This news podcast investigates the global threat of fake alcohol. The podcast begins by highlighting recent incidents of deaths and illnesses caused by contaminated alcohol in various countries, then introduces expert interviews with an alcohol epidemiologist, a food chemist and toxicologist, an economist specializing in illicit trade, and the director general of an anti-illicit trade alliance. Experts discuss the dangers of methanol poisoning, the difficulty in detecting contaminated alcohol, the involvement of organized crime, and the challenges in enforcing regulations and international cooperation to combat this issue. The podcast concludes by emphasizing the need for a coordinated international response to address the significant public health and economic risks posed by the global illicit alcohol trade, highlighting the fact that contaminated alcohol is often impossible for consumers to detect.
