A system for verifying an item in a package using a database comprises a database and a verifier. A package producer provides the database with an identifier for one or more items each of a type, wherein the package producer produces a package, where the package includes the one or more items each of the type with an associated one or more selected tag identifiers that are placed in a location on an item of the one or more items. The verifier verifies the one or more items of the type using 1) the associated one or more selected tag identifiers as detected using a spectral signature or 2) a tag characteristic as detected using an imager, and 3) the identifier retrieved from the database.