Hermes Commends OLAF Action and Calls for a Practical Response to Illicit Tobacco

Brussels, 30/07/2026 – Giovanni Kessler, President of the Scientific Committee of the Hermes European Study Centre today commended the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) and participating national authorities for recently dismantling two international organisations involved in the manufacture and trafficking of counterfeit tobacco in Spain.

The operation resulted in 50 arrests and the seizure of more than 20 million cigarettes, nearly 40 tonnes of tobacco, manufacturing equipment, cash, firearms and 18 vehicles. It follows Operation NOXIA II, which resulted in the seizure of 149.5 million cigarettes and more than 105 tonnes of tobacco in late 2025. Counterfeit and smuggled tobacco poses a distinct public health threat: illicit products fall outside quality controls and health standards and pose a danger to consumers.

“Having served as OLAF’s Director-General from 2011 to 2017, I know the importance of timely intelligence, close co-operation between national authorities and effective cross-border co-ordination,” said Giovanni Kessler, Chairman of the Scientific Committee of Hermes. “Cases of this magnitude require months, even years of investigative work and the ability to follow criminal activity across several jurisdictions.”

The two operations also highlight the persistence of Europe’s illicit tobacco market. In 2016, Kessler’s final full year leading OLAF, nearly 50 billion illicit cigarettes were consumed across the EU. By 2025, although overall volumes had declined, illicit cigarettes accounted for a larger share of the market and drove significantly higher estimated tax losses than a decade earlier. France’s illicit share rose sharply over the same period, while Italy’s fell substantially. “Tax policy by itself does not explain these differences. Geography, enforcement capacity, supply routes and consumer behaviour all matter,” Kessler stated. “But price cannot be dismissed.”

Hermes supports gradual tax increases and illicit-market assessments before major tax rises or bans, alongside stronger enforcement against criminal supply networks to protect public health and consumer markets.

“The policy choice is not between public health and enforcement. Both are necessary,” Kessler added.

Kessler discusses his views in greater detail in his opinion piece: https://www.euronews.com/my-europe/2026/07/30/illicit-tobacco-successful-raids-are-not-enough-to-put-an-end-to-this-criminal-trade