‘Metanol no more’. Diageo cria selo high-tech para garantir que o Johnnie é Walker

Diageo Brasil has introduced a high-tech authenticity seal, called the "Selo Drink Seguro," for its premium brands, including Johnnie Walker, Tanqueray, Smirnoff, and Don Julio. The system allows consumers to verify the originality of a bottle using their smartphone cameras in just five seconds. Diageo's vice president of marketing and innovation in Brazil, Guilherme Martins, explained that the company pooled resources from its top five brands to fund the development of the seal.

The initiative represents 40% of Diageo's 2027 marketing investment, marking its largest awareness effort this year. The move comes amid efforts to combat counterfeiting, particularly following the 2026 health crisis caused by metanol-laced beverages, which led to consumer insecurity and fatalities. Euromonitor estimates that counterfeit beverages account for 4.7% of the Brazilian spirits market.

Diageo, affected by the decline in consumer trust, ended the previous year with a 7.7% organic sales growth in Latin America and the Caribbean, driven by Brazil. The seal, developed using the same technology as the Brazilian passport chip, the R$100 note, and Euro bills, is now on all new Diageo bottles since February, covering 32 million units across 49 products, or 100% of the Brazilian portfolio.

Martins stated that the primary goal is to eliminate intoxication cases due to counterfeit beverages. However, the seal may expand to two new areas within Diageo: international adoption, leveraging the data collected in Brazil to explore global implementation, and transforming the platform into a loyalty tool offering brand benefits and content to consumers who use the verification service.