This you can readily find on 200-, 205- or 210-liter drums as well as the retail packs of 0.5 liter, 1 liter, 4 liter, 5 liter and 25 liter sizes, Ekpenyong told Lube Report. This is primarily to assure the customer of the integrity of the lubricant, that no one has tampered with it. It also assures the buyer that it is a genuine product and not a fake one, he added.

Emeka Obidike, executive secretary of Lubricant Producers Association of Nigeria, concurred, stressing that manufacturers of lubricants in Nigeria have been using tamper-proof packaging for a while but noted, We advocate there should be continuous improvement on the tamper-proof packaging of lube containers.

This is because counterfeiters are becoming more daring and scientific and can go overseas to produce the same tamper-proof [packaging] and import them to the country. If you change the packaging, the counterfeiters can go abroad to buy your seal and tamper-proof [packaging] and counterfeit your product, said Obidike.

Ekpenyong added, It is an easy way of determining the fake product, even though some counterfeiters even procure tamper-proof packaging for their fake lubes. The Standards Organization of Nigeria has also encouraged blenders to have these tamper-proof seals for better quality assurance, he said.

Counterfeiting is a problem for lubricant markets around the world, though more so in some markets than others. The packaging industry has developed – and continues to develop – a wide range of anti-tampering technologies and features designed to help end-users see when a container is not a genuine product. Some examples include tamper-evident container seals, caps, security wraps and shrink sleeves. Some packagers use hard-to-imitate label features such as holograms, exotic colors or inks that are sprayed directly onto containers.

In general, more sophisticated and more expensive features are used in more developed markets, where greater profit margins make it easier to absorb the costs of these features.

Obidike said copying of fast-selling products has gained traction in the Nigeria market. So lubricant blenders are advised to build the cost of continuous improvement of packaging into the cost of production.

He emphasized that counterfeiting of lubricants has multiple effects on the entire production chain because it results in economic loss to the parent company and the nation, and contributes to environmental hazards.

When you buy a cloned brand, it can lead to breakdown of machines, and engine knock, with adverse impacts on the entire system, said Obidike.

However, Ekpenyong stated, I would say tamper-proof packaging of lube containers is 90 percent effective in checking counterfeiting but not absolutely.