Tobacco Asia

14 tobaccoasia FRONT PAGE NEWS 卷首新闻 WORLD Continued Global Threats Drive Tax Stamp Demand Strong demand for effective tobacco revenue protection solutions to meet continued global threats will drive growth for tax stamps in 2017, says the Interna- tional Tax Stamp Association (ITSA). The industry trade body believes that the tax stamp market will continue to grow over the next 12 months, particu- larly in emerging economies that lose staggering amounts to the black market and organised smuggling activities. ITSA, which is leading the global drive to highlight the role and impact of tax stamps, believes economic difficulties will make it even more important to increase tax income through rate rises and shutting down the fraud gap in tobacco products. Chair of ITSA Juan Yañez said: "2017 promises to be an exciting year for all of us involved in helping governments secure their tax receipts. "Economic and security challenges will mean that it will be more important than ever to help authorities maximize tax collection as diversification and new taxes on products become prevalent. "We will also see a potential succession of new Framework Conven- tion on Tobacco Control (FCTC) protocol ratifications driving activity in the tobacco tax stamp sector next year, which will lead to growing interest in such schemes in other sectors. "2017 will also see the important EU decision on the architecture of its tobacco track and trace system. We hope Europe will do so in an ambitious way, which sets an example to other regions and tackles the problem at its roots." ITSA believes that truly robust tobacco protection solutions must combine material and digital security technologies - a view that is recognized by both WHO FCTC and the EU tobacco products directive. "This union of physical and digital features is essential to ensure that the combined objectives of authentication, traceability and tamper-evidence is achieved – which is something that information technologies alone are not able to do," said Juan Yañez. This year will also see the introduc- tion of a new international tax stamp standard (ISO 19998), which is sup- ported by ITSA. The move comes against the backdrop of a global market where some countries or regional states have stamp programs for collecting tax, while large parts of the world possess little or indeed no tax stamp programs. This is driving the requirement towards ISO 19998 for the specification of tax stamps - one that would bring all countries using stamps, and encourage those not using them, to have programs that are in line with the best and most effective on the market. While the standard will be welcome news, ITSA also expects to see further development of digital solutions in 2017. Such solutions will however continue to underscore the advantages of a paper- based stamp, even if the latter can combine digital and optical capabilities. Networking and business opportunities abound at InterTabac and InterSupply InterTabac and InterSupply 2017 InterTabac, the world's largest trade fair for tobacco products and smoking acces- sories and the leading trade fair for the industry head for another sold-out event this September 22-24 in Dortmund, Germany. Taking place at the same time and in the same venue will be the third install- ment of InterSupply, whose focus is on the supply side of the industry, including raw tobacco, packaging, flavors, addi- tives, and machines for manufacturing tobacco products. Exhibiting at InterTabac will be com- panies whose products include cigarillos, cigars, cigarettes; pipes; smoking acces- sories, RYO/MYO; fine-cut tobacco; pipe tobacco; water pipes and accessories, and e-cigarettes. E-cigarettes and their production were a prominent segment at both trade shows last year, reflecting the shift in global consumer consumption and the industry's response to it. The exhibitors for this segment alone came from a total of 14 countries, including China, France, Visitors to the shows can register on- line and print out their tickets in advance, saving valuable time on exhibition days. There are also apps for InterTabac and InterSupply, which can be downloaded in relevant stores (for Apple and Android, in German or English). The apps contain service information and make the trade fair visit easier for trade visitors. For more information on InterTabac and InterSupply and registration, visit www.intertabac.de and www.intersupply.de o r c o n t a c t g l o b a l r e p r e s e n t a t i v e s October Multimedia on +66 2 660 3789 or a c c o u n t s @ o c t m m . c o m . Italy, Indonesia, the Netherlands, Poland, Spain, the Czech Republic, and the US. This year's shows are expected to see even more exhibitors showcasing e-cigarettes, e- liquids, and accessories, either exclusively or as supplementary products. Both InterTabac and InterSupply are ideal opportunities for networking as well as maintaining relationships with current customers and establishing new ones. More than 90% of show visitors and exhibitors are top decision-makers from the wholesale/re- tail, manufacturing, and service sectors. Last year 11,700 international trade visi- tors and 521 exhibitors were at InterTabac and InterSupply, held at Westfalenhallen in Dortmund. The number of visitors, exhibitors, and floor space for this trade fair are assessed and certified based on the standardized defi- nitions of the Society for the Voluntary Con- trol of Fair and Exhibition Statistics (FKM).

• Cover