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An Australian mobile application developer is aiming to tackle counterfeit branding within China’s fresh food import trade.

Authenticateit has developed a new traceability system that can be downloaded to smartphones. The free application allows consumers to check product authenticity, safety and recall status, according to Queensland-based newspaper The Chronicle.

Authenticateit CEO GennadyVolchek said the application has been developed to instil a sense of confidence in Chinese consumers, who are growing increasingly conscious about food safety and the origin of their fresh produce,

“With huge profits at stake, increasingly sophisticated food criminals are exploiting both Chinese consumer demand and authority's supervisory capacity issues in China to great effect,” Volchek told The Chronicle. 'Although imported products are in high demand, the key concern of an Asian consumer is, is the product they wish to buy safe and genuine?'

Authenticateit’s application uses advanced serialisation and track and tractability technology to help consumers discern whether a certain product matches with how it is being marketed. At the same time it provides a tool for suppliers to monitor how their brand is being managed and protected in the Chinese market.

The application also allows marketers to tap into Chinese social media platforms such as WeChat and Weibo to help to help increase awareness about the growing counterfeit trade.

“Both Chinese consumers and Chinese authorities look extremely favourably on products that can be verified through traceability systems as 100 per cent genuine,' Volchek added. 'In China, the rapid expansion of e-commerce, the implementation of a new recall system and AQSIQ blacklist and new legal provisions for traceability in China's pending new food laws, are just several of the compelling reasons to implement a traceability system sooner rather than later.'

Authenticateit will showcase the technology at the Ag in the Asian Century National Export and Innovation Conference, being held in Queensland during September.

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