PRESS RELEASE

No Chance of Product Piracy

STI Group develops improved pharmaceutical packaging

Lauterbach 2015-08-05–Over ten percent of medicines worldwide are counterfeit, according to a study by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The EU is, therefore, planning to revise the anti-counterfeiting directive for pharmaceuticals in Europe, which is likely to be passed in the first half of 2015.

After this directive comes into effect, every pharmaceutical packaging sold in the EU will be required to have a security seal and combined security features. The aim: Pharmacists and, where necessary, even users must be able to check the authenticity of a drug by means of overt, covert or forensic security features.

As a specialist in pharmaceutical packaging, the STI Group shows how the various requirements for packaging can be implemented in practice. The result: a folding box that patients, pharmacists and hospitals can rely on and thatensures that the product in their hands is an original product. The pharmaceutical packaging developed by the STI Group protects people against counterfeit medicines and the pharmaceutical industry againsthigh financial losses.

“There are several options to secure a folding box against counterfeiting,”according to Zoltan Toth, in charge ofpackaging design at the Hungarian folding carton plant of the STI Group. The combination of as many visible and invisible security features as possible offers the best safeguard. We use a combination of classic anti-counterfeiting measures and new solutions such as theTrustcode®. This optical element can be scanned with mobile devices and the authenticity tracked by means of an app. In addition to this, the supply chain can be monitored by trackandtrace.”

Microtext, ICI or a coating that is only visible underUV light are just few of the features that can be found on the packaging, some of which are only used if the means necessary to decode them are available.

Tamper-evident Closure and Serialisation

A tamper-evident closure protects the product against tampering and swapping of medicines. For packaging filled by machines at the pharmaceutical manufacturer’s site, various designs are possible to implement this requirement. Despite the tamper evidence, it is still possible to reseal the box after it has been opened for the first time. In manual filling, a security label, which is damaged when the box is first opened, indicates that the packaging was already opened.

The pharmaceutical packaging showcased also has an individual serial number that is printed either at the packaging manufacturer’s site or during the packaging process at the pharmaceutical manufacturer’s site. The printing of an individual GS1 data matrix code allows the packaging to be tracked over the entire supply chain. The tamper evidence can also be checked with a smartphone using a special app.

“The impending EU legislation on anti-counterfeiting measures for pharmaceutical packaging will impose stringent requirements on production, infrastructure and the processes related to it. Our advice to our customers is tostart addressing the upcoming statutory requirementsright away“, says Aleksandar Stojanovic, Managing Director of the STI Group.

Contact:

STI Group

Henrik Svendsen / Sales Nordic

Tlf.: +45 76321040

Mobil: +45 40217576

About the STI Group

STI Group provides surprising and enticing solutions for packaging and presentation at the point of sale, offering added value to both customers and consumers.

The STI Group is a partner of the brands, driving marketing success with creativity, innovation and expertise beyond expectations. With more than 2.000 employees the corporate group achieved a turnover of € 290 million in 2014.STI Group key accounts include around half of the world's most successful Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) manufacturers as well as leading industrial goods and trading companies.

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