster a level playing field for businesses of all sizes.
Through its investigations, partnerships and anti-fraud strategy, OLAF continues to support a European marketplace that rewards creativity, safeguards legality and protects consumer confidence.