The short answer to this is the label. Many people are confused by this because they see minor variations on the label over time and they think it means they are looking at counterfeit jars. However, the counterfeiters duplicate our labels exactly. When we make a change to the label, they make the same change. Since the whole point of a counterfeit is to trick someone, the counterfeiters are extremely careful not to introduce changes (or mistakes) into the label that would make it easy for someone to spot a jar as a fake. As an example here are some specific label changes you might see…

1.) “Egyptian” vs. “Kamitian.” In some countries we were required to change the word “Kamitian” to “Egyptian” in the top line of the jar. We decided to change all the labels, to have a consistent label around the world. However, the counterfeiters changed right along with us, so you cannot use this as a guide. Newer jars—both genuine and counterfeit–will always say “Egyptian”.

2.) Other markings. Over time we have made other minor changes to the label, including updating copyright information, re-locating the ® symbol and so on. Again, these changes have been duplicated and cannot be used as a guide. They have no bearing on whether a jar is genuine or not.