South Korea going graphic

Tobacco companies operating in South Korea will be required from December 23 to add graphic health warnings to cigarette packs sold in that country, according to a story in The Korea Times.

Packs with the graphic warnings are expected to start appearing in shops in January and February.

The new warnings are the latest in a series of anti-smoking measures taken by the country’s health and welfare ministry with the aim of reducing smoking rates.

At the end of last year, 39.3 percent of Korean adult men and 5.5 percent of adult women were said to be smokers.

The male smoking prevalence was the third-highest among 34 OECD (Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development) member countries.

The Times said that the ministry of health and welfare had selected 10 images, half of which were ‘photos of real patients with cancers allegedly caused by smoking’. It didn’t say what the other images showed.

“As the government requires the tobacco companies to change the images every two years, we think the system will regularly remind smokers about the negative health effects of smoking,” a ministry official said.

“We expect that the new packaging will change the perception on cigarettes and prevent non-smokers from trying.”