Food stamps: authenticity, redemption and counterfeit disposal

Food Stamp

Before buying: inspect and confront

The handbook recognizes 40, 80, 120, 160, 200 and 240-credit denominations; a security seal is required at 160 or more. Ordinary random supply currently generates 40–200, not 240. Inspect lettering, logo, seal, denomination and chip with the magnifier. A missing or damaged chip makes the coupon unusable. Do not infer that every odd chip means an already-spent genuine coupon: successful redemption removes the entire stamp.

Before buying, choose one defect actually present and confront the seller. Correct confrontation reveals the counterfeit, reduces its base value to 8 and adds a 15% buying discount. A wrong accusation costs base reputation −2. A genuine stamp mislabeled as fake can instead be identified as genuine for base +2. Once you own it, the seller-confrontation option is gone. Use the complete linked handbook for the visual examples.

Redeem genuine stamps

Activate your own genuine stamp at home to add its face value to the separate Commissary balance; no trip is needed to redeem. At the Commissary, Redeem All also checks your owned inventories at home, not just your pockets. The balance persists and buys stocked goods at fixed listed prices; it is not cash. Bought goods appear on the location’s floor: pack them into pockets or your brought backpack before returning.

Already bought a counterfeit

A red label cannot make a counterfeit redeemable. A failed attempt gives no balance, reveals the fake, sets its base value to 8 and disables manual redemption. That failed attempt alone adds no dedicated crime or reputation penalty. Relabeling it genuine does not restore its real identity, redemption function or former face-value-based valuation; the blue labeler only changes its name.

You can still sell a revealed counterfeit to the ordinary Merchant, who buys non-contraband goods and does not use food-stamp inspection. The offer uses its base 8 plus the actual trading modifiers, not the face value and not a guaranteed 8 cash. It can also contribute its trade value toward the Trade Board official’s donation demand; that official can expose a falsely genuine label. Discarding is another option. There is no chip-repair or return-to-original-seller refund route.

If the stamp was truly genuine but you mislabeled it counterfeit, its identity stays genuine: manual use may be disabled, but the Commissary’s Redeem All can still redeem the true face value. This exception does not apply to an actual counterfeit.

• Republic Food Stamp Authenticity Handbook
• Commissary: Food Stamp redemption, all stock and prices
• Labeler guide: Blue Labeler names and red product labels
• Probably Stolen buyer checks: water labels and counterfeit goods