Author: Marissa Dean

Support with Flavors Helps Smokers Quit

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A new study has found that smokers who get help picking flavored e-cigarettes and receive supportive text messages are more likely to quit smoking, reports The Guardian.
The study was led by London South Bank University (LSBU), and it explored in what settings vapes could help smokers quit. After three months, about 25 percent had quit and a further 13 percent reduced cigarette consumption by more than half.
Those who received help choosing a vape flavor and got supportive texts were 55 percent more likely to quit smoking in three months.
“Smoking kills approximately 8 million people worldwide every year, and even some of the often most effective treatments have little effect on reducing the number of smokers,” said Lynne Dawkins, professor of nicotine and tobacco studies at LSBU. “From this treatment, 24.5 percent were smoke-free after three months and a further 13 percent had reduced their cigarette consumption by more than 50 percent.
“The simplicity of tailored support through flavor advice and supportive messages could have a huge impact in helping people lead smoke-free lives.”
The research examined: tailored advice on which product, nicotine strength or flavor to buy; brief information on vaping harms relative to smoking; and text message support. Some people received all of these, others received none and some received some but not all.
July 18, 2023
Hong Kong Deploys Evil Eye Against Smoking

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Hong Kong Secretary for Health Lo Chung-mau stated that citizens can help create a smoke-free Hong Kong by staring at smokers who light up in smoke-free areas, according to the South China Morning Post.
“Cigarettes can harm the health of all of us,” Lo said. “When the members of the public see people smoking in nonsmoking areas, even if no law enforcement officers can show up immediately, we can stare at the smokers.
“When someone takes out a cigarette at a restaurant, everyone on the premises can stare at that person. I do not believe that person would dare to hit back at everyone at the restaurant as they are simply staring.”
Lo promised to improve law enforcement efforts but stated that societal pressure can help promote a smoke-free environment.
“We understand that law enforcement officers cannot always take action at the scene of the crime. When they arrive at the scene, the crime may have already stopped,” he said. “Take queuing at a bus stop as an example. No one will say it requires the law to compel people to queue. Our society is able to create a culture where people will comply with this rule of queuing when waiting for buses. I hope the whole of society can build a nonsmoking culture.”
Critics warned the proposal would cause needless “turmoil and conflict.”
“Even when officers from the Tobacco and Alcohol Control Office head to the scene where smokers are found, they will go as a team instead of alone as these actions can trigger arguments and conflicts,” said lawmaker Chan Hoi-yan. “They should not teach the public to stare at people. The problem is someone violated the law but no one is there enforcing it.”
“Very few countries around the world have implemented similar measures,” said legislator Chan Kin-por, referring to the tobacco endgame age restrictions. “Tobacco control measures should be gradual. One-size-fits-all policies may backfire.”
July 17, 2023
UK Councils Want to Ban Disposables

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Councils in England and Wales are urging the U.K. government to ban sales of single-use vapor devices by 2024, citing environmental and health concerns, reports Reuters.
The Local Government Association (LGA), which represents councils in England and Wales, argued that a ban needs to be implemented quickly to prevent disposables from flooding the U.K. market as other markets close. The European Union has proposed a ban in 2026, and France is implementing a ban in December 2023.
“Disposable vapes are fundamentally flawed in their design and inherently unsustainable products, meaning an outright ban will prove more effective than attempts to recycle more vapes,” said David Fothergill, chairman of the LGA’s community well-being board, referring to disposable vapes’ inability to be easily recycled due to the batteries not being a separate unit.
“Disposables have been around for well over a decade and provide a low-priced accessible product that helps smokers to quit smoking tobacco,” said John Dunne, director-general of the U.K. Vaping Industry Association, defending disposable vapes. He said the industry is working to limit environmental impact, and he warned that a ban would lead to a larger black market.
July 17, 2023
China Companies Crack Down on Nepotism

