MeiLin Wan

I started my career in academia but transitioned into business and marketing, even though I didn't have much of a science background. I spent about 10 years working in the cosmetic and personal care industry, focusing on legal and intellectual property areas before moving into marketing and sales. Then I spent 20 years at a DNA traceability biotechnology company where I developed the whole platform and system for using DNA markers or tags to apply onto products to prevent counterfeiting and prove origin and authenticity. I created business strategy and marketing and sales tools to develop a new market for traceability, which never existed 20 years ago. A year ago, I set up GenuTrace as my own independent company, doing essentially what I've been doing for two decades. GenuTrace stands for Genuine Traceability, and a big part of my day is connecting with clients and helping them prove their claims. We do quite a lot of work in cotton traceability, which is where I'm quite well known in this space. We can test actual products, whether it's fiber, yarn, fabrics, or even finished product, to tell you where exactly the cotton comes from and where it shouldn't come from, specifically countries that might have child or forced labor or practices that are not legal. My main area of expertise is in business strategy and marketing for products that require proof of claim, and that can be in any industry, whether textiles or cosmetics. I'm pioneering traceability using multiple technologies that include DNA, isotope testing, and digital methods to prove claims for the product itself, ensuring that the quality, integrity, consistency, and authenticity of the product is preserved from the source all the way through production to the finished product.