Author: Staff Writer

A fine-cigar auction in London already scheduled for Nov. 19 is to be followed by The Spectator Cigar Smoker of the Year Dinner.

The dinner will be hosted by British journalist, broadcaster and cigar fan, Andrew Neil.

“This will be the biggest smoking-related event to take place in the U.K. for years,” said Mitchell Orchant, managing director, C.Gars Ltd.

“Some of the most famous and wealthiest cigar smokers in the world will be celebrating with fine wine, food and, not least, premium cigars on Boisdale’s smoking terrace overlooking the Thames.”

The evening will start with C.Gars’ 9th auction, at which more than 400 lots of vintage, rare and mature cigars will go under the hammer at 5 p.m. And for the first time at such an auction, cigar collectors around the world will be able to place bids online (at www.cgarsltd.co.uk).

The event, bringing together Boisdale and C.Gars, will include the inaugural Spectator magazine dinner.

The evening will recognize various aspects of the cigar world, with awards categories including those for cigar producers, retailers, cigar terraces and writers; and culminating in The Spectator Cigar Smoker of the Year.

Tobacco companies in Germany have warned of massive job cuts should the EU force companies to place larger health warnings on cigarette packs, according to a Handelsblatt story.

The works councils of Philip Morris, British American Tobacco, Reemtsma (Imperial Tobacco), Japan Tobacco International, von Eicken, Landewyck and Lekkerland said the introduction of new rules under the proposed new Tobacco Products Directive (TPD) would lead to the elimination of as many as 100,000 jobs in the country.

The EU parliament is due to vote on the proposed TPD, which includes, too, recommendations on banning and restricting a wide range of tobacco and nicotine products, on Oct. 8.

A proposal to reduce the prevalence of smoking in Ireland from the current 22 percent of the population to less than 5 percent by 2025 has been published by the Minister for Health, James Reilly, according to a story in the Irish Times.

The proposal broadly sets out the government’s aims but a detailed action plan with timelines has yet to be developed.

Tobacco Free Ireland (a country is deemed in some quarters to be tobacco free if the smoking population is lower than 5 percent), would seek to further denormalize smokers.

It would include an annual excise duty increase on tobacco products over five straight years.

And it would prohibit smoking within the campuses of primary schools, secondary schools and child care facilities, while promoting tobacco free campuses for all tertiary institutions.

In all, the proposal sets out 60 recommendations aimed at cutting the rate of smoking, one of which would require tobacco manufacturers to offer their cigarettes in standardized packaging.

Meanwhile, according to a Sunday Times story, an Irish-based lawyer for Philip Morris International has warned that Ireland will face compensation claims running to hundreds of millions of euro if it introduces a requirement for standardized tobacco packs.

Alistair Payne, of Matheson solicitors, was quoted as saying that if Ireland did not allow tobacco companies to use their branding it would breach the intellectual property rights of the companies. He said these rights were guaranteed under the Irish constitution and the European Convention on Human Rights.

Poland’s cabinet has approved a 5 percent increase in excise tax on tobacco products from next year, according to a Market Insider story quoting a budget-related bill for 2014 adopted last week.

Poland is looking to grab PLN247.98 billion in tax receipts in 2014, including PLN115.7 billion from VAT and PLN62.08 billion from excise.

The South Korean car manufacturer Hyundai has said that it will replace cigarette lighter sockets with USB power points in its passenger cars made for the domestic market, according to a story for the U.K.’s Electronic Telegraph.

Hyundai said the change would affect all passenger cars and SUVs sold in Korea from October.

Hyundai’s decision follows a domestic survey that showed many drivers used the lighter jack to charge mobile phones or tablet computers rather than for lighting cigarettes.

A spokesman said that Hyundai was “the first auto company in the world” to make the change, and that the company would survey consumers in other countries to see whether it should be adopted elsewhere.

Hyundai might well be the first car company to swap from cigarette lighters to USB ports, but it is not the first to remove cigarette lighters.

Tobacco products in Bulgaria will have new excise stamps from Jan. 1, 2014, according to a Bulgarian News Agency story quoting Finance Ministry sources.

