The Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) led Australia’s participation in INTERPOL’s Operation Pangea, which tackles the trade of illicit and counterfeit therapeutic goods worldwide, intercepting more than $2 million of illegally imported products.
During a week of action, 94 countries representing every continent cooperated to detect and seize a combined USD$11 million in illicit and counterfeit therapeutic goods globally. Nearly half of the packages inspected were found to contain illicit or counterfeit medicines and products including anabolic steroids, antibiotics, COVID-19 rapid antigen tests, cosmetic injectables, erectile dysfunction medicines, herbal and sports supplements, ivermectin, nicotine vaping products, pain killers and sedatives
Over 4,000 websites and web links that advertised and sold these products were also shutdown or removed. Dozens of organised crime groups were impacted.
Locally, the TGA worked with enforcement agencies to assess a large number of consignments containing therapeutic products detected by the Australian Border Force entering the country.
This work enabled the seizure of over 860,000 units of unlawfully imported products, of which around 7% were counterfeit. The estimated combined value is over AU$2 million. This represents a significant disruption of dangerous medicines from entering our community.
This operation serves as a reminder that therapeutic goods must be entered in the Australian Register of Therapeutic Goods before they can be lawfully imported, advertised and/or supplied in Australia unless an exemption applies. Unregistered medicines and medical devices are often not assessed for quality, safety or efficacy and could be counterfeit, posing a risk to consumers.
Those considering importing unregistered therapeutic goods into Australia should heed the warning that they risk financial penalties, seizure and loss of goods, and other legal action as appropriate.
