Graphic Packaging International unveils new coding methods for anti-counterfeit pharmaceutical packaging

04 Nov 2022 --- Graphic Packaging International (GPI) revealed its latest pack serialization solution for medical packaging at the CPHI trade show in Frankfurt, Germany. The pack can now accommodate longer and more complex coding requirements to keep up with global anti-counterfeit pharmaceutical legislation changes.

Each code on the package complies with the “highest print quality and readability standards with a high-contrast, high-resolution code that ensures optimal scanner legibility.” The company states that the codes can be molded to comply with any coding laws or regulations worldwide.

“The increasing availability of counterfeit medications and other healthcare products threatens patient safety worldwide. An effective serialization solution is more vital now than ever,” says Erwin Klünder, head of sales, healthcare at GPI. 

The serialization technology prevents duplicates, ensuring process reliability and pharma-compliant data handling. The packaging is in line with lawmakers around the world introducing traceability legislation to clamp down on counterfeit healthcare products and improve patient safety, claims GPI.

GPI’s latest in serialization can be adjusted and coded to comply with different countries' legislations. Pharma legislation
Counterfeit labels are a common problem in the pharmaceutical packaging industry, leading to government and industry efforts to intervene. 

China’s Ministry of Finance and Commerce has highlighted the importance of serialization, stating that manufacturers must implement it at all pharmaceutical packaging stages. 

Recent EU legislation – the Falsified Medicine Directive - mandates that every prescription medication pack must contain traceable technology. 

GPI says that its system can create everything from EU codes to C128 barcodes for the Chinese market and answer the latest drug traceability specifications released at the end of June 2022. 

“Our solution is compatible with a wide range of code specifications – even country-specific formats, such as Italian Bollini labels and RFID applications,” states Klünder.  

“It gives contract manufacturers and packers the flexibility to include any code format printed on the label or directly onto open or pre-glued packaging. All this is carried out at our facility, easing the pressure on other parts of the supply chain by integrating into existing processes with no additional CapEx investment required.

According to the World Health Organization, one in ten medical products in developing countries is substandard or falsified.

What is serialization?
Serialization is converting an object into a stream of bytes to store the object or transmit it to memory, a database, or a file. GPI showcases new serialization pharma packaging at CPHI Frankfurt. 

It translates into GPI’s product because it is an object and, through sterilization, can be turned into a stream of bytes that stores the object’s data. The scannable QR code on its packaging contains data that producers and consumers can access to ensure they are not working with counterfeit products. 

Anti-counterfeit innovation
Last month, UbiQD created its quantum dot technology to create an ink that cannot be replicated to ensure security for those that implement it. The technology can be added to any packaging or document to prevent counterfeits. 

Antares Vision and Edgyn partnered to provide an authentication solution to help combat counterfeiting in the pharmaceutical industry. They created a digital fingerprint for every package, an undetectable signature based on a product’s physical characteristics.

All4Labels Global Packaging Group recently announced that it is expanding its QR solutions and cloud services to ensure greater customer engagement and combat counterfeiting. 

Whereas previously, researchers at Purdue University, US, developed an edible “security tag” embedded into medicine to expose counterfeiters. 

By Sabine Waldeck