The change is part of efforts being made to fight the trade in contraband and counterfeit products.

It will be legal to sell stocks of tobacco products with the current excise stamps until Dec. 31, 2014.

Some household air-fresheners are more toxic than tobacco smoke, according to a Euro Weekly News story quoting Spain’s Consumer and User Organization (OCU).

The OCU says that some household air-fresheners that are heated, including oils, incense and perfumed candles, worsen the quality of the air because they have “excessive levels of toxic, allergenic and contaminating substances.”

It examined 20 air-fresheners to determine the substances they emitted into the air and found that, while these products were associated with a relaxing and healthy atmosphere, some made the air as toxic as that containing the tobacco smoke produced by a room full of smokers with lit cigarettes.

The air-fresheners were said to be a source of toxicity and to create health risks.

Only candles were “approved.”

Oils and incense were said to emit too many small particles that could be breathed in. They contained allergenic substances and compounds such as benzene and formaldehyde.

The OCU recommended not using these products, especially in the presence of children, pregnant women or people with allergies or asthma.

Even the use of candles should be kept to a minimum, it said.

The OCU and the other associations that carried out the study have demanded that the EU create a law limiting the emissions of such products and obliging manufacturers to inform people about the health risks.

They have asked also for there to be stricter controls on the sale of oils and incense, and the removal from the market of those that have high levels of emissions.

The number of male smokers in Uzbekistan has decreased from 30 percent in 2002 to 22 percent today, according to a story by Maksim Yeniseyev for CentralAsiaOnline.com, quoting figures from the World Health Organization.

Only 3 percent of the country’s women were said to smoke, but it was not clear whether this figure was higher or lower than it was in 2002.

A Health Ministry spokesman, Furkat Sadykov, was quoted as saying that the government had contributed to the reduction in smoking among men by banning tobacco advertising and promotions, restricting tobacco sales and ratifying the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control in 2012.

Uzbekistan established in 2011 the National Centre for Fighting Smoking, which had organized anti-smoking events and worked to help smokers kick the habit, Sadykov said.

In addition, a law aimed at restricting the distribution and consumption of alcohol and tobacco had taken effect in April 2012.

And Uzbekistan had recognized that illicit tobacco sales posed a major hurdle to eradicating smoking.

U.S.-based 22nd Century Group, which is developing very low nicotine cigarettes, has signed a $7 million research license agreement with British American Tobacco, according to a story by David Robinson for Buffalo News.

The deal, spanning four years, is said to give BAT access to 28 of 22nd Century’s patents and patent applications involving the alteration of the level of nicotine in tobacco plants.

The companies are due work together on research to further develop the technology.

“Licensing our technology to the world’s second-largest tobacco company is a huge milestone for 22nd Century Group,” said Henry Sicignano III, the company’s president.

Under the deal, BAT will pay 22nd Century $7 million upfront, and up to $7 million more during the course of the research agreement if certain milestones are met.

The agreement also gives BAT an option to terminate the research agreement at any time and convert it into a commercial license to produce products based on 22nd Century’s patents and technology. If that happened, the commercial license would run through to at least 2028.

Joseph Pandolfini, 22nd Century’s chief executive officer said the agreement was essentially about the company’s newer technology. “BAT is going to accelerate things with our second-generation technology,” he said.

Philip Morris Thailand (PMT) vowed yesterday to “vigorously defend itself” against Thai tax evasion allegations, according to a story in the Bangkok Post.

Newly appointed attorney general, Athapol Yaisawang, said the indictment had been launched against PMT by his predecessor, Chulasingh Vasantasingh, before his recent retirement.

Although the details of the allegations were unclear, PMT said in a statement any prosecution would violate Thailand’s obligations under a World Trade Organization customs agreement.

“Philip Morris Thailand Limited … intends to vigorously defend itself against these meritless charges,” it said.

Nevertheless, the company said it had not been formally notified by the Thai authorities of a prosecution order, and it expressed hope that the new attorney general would review the case.