King-size Smokes to Display Warnings
Photo: Nopphon
Starting today, every king-size cigarette sold in Canada must have a health warning printed on its filter section, reports CTV News.
The new advisories warn smokers in English and French of the products’ ability to cause impotence, leukemia and organ damage. Often a pioneer in tobacco policies, Canada is the first country to mandate such requirements.
When the measure took effect in August 2023, Ottawa gave tobacco companies and retailers a series of rolling deadlines to implement the rules. Tuesday’s deadline affects manufacturers with regard to king-size cigarettes only. According to Health Canada, the rule will apply to smaller, regular-size cigarettes on Jan. 31, 2025.
Retailers can carry king-size cigarettes without the new labels until July 31, 2024, and April 30, 2025, for the regular ones.
Once fully implemented, every cigarette sold in Canada will feature one of these six warnings:
- Cigarettes damage your organs;
- Cigarettes cause cancer;
- Tobacco smoke harms children;
- Cigarettes cause impotence;
- Cigarettes cause leukemia; or
- Poison in every puff.
The Canadian Cancer Society hopes the new labelling rules contribute to its goal of reducing smoking to 5 percent by 2035.
In 2001, Canada became the first country to require picture warnings on the outside of packages and small flyers with health messages inside them.