We combat illicit trade and partner with brands for the SDGs

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, adopted by all United Nations Member States in 2015, provides a shared blueprint for peace and prosperity for people and the planet, now and into the future. At its heart are the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which are an urgent call for action by all countries – developed and developing – in a global partnership.

They recognize that ending poverty and other deprivations must go together with strategies that improve health and education, reduce inequality, and spur economic growth – all while tackling climate change and working to preserve our oceans and forests.

Fighting against counterfeits

The still common act of counterfeiting is seriously compromising the achievement of the UN SDGs in several ways. In fact, illegal economic activities deprive governments of revenues destined to investment in vital public services, affect the loss of millions of legitimate jobs and cause irreversible damage to ecosystems and human lives.
Through our advanced anticounterfeiting solution we revolutionized how brands protect their products, their reputation and their customers and we combat, together with our partners, illicit trade in Italy, Brazil, Uk, Switzerland and Spain through several projects in different industries.

Falsification in agriculture and crop protection

Pesticides are a fundamental part of conventional agriculture as they help to protect crops. They act against the pests and the diseases that damage crop yield and quality. Illegal agrochemicals include products that are:

• Obsolete, expired or unauthorized
• Untested/unlicensed
• Illegally imported
• Fake or counterfeited through relabeling, mislabeling or refilling

In this field, the achievement of the SDGs is compromised because the illegal market of products for agriculture:

Food and beverage counterfeiting

Food fraud can be described as passing one product off for another. This can be achieved by:

• The intentional substitution or dilution of an authentic food or ingredient with a cheaper product
• The enhancement of flavor or color through the use of illicit or unapproved substances
• The substitution of one species with another

Here, the SDGs are undermined because the illicit trade in the food and beverage sector:

Pharmaceutical counterfeiting

The illegal trade in the pharmaceutical sector not only includes fake medicines. It also extends to products that are:

• Unregistered/unlicensed
• Stolen/diverted
• Expired

The problem covers nonprescription drugs, lifesaving medicines and medical devices such as contact lens or syringes. If patients make use of illicit medicines, they are exposed to a health risk that can range from inconvenience to fatality.
Therefore, the illegal pharmaceutical market is a hurdle for the SDGs because it: