Going dark

Belgium will require tobacco manufacturers to sell their products in plain packaging starting Jan. 1, 2020, reports The Brussels Times. Retailers will have until the end of 2020 to clear stocks of old, noncompliant packaging.

The adoption of neutral packaging for tobacco products was announced earlier, but no starting date was given. The law affects cigarettes, rolling tobacco and tobacco for use in water-pipes, as well as cigarette papers and filters.

According to The Brussels Times, Belgium is the fifth European country to introduce neutral packaging, after France, Norway, the U.K. and Ireland.

The concept debuted in Australia in 2012.

Belgium’s federal health minister, Maggie De Block, says the measure has been a success in those countries.

“In countries where neutral packaging has been introduced, the number of smokers has dropped significantly,” De Block said.

She declined to say what the government’s target for reducing smoking is.

Tobacco companies have in the past questioned the effectiveness of plain packaging and expressed concern about the impact on illicit trade.