Edible QR codes will be used to authenticate whisky in the future

 An experiment is underway on edible anti-counterfeiting labels with QR codes, which will become a new way to identify the authenticity of whisky purchased by consumers fake measures.

 Edible fluorescent silk labels may be a way to identify counterfeit alcohol and drugs, according to researchers at Purdue University's Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering.

"The researchers applied alcohol to silk proteins to make them more durable," said Young Kim, Purdue's vice president for research and associate professor. "Because these types of silk proteins are resistant to alcohol, the fluorescent silk tags can be shaped in a keep for a long time".

Young Kim, who has worked on the development of related anti-counterfeiting measures, explained that each fluorescent silk tag has a unique code that consumers can activate with a smartphone to confirm the authenticity of the product. According to Young Kim, the code on the fluorescent silk label is equivalent to a barcode or QR code. Although it is invisible to the naked eye, it is edible and will not affect the taste of the whisky, so even if swallowed by consumers will cause any problems.

Postdoctoral research assistant Jungwoo Leem also further explained the experimental principle. The research team processed fluorescent cocoons from specialized silkworms and created a biopolymer that allowed them to form various patterns to encode information.

Jungwoo Leem believes: "Alcohol products are easy to be counterfeited. For example, there are many fake whiskeys on the market now." Young Kim added, "Counterfeit medicines and alcohol are a global problem. There are many facts that show that a large number of fake medicines and alcohol are sold around the world, and sometimes these fakes cause people to die.

So this research work we are doing is extremely important to verify the authenticity of a product with only your smartphone.” In other words, these fluorescent silk labels will provide an extra measure of security beyond the security seal on the wine bottle , placing it in some rare whiskies could help address the issue of whisky counterfeiting, further reassuring consumers. As part of the trial, researchers placed whiskeys of various brands and price points over a 10-month period. Fluorescent silk tags and expose them to a variety of lighting conditions to ensure that tags and codes can be activated in every situation with a smartphone app.

The research is still ongoing, and research progress has been published in ACS Central Science. As the experiment continues, the Kumoh National Institute of Technology and the National Institute of Agricultural Sciences in South Korea and Purdue University will also provide additional support.problems