Holography to grow in 2022 amid COVID-19 impact and new threats COVID threats and increased illicit trade and counterfeiting are set to drive hologram growth in 2022, particularly for authentication purposes, says global body. According to the International Hologram Manufacturers Association (IHMA), authentication and track and trace systems that feature holograms will help to underpin international efforts by government and law enforcement agencies to bolster overt and covert protection strategies in the next 12 months.
Dr Paul Dunn is Chair of the International Hologram Manufacturers Association (IHMA).
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Fake COVID cards, documents and vaccines will remain a big security threat in the months ahead, leading government, law enforcement authorities and global supply chains to review their anti-counterfeiting plans and investment in security resources. Growth in security devices appears “strong and potentially lucrative”, says the IHMA, following The Future of Anti-Counterfeiting, Brand Protection and Security Packaging to 2026 and other reports predicting increasing incidences of global counterfeiting alongside heightened awareness of tracing technologies. These indicate that brand protection, track and trace and other anti-counterfeiting technologies in packaging will increase in use as economies wrestle with the impacts of COVID. The packaging industry will continue to benefit in the coming months from the use of anticounterfeiting solutions, particularly as fears over shortages of medicines,
pharmaceuticals and vaccines in many parts of the world drive demand for counterfeit and illicit products. Security devices such as holograms on packaged goods can ensure quality and check the distribution and smuggling of illicit products, while items not displaying them can be seized and destroyed. There is a growing volume of fake medicines on sale in developing countries, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO), while Interpol has reported an increase in fake medical products. Seizures of fake COVID tests and personal protective equipment (PPE) have also been reported by US Customs and Border Protection and the World Customs Organisation. Added to this, the economic damage wrought by COVID including tax hikes, global shortages of raw materials and finished goods, rising prices and falling incomes - is providing fertile ground for illicit trade to flourish. This situation is set to continue in the next 12 months, the IHMA predicts, while growth in authentication devices will stay ‘strong and lucrative’ on the back of forecasts that the market for anti-counterfeit technologies on pharmaceuticals and cosmetics products will grow. The overall global market for anticounterfeit products on security packaging is projected to be worth in excess of US$188 bn by 2025. A poll has revealed that almost 50 percent of hologram manufacturers February/March 2022
