Industry Need: Fighting Counterfeit Drugs under EU FMD and FDA DSCSA
Drug counterfeiting causes more than 500,000 deaths per year (WHO, 2023). Regulations now require stricter traceability:
- EU Falsified Medicines Directive (FMD): Requires all prescription drugs to be in unique serialized and tamper-evident packaging.
- FDA DSCSA: US law requires interoperable electronic drug tracking by November 2023.
Barcodes are a legacy solution that doesn’t meet modern demands: a 2024 European Medicines Agency (EMA) audit found that 12% of barcode-scanned medicines had supply chain data mismatches, compared to 0.9% for NFC-tagged products.
NFC vs.. Barcode: A Key Comparison for Pharmaceutical DPPs
| Criteria | NFC-tunnisteet | Barcodes |
|---|---|---|
| Encryption | AES-256 encryption + unique TID codes | No encryption; easily copied |
| Traceability Level | Item-level (single unit) | Batch-level (1,000+ units) |
| Chemical Resistance | IP68-rated (resists alcohol, autoclave steam) | Labels degrade in cold chain storage |
| Data Capacity | 8KB (stores full DPP + temperature logs) | 1KB max (limited to GTIN and batch ID) |
| Read Speed | <0.1 sec (proximity-based) | 2-5 sec (line-of-sight required) |
Regulator Preference: 89% of EU inspectors prioritize NFC for audits due to immutable data chains (EMA 2024 Survey).
Case Study: COVID-19 Vaccine Manufacturer Reduces Counterfeit Penetration by 95%
Solution:
- Embedding NXP NTAG 424 DNA tags in secondary packaging.
- Integration with SAP Information Collaboration Center for real-time authentication.
Results:
- 95% reduction in counterfeit incidents (2023 vs. 2022).
- 3-second verification via Moderna Verify app.
- 100% compliance with US FDA audit requirements.
(Source: Moderna 2023 Annual Report, p. 57)
CTA: Book a demo of the drug traceability solution
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