Traceability implementation solutions. The product authentication systems

Traditionally, authentication solutions have fallen into two categories

a) Off-product identifiers, supplied on a medium that is separate from the product. Examples are certificates of authenticity and audit certificates.

b) On-product identifiers are attached to the product that can, however, be easily removed. Examples are barcodes and RFID tags.

More recently new solutions have started to come into use, introducing a third category of authentication methods: 

c) In-product identifiers, embedded in the product. With in-product authentication, the identifiers can only be removed by physically destroying the product itself. Examples are encapsulated DNA or chemical markers for fibres. Some in-product authentication systems have already been applied to textiles such as the Haelixa DNA tracer, the Tailorlux fluorescent tracer, and the Oritain tracer.

 

Haelixa is a spin-off from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH). This solution uses an “encapsulated DNA tracer containing product information applied to the product materia and, creating traceable fingerprint from producer to retail. The tracer is dissolved into a liquid and then directly applied with a sprayer to the raw material at the farm or collection point. The information about the raw material remains inseparably linked to the final garment throughout the entire value chain. The Haelixa marker can be applied at the farm level or at any other point in the supply chain. Unlimited numbers of different markers can be produced for each producer, manufacturer, location, collection, production lot, or brand.

 

Tailorlux IntegriTEX® is a fluorescent technology that provides an invisible, machine-readable fingerprint combining forensic and optical authentication. It provides pigment markers for the authentication of textile products. Fluorescent particles are blended with a viscose slurry to create enriched tracer fibres. These fibres can be added as a “marking fibre” to the product, as part of a textile finish, hidden in the sewing thread of a garment or included among the fibres of the yarn. The technology enables real-time authentication with a dedicated device that reads the fluorescent pigments and is relatively low cost. The marking pigments are resistant to mechanical, chemical and thermal influences and can be read with optical sensors at any time and any place.

 

The Oritain solution is a forensic authentication of origin of raw materials. It is based on the principle that a product’s origin can be identified using 'fingerprints' derived from the environment where the product has been produced. This solution needs no markers, as it use of the natural presence and concentration of natural components in a specific community or location. Measuring the ratios of different stable isotopes in the material, along with considerations linked to other elements such as the chemical composition of soils, water and feed gives an indication of the region and place of origin. The isotopes and trace elements from samples of products and materials are collected, tested and analysed by or on behalf of Oritain to determine and match to the typical profile of specific origin places to authenticate the origin. Due to the nature of the models deployed by Oritain can have associated error rates (false positive/false negative). The statistical error rate after each test is disclosed to the client with a statement by Oritain on the test’s fitness for purpose.