PRESSIdeas June 2020 issue

pressideas/ commercial printing
ASPA & GS1 India sign MoU
- to strengthen Anti-Counterfeiting Eco-Systems using Global Standards.
Realising the magnitude of damage caused
by counterfeiting to the Indian economy,
brands and consumers, Authentication
Solutions Providers’ Association (ASPA) and
GS1 India have joined hands to take the fight
against counterfeiting to the next level in
India, using global standards.
ASPA (Authentication Solutions Providers’
Association) is a self-regulated non-profit
organization that represents the entire
physical and digital authentication solutions
industry. GS1 India, a standards body, is
responsible for administering the use of
global supply chain standards in India that
enable businesses to implement counterfeit
detection and product authentication
solutions to safeguard their supply chains.
The two organisations have signed an MoU
to jointly work towards mainstreaming and
nurturing the anti-counterfeiting ecosystem
by promoting the use of standards based
solutions for the betterment of industry and
consumers, at large.
Counterfeit products across various sectors
in India are causing losses of over INR 1
trillion every year to the government and the
number of counterfeit cases has increased
by nearly 24 percent in 2019 as compared
to 2018. This causes business to lose
brand equity and revenues, besides putting
consumer safety at risk.
According to ASPA Counterfeit Repository
findings Alcohol, FMCG, Pharma, Tobacco,
Agriculture and Automotive are among
the top sectors with the highest number
of counterfeits in 2018 and 2019. During
the COVID 19 pandemic period (between
January to March 2020), more than 150+
cases of counterfeit incidents had been
reported in the media. In March & April 2020,
more than one case per day was reported
related to fake PPE’s kits, sanitizers and
masks.
Jointly, the organisations will be sensitising
stakeholders in this respect and will spread
awareness and motivate brands and
customers to use ‘Smart Consumer’ – an app
launched to empower consumers with digital
product information and is powered by the
national repository of information on retailed
products – DataKart, that is populated
directly by brand owners.
Speaking about the partnership Mr. Nakul
Pasricha, President, Authentication Solution
Providers’ Association (ASPA) said, “We
are committed to build the authentication
eco-systems in the country and enhance
our relationship with other bodies working
in the same space. The authentication
environment will support Government
“make in India” initiative and its image at
global level, where trust is becoming an
especially important factor. We need to
ensure that the “Make in India” products
are genuine, safe, and secure until they are
delivered to the end consumer across the
globe. Involvement and active participation
of all stakeholders is extremely crucial in
this, as a lot of awareness is required at
industry, consumer, and government level.
We are sure that by combining resources
of GS1 India and ASPA, we will add more
momentum to our endeavours in fighting the
menace of counterfeiting and develop the
anti-counterfeiting ecosystem.”
Sharing his views, Mr. S Swaminathan,
COO, GS1 India said, “At GS1 India, we are
constantly working towards overcoming
the blocks in the global supply chain that
prevent visibility and transparency. With this
partnership with ASPA, we aim to further
strengthen our endeavour to address the
ever growing threats presented by counterfeit
products in existing supply chains. The
use of GS1 standards and solutions like
traceability, Smart Consumer app, DataKart,
etc., will help Indian businesses gain trust
of their consumers and trading partners by
seamless sharing of product information.
This would also act as a foundational step
in our journey and empower consumers
to authenticate products using the Smart
Consumer mobile app.
Together ASPA and GS1 India will jointly
work together to create awareness about the
counterfeiting problems and build knowledge
through various tools, including trainings,
publishing of articles, enriching websites,
etc., to drive adoption of global standards for
detecting and controlling counterfeits.
June 2020
13