European packaging manufacturer Coveris has reported an increase in UK security label production in response to the spike of retail theft in England and Wales in over two decades.
The company is investing in additional capabilities and research and development to enhance production, security formats, and sustainable impact.
The British Retail Consortium (BRC) has revealed that incidents have nearly doubled to 45,000 per day, costing the UK retail sector approximately £1.8bn ($2.3bn) annually.
The rise in shoplifting, driven by escalating prices and the cost of living, has prompted retailers to adopt more stringent security measures.
Retailers are now intensifying security for high-value items such as meat, cheese, and beverages to reduce shrinkage and ensure product availability.
Coveris, which supplies loss-prevention label-tags through its SourceTag brand, said that the surge in retail demand has led to a more than 60% year-on-year increase in production volumes to combat in-store theft.
The company’s composite SourceTag labels incorporate radio frequency or acoustic magnetic tags during the manufacturing process, providing a covert security solution that aligns with existing electronic article surveillance systems in stores.
This integration eliminates the need for secondary stock-keeping units (SKUs) and in-store tagging, offering a seamless security label that does not compromise brand or packaging.
The security labels by Coveris are particularly effective with self-checkouts, which account for around 80% of retail sales, as the tags are deactivated upon purchase, saving time at the point of sale without the need for tag removal.
Coveris paper division sales director Nigel Hewitt said: “We are working really hard alongside our retail and manufacturing partners to not only reduce in-store theft but also waste, as part of our No Waste vision.
"Compared to secondary tagging, our current SourceTag labels offer a more sustainable solution as well as reducing SKUs, cost, process and time, however delivery of a fully sustainable solution is a pioneering development that we are looking to launch within the market imminently.”
Recently, Coveris invested more than £3m in a new Flexo press at its HD print hub in Burnley, UK.
