Special Report: Provenance and transparency tech company Security Matters is stepping up its efforts to enhance wine companies’ brand integrity.

Security Matters (ASX: SMX) has smelled the bouquet and is getting stuck into the vino with its wine anti-counterfeit and adulteration system.

The company is setting up a new joint venture company, Security Matters Beverages (SMX-B) in collaboration with Global Bevco to complete the development of its patented wine anti-counterfeit and adulteration system, and to commercialise its application.

SMX-B will be half owned by Security Matters and half owned by Global Bevco, a company owned by former Macquarie banker Peter Yates AM and Leon Kempler AM.

SMX-B will licence Security Matters’ supply chain integrity and asset tracking technology, which irrevocably marks a range of fungible products and substances to allow for their tracking

The technology is an invisible, liquid-based barcode system, a proprietary reader to identify these codes, and a blockchain record to store and protect ownership data.

 

Tracking drinks from maker to mouth

The newly formed partnership will apply Security Matters’ solution to alcoholic beverages with work already underway with key stakeholders to develop global standards and test the technology.

“We are focused on assisting fast moving consumer goods companies to demonstrate brand integrity and production visibility – from raw material to recycling – with all information stored on the block chain,” Haggai Alon, Security Matters founder and CEO, said.

“Through the joint venture we will be executing an aggressive strategy in 2020, targeting the FMCG market and specifically the alcohol industry which accounts for over $500bn annually of counterfeit goods.

“Following successful demonstration of our pioneering technology incorporated in different types of wine, we are finalising the markers to embed into wines within Australia and Europe while solving the regulatory issues surrounding wine provenance, quality and production methods.

“In simple terms, we introduce a trace of a unique marker [based on approved additives] that effectively represents the DNA of the product [right down to the batch number] that can be read by a proprietary analyser at every stage of the supply chain.”

 

The threat is everywhere

Peter Yates, director of Global Bevco, said the sale of counterfeit wine was a significant threat to the industry that occurred at all price points and was particularly prevalent in China.

“Moreover, it is a social problem that deprives communities of the value they have created, especially growers of premium products,” he said.

“Security Matters’ technology, pioneered in Israel, is a unique commercial solution to this social problem and represents the holy grail for preventing counterfeiting of wine.”

SMX-B is beginning to assemble a wider team of regulatory experts and industry leaders, including wine experts and global leading wine brands, to ensure the solution meets all global requirements, and explore further uses of Security Matters’ technology.

“Security Matters is focused on becoming the global record of all physical goods with an Equilibrium Economy sustainability model,” Alon said.

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This story was developed in collaboration with Security Matters, a Stockhead advertiser at the time of publishing. This story does not constitute financial product advice. You should consider obtaining independent advice before making any financial decisions.