THE NEED
Italian Geographical Indications constitute a significant asset, contributing over 20 billion euros annually to the national economy and providing employment for approximately 900 thousand individuals. Italy boasts 890 Geographical Indications, securing its position as the global leader in this domain. However, this prosperity faces imminent threats from fraud, particularly in online spaces, where cases of usurpation, evocation, and imitation are escalating at an alarming pace.
THE AGREEMENT
To address this challenge, the Central Inspectorate for the Protection of Quality and Repression of Fraud of Agri-Food Products (ICQRF) under the Italian Ministry of Agriculture, Food Sovereignty, and Forestry (MASAF), in collaboration with the CSSC, has initiated VERIFOOD. This agreement aims to protect Italian Geographical Indications online.
VERIFOOD leverages the expertise of an inter-university centre specialised in multidisciplinary applied research on security, supporting both offline and online investigations, along with a decade of ICQRF experience in combating fraud related to Geographical Indications on the web.
VERIFOOD represents an agreement for the implementation of activities of mutual interest pursuant to art. 15 l. 241/90 (duration: 42 months | start: October 2022).
THE OBJECTIVES
#Artificial_Intelligence
The first objective is to harness the power of artificial intelligence, complemented by insights from criminology, cognitive science, and legal studies, to create an innovative information system known as the Verifood platform. This platform is designed to identify, investigate, and gather evidence related to online fraud targeting Geographical Indications.
Tailored to meet the specific operational needs of ICQRF, the platform will enhance the Inspectorate's (already outstanding) online monitoring activity, elevating its effectiveness and efficiency to an even higher level.
#Cooperation
The second objective is to foster collaboration among qualified public and private stakeholders, such as protection consortia, and facilitate partnerships with universities and research centers. This collaboration aims to establish a national network that optimizes synergies for monitoring, combating, and preventing online fraud effectively.
Furthermore, the initiative includes the establishment of the first national course for multidisciplinary specialist training in this field.
#Awareness
The third objective is to enhance public awareness of the importance of safeguarding Italian Geographical Indications.
The university is also tasked with this mission.
By both online and offline communications, training sessions, conferences, university courses, and publications, the aim is to actively involve citizens in protecting the nation's agricultural and culinary excellence.
