Use a tear strip to guard against product tampering

With the value of new pharmaceuticals, especially biologics delivered in vials, skyrocketing, the temptation for criminals to counterfeit those products also rises. To address one avenue of counterfeiting—reusing vials and other containers with intact labels—Schreiner MediPharm (Blauvert, NY) has redesigned its Flexi-Cap, now in a “Plus” version, to essentially destroy the label once the container has been used.

The new Flexi-Cap Plus features a tear strip running through the label as an integrated element.  The result is enhanced protection against tampering, as the label is destroyed upon initial opening and can no longer be reused as an alleged original. The packaging feature combines a film cap with a label for clear and irreversible first-opening indication. “The enhancement introduced with the new Flexi-Cap Plus is that the tear strip is integrated directly in the label rather than run through the film cap,“ explains Gene Dul, president of Schreiner MediPharm U.S.  “When the tear strip is opened, it automatically destroys the label and makes it impossible to illegally reuse the container with this original label.”

By adding other overt and covert security technologies, such as holograms, color-shifting inks, void effects or security pigments, further hurdles to tampering can be raised. Dul says that the Flexi-Cap Plus can be flexibly customized to accommodate various glass container types, shapes and sizes, and is easily integrated into a pharmaceutical manufacturer’s existing brand design. Particularly useful for small containers, the lid of the film cap also offers additional space that can be used for imprinting barcodes or integrating NFC chips for interactive applications.

Schreiner MediPharm will present the new Flexi-Cap Plus, as well as a variety of additional labeling solutions, at InnoPack as part of CPhI Worldwide in Barcelona from October 4–6.