2023 – A Year in Headlines

January

Tax stamp and traceability developments in Argentina, Ecuador, Panama, and Venezuela; Kenya Revenue Authority seeks tax stamp price increase in bid to grow revenue collection; Metrc launches sustainable RFID tags for cannabis plants as alternative to plastic; New York selects BioTrack for cannabis track and trace; detecting fake cigarette filters with ATRFTIR spectroscopy; tax and customs administration trends shaping 2023 that are relevant to secure marking and traceability; implementing tax stamp and production monitoring in Pakistan – a perfect storm; emerging technologies for sustainability; China Tobacco under investigation for high-volume smuggling.

February

Luminescence Sun Chemical Security acquires InData invisible barcode reading technology; Gambia Revenue Authority and SICPA sign revenue mobilisation agreement for excisable goods, telecommunication services, and refined fuels; Chile launches joint tax/customs campaign to tackle illicit cigarettes; interview with International Tax Stamp Association (ITSA) member Luminescence Sun Chemical Security; aligning secure marking and traceability with other government objectives – WCO SAFE Framework of Standards to Secure and Facilitate Global Trade; emerging technologies for substrates; securing liquor supply chains in India with digital locks and GPS tracking.

March

Lebanon launches tobacco authentication and traceability programme developed by OpSec Security and SCOPSIS in collaboration with Regie Libanaise des Tabacs et Tombacs; De La Rue extends tax stamp/security seal contracts in nine countries; India Central Excise – worth its weight in salt; authorities uncover first ever counterfeit cigarette factory in France; interview with ITSA member Garsu Pasaulis; the exploding growth of free trade zones – part 1.

April

Disagreement reigns over role of EU tobacco track and trace; US Tax Foundation stresses evolving role of excise tax; encounters with counterfeits of digital security features; interview with ITSA member Authentix; a conversation with artificial intelligence about tax stamps.

May

New tax stamps part of Ukraine’s plan to eliminate shadow economy; Ethiopia targets fourfold revenue increase with tax stamps; Kenya to roll out tax stamps for cosmetics and beauty products; OpSec Group goes public; 20 years of WHO Frame Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC); interview with ITSA member ANY Security Printing; one barcode for everyone and everything… including authentication?; EU parliament members raise tobacco lobbying concerns… but are their voices going unheard?

June

Argentina takes tobacco evasion by the horns; Cambodia reveals tax stamp requirements to vendors; Authentix buys Royal Joh Enschedé; Costa Rica publishes cost-benefit analysis to disprove benefits of traceability systems; interview with ITSA member SICPA; Canada’s cannabis industry calls for single national tax stamp to replace provincial stamps; raising the counterfeiting bar with HP Indigo’s double- exclusive LEP secure inks; EU parliament members prepare ‘arms’ against tobacco lobbyists.

July

India’s government banknote printer eyes global tax stamp market; illicit cigarette report spells bad news for France; Nanobrick carving a market with its active nano platform; De La Rue Authentication on track to exceed £100 million in revenue, in large part due to government revenue solutions in Bahrain, Qatar and Oman; South Africa’s tax commissioner elected chairperson of World Customs Organisaton (WCO); programme released for Tax Stamp & Traceability Forum (TSTF) 2023; track and trace working group lays out recommendations for FCTC global information-sharing focal point; interview with ITSA member NASPS.

August

What’s the status of tobacco track and trace under FCTC Protocol?; WCO reports current state of illicit tobacco and alcohol seizures; smoking out illicit tobacco in the UK – a case of good enforcement practice; trends in smart packaging and potential implications for tax stamps and track and trace; the exploding growth of free trade zones – part 2; interview with ITSA member Baldwin Technology; thoughts towards the ISO 22382 tax stamp standard revision.

September

Uganda sees strong rise in manufacturers and importers embracing digital tax stamps; Reconnaissance releases ‘Smartphones for Authentication’ report; Distinkt – a new name in nanotech authentication; tax stamps, track and trace and production monitoring make non-compliance and illicit trade stand out like a sore thumb; economists in Chile report higher cigarette revenues and lower returning exports; interview with ITSA member APO Production Unit; what are international standards and how can they help you?

October

A review of TSTF 2023 – more greenfield customers, please!; tax stamp standard review Is underway; interview with ITSA member LEONHARD KURZ; ITSA counters claims that tax stamp-based track and trace systems are not compatible with FCTC Protocol; Oumolat and SICPA enter strategic partnership, creating ‘O&S Security Solutions’ JV; California to abolish single-use plastic tags for tracking and tracing cannabis plants.

November

FCTC COP10 and MOP3 postponed to early 2024; ITSA welcomes new members and board; illicit tobacco ‘down under’ gets worse; a trade environment transformation led by Georgia Revenue Service; Demax Holograms pushes e-beam to the maximum; WHO raises concern over decreasing tobacco tax shares in Americas; Uganda fuel adulteration down to 0.5%; Metrc expands focus to cannabis companies; New York is only state with no cannabis track and trace system; Singapore to boost free trade zone regulations to combat illicit flows.

December

KURZ’s tax stamp paper saves time and the environment; Malawi extends tax stamps beyond cigarettes to protect local industries; interview with ITSA member Uflex; elections and civil unrest in Latin America… and how they affect tax stamps; the exploding growth of free trade zones – part 3.