Fake flu vaccine found in Pakistan as DRAP makes 2D barcodes mandatory

A falsified influenza vaccine has been found in the Pakistani market, the Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP) warned on 27 October 2026.

The product is Vaxigrip Tetra, a quadrivalent influenza vaccine, batch number Y4B34. The manufacturer named on the packaging, Sanofi Winthrop Industrie of France, was not the source: DRAP says the batch “has never been imported or distributed in Pakistan”. The alert was raised by Hoechst Pakistan Limited. DRAP issued the warning as Rapid Alert No. I/S/10-26-47, addressed to its regulatory field force, provincial drug control departments, healthcare professionals and consumers.

It is the second fake-medicines alert in a week. On 21 October, DRAP warned that samples of four products had been declared spurious or falsified by the Drug Testing Laboratory in Sindh, Karachi: Velosef 500mg capsules (batch LX3E), which contained no cephradine; Augmentin 625mg tablets (batch YT9D), which contained no amoxicillin or clavulanic acid; No-Spa Forte 80mg tablets (batch AN010), which contained no drotaverine; and Mucaine Suspension (batch 257A088), which contained none of its active ingredients. The manufacturers named on the packaging disowned the samples.

The alerts come as DRAP rolls out its biggest anti-counterfeit measure: from 9 October 2026, a unique 2D Data Matrix barcode and serial number is mandatory for every registered medicine manufactured in Pakistan or imported into the country. The requirement is Phase I of the Pharmaceutical Track and Trace System, issued under the amended Drugs (Labelling and Packaging) Rules, 1978 (S.R.O.963(I)/2026, dated 9 June 2026). Medicine batches made or imported before 9 October are exempt. DRAP says the system will help curb spurious, falsified, counterfeit and unregistered medicines, speed up product recalls, and make the supply chain transparent.

The move was reviewed at a meeting chaired by Federal Health Minister Syed Mustafa Kamal around 15 October, attended by the chief executives of DRAP and the National Information Technology Board. The minister said the ministry had been working on the initiative for about 18 months.

Separately, DRAP and the World Health Organization launched a pharmacovigilance campaign on 26 October to encourage reporting of suspected adverse drug reactions, introducing the reporting tools VigiMobile and VigiFlow to healthcare professionals and students in Peshawar and Islamabad.

What this means for readers (general information)

Buy medicines and vaccines only from authorised, reliable sources, and keep the receipt and packaging. If a medicine looks different from usual, or its packaging seems wrong, ask your pharmacist or doctor before using it — and suspected fake products can be reported to DRAP or the provincial drug control department.

Verification note (29 October 2026): dra.gov.pk was re-checked on the day of publication; no newer alert on the Vaxigrip Y4B34 batch was found, and no Phase II dates or enforcement figures were announced. No pharmacy or outlet is named as a source of the fake batch — no source names one.

General information only, not medical advice.