A growing global problem
Today, counterfeit products can be found in more places than just sidewalk stands and rented trucks. They often surprise brand owners by showing up on mainstream retail shelves and in regular distribution channels, side-by-side with genuine products.
The risks associated with counterfeit products continue to rise. It is not just lost revenues, counterfeit pharmaceuticals threaten the health of patients. Across all industries, counterfeit goods now account for as much as 10 per cent of global trade. The problem is of special concern for pharmaceutical manufacturers as the appearance of many drugs are easy to mimic, and profits from the sale of counterfeit speciality pharmaceuticals make them attractive targets for counterfeiters. Advances in printing capabilities and the growing trend of supply chain infiltration by counterfeiters only increases the risks for today's drug manufacturers and distributors.
That is why DuPont Packaging and Industrial Polymers, through its Security & Solutions business, has entered into a marketing partnership with identif GmbH of Erlangen, Germany to deliver innovative, scientifically-engineered technologies for easy and accurate product authentication. It is committed to helping pharmaceutical manufacturers, hospitals, doctors and pharmacies authenticate products to ensure maximum protection for both patients and brands.
Greater accuracy
Pharmaceutical brand owners can now tackle counterfeiting problems with a new generation of scientifically-engineered solutions to help safeguard products with customised, non-reproducible authentication technologies. Offering both visible (overt) and machine-readable (covert) applications, these solutions provide manufacturers with a definitive, easy and cost-efficient way to verify product authenticity throughout the supply chain.
Precision colour-shift films
Color-Spectra Films provide a bright, durable and overt packaging feature, reassuring consumers that the pharmaceutical product they are purchasing is authentic, and sending a powerful message that you are working to keep them safe from counterfeit goods. In addition to visual authentication, the precision colour shift effect (which is coded specifically for each manufacturer or product) also provides quick and easy machine-readable authentication for an additional level of protection. The machine reader detects subtle differences in colour shift that may be difficult to discern visually, creating a powerful, non-reproducible verification tool. Many colour combinations are possible, ensuring a good variety for manufacturers with multiple product lines. Color-Spectra Films can also be customised with embedded images including logos or lot numbers, and can easily be incorporated into existing label or package designs.
Bio-molecular marker
The bio-molecular marker system is an advanced, DNA-based security device for covert, machine-readable product authentication. It incorporates manufacturer-specific DNA molecules into a product label. The manufacturer-controlled pen-sized detector then signals when the appropriate DNA molecules are identified, ensuring a 'lock and key' method for product authentication. As DNA technology offers enormous coding capacity, the bio-molecular marker system provides highly-secure, covert and non-reproducible product verification. Product authenticity can be checked in just minutes with a marker pen and hand-held reader, offering an easy, highly secure form of covert protection.
Identifying risk and solutions
DuPont Security & Solutions also offers brand protection and authentication workshops to help companies protect against counterfeiting and tampering. Available as half-day or full day sessions, each workshop is tailored to meet specific areas of interest, and can include detailed company-specific or market-centric research and analysis.
Further information
DuPont Security and Solutions
Website: www.dupont.com/packaging/securitysolutions
Authors
Volker Plehn is director of DuPont security and solutions business for DuPont Packaging & Industrial Polymers.
Carolyn Burns is global marketing manager of DuPont security and solutions business for DuPont Packaging & Industrial Polymers.
