Labelling Continues to Protect Pharma

Pharmaceuticals remain a real and potentially dangerous target for fraudsters, as these two new tamper-evident and anti-counterfeit developments testify.

Schreiner MediPharm, a German provider of innovative functional labels for the healthcare industry, has introduced a tamper protection label with a clear and irreversible first-opening indication for vials.

According to Schreiner MediPharm, drug counterfeiters frequently fill original pharmaceutical containers with ineffective or harmful substitutes. In many cases, container tampering cannot be detected. In the worst case, a falsified medicine could cause fatal consequences for patients.

Developed specifically for vials, Schreiner MediPharm’s new technology can help prevent the illegal reuse of original containers and protect their integrity.

The new label wraps around the vial up to the level of the cap. To open the vial, a label-integrated tear strip must be peeled off and cannot be resealed. A warning message clearly indicating that the vial has been opened also emerges. As an optional, additional layer of protection, this first-opening indication can be boosted by a void effect feature in which previously invisible lettering or symbols separate from an indicator field.

© Schreiner MediPharm.

For enhanced security, verification features for proof of authenticity can also be incorporated into the label. Furthermore, special features are available such as a detachable documentation label, a transparent inspection window for checking vial content, a light protection function for sensitive substances, or integrated NFC/ RFID chips for digital applications.

Schreiner MediPharm’s new tamper-evident label is especially well-suited for small vials and can be custom-designed to meet various applications. It can be processed in the standard labelling workflow in pharmaceutical production while preserving the product’s branding and design.

Moving to the second development, Holographyx has announced that it has recently been granted US Patent # 11,052,020 B2 for its Holo-Blister® product, along with European Patent # EP 3532005 for the development of a cost-effective method to apply holograms to the back of blister packs using conventional heat-seal blister packaging equipment.

Holo-Blister holograms have been designed so that they will only be visible behind each pill/capsule cavity on the back of each blister pack, thereby allowing the printing of dosage and marketing information on the area surrounding the pill/capsule recess.

© Holographyx.

According to Holographyx, the size of the worldwide market for counterfeit pharmaceuticals has been estimated to be as much as $200 billion annually. Although anti-counterfeiting measures such as track and trace can be used to distinguish legitimate pharmaceutical products from counterfeits, these systems require consumers to go online to validate each of their pharmaceutical purchases.

Blister packaging utilising Holo-Blister provides consumers with the ability to visually validate the authenticity of their purchases instantly with the use of custom holograms which, prior to the development of the Holographyx solution, would be extremely difficult to manufacture and apply.

Holographyx has been working with the Hazen Paper Company in cooperation with Uhlmann Packaging on the development, testing, and introduction of Holo-Blister.