Photo: David Carillet
Several subsidiaries of China’s State Tobacco Monopoly Administration (STMA) have stated that close relatives of employees in leadership positions should not be hired in order to prevent nepotism and ensure fairness, reports China Daily.
A notice from the Shandong Tobacco Monopoly Administration stated that new college graduates who are spouses or immediate family members of company leaders should not be employed. It also stated that relatives within three generations and those related by marriage should not be hired.
Tobacco monopoly administrations in Shanxi, Qinghai, Gansu, Henan and Yunnan released similar notices this year.
As China’s economic recovery loses momentum, more graduates are opting for stable jobs at state-owned enterprises, making competition for such positions more intense. Online citizens said that preventing close relatives of workers at these enterprises from being hired would create a more fair employment environment, and they called for more transparent hiring practices.
The STMA implemented restrictions on nepotism in job hiring in 2020 while the Organization Department of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security issued requirements in 2019 to prevent nepotism in government institutions.
There have been frequent reports of nepotism in state-owned enterprises in the finance, telecommunications, electric power and tobacco sectors, according to a 2020 Central Commission for Discipline Inspection and the National Commission of Supervision release.
July 17, 2023
Russia to Increase Tobacco Taxes

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Excises for strong drinks, cigarettes and cars will increase effective Jan. 1, 2024, following the relevant amendment to the Internal Revenue Code approved by the State Duma budget and taxes committee, according to Tass.
“Excise rates are adjusted by the inflation level in accordance with the forecast of the Ministry of Economic Development,” said Deputy Finance Minister Aleksey Sazanov. “In other words, rates provided for the year of 2023 are adjusted upward for the years of 2024, 2025 and 2026 in line with inflation level expected for these years under the forecast of the Ministry of Economic Development. Accordingly, 5 percent in 2024, 4 percent in 2025 and 4 percent in 2026.”
Excises on cigarettes and papirosa cigarettes will go up by 5 percent in 2024 to RUB2,731 ($30.13) per 1,000 units plus 16 percent of the estimated value based on the maximum retail price but not less than RUB3,709, according to Interfax. This will increase to RUB2,840 plus 16 percent of the maximum retail price but not less than RUB3,857 in 2025 and to RUB2,954 per 1,000 units plus 16 percent of the maximum retail price but not less than RUB4,011 in 2026.
The excise on cigars will increase by 5 percent to RUB292 per unit in 2024 instead of the planned RUB289 and increase to RUB304 in 2025 and RUB316 in 2026.
The previously planned indexation for liquids for electronic nicotine-delivery systems will remain unchanged.
July 17, 2023
South African Tobacco Laws Put Jobs at Risk

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Many South African tobacconists fear the country’s new tobacco laws will put small businesses and jobs at risk, according to a new survey, reports BusinessTech.
The new Tobacco Products and Electronic Delivery Systems Control Bill is open for public comment. It was tabled before Parliament in mid-December 2022, and it has undergone extensive review and consultations. The bill outlines new regulations and prohibitions for tobacco smoking and electronic cigarettes.
A survey of specialist tobacconists in South Africa showed overwhelming opposition to the bill, which includes a complete ban on the display of all tobacco and related products across all retail channels, including specialist stores.
“While the tobacco bill creates significant trouble for all tobacco products retailers, it is clear from the research into specialist tobacconists that proposing a total ban on displaying the only products they sell in their stores is an existential risk to their businesses. These are legal products that are only sold, by law, to those over the age of 18,” said Alex Jacovides, Clippa Sales director.
With these regulations, the bill would likely cause many specialty stores to go out of business, costing many their jobs.
The bill also implements a penalty of 10 years’ imprisonment and a fine for displaying a single pack of cigarettes on the counter—even mistakenly. Almost all of the survey respondents said the penalty is extreme, inappropriate and severely damaging to small businesses.
July 17, 2023
VLN Launched in California

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22nd Century Group launched VLN King cigarettes in the California market. Starting July 17, VLN cigarettes will be available in California at more than 275 sites of the No. 1 convenience store in the U.S. in addition to numerous other convenience stores across California.
“We see our VLN product offering Californians who smoke a tremendous new option because VLN cigarettes are specifically designed to help smokers smoke less, increase their number of smoke-free days and reduce their nicotine exposure and dependence,” said John Miller, 22nd Century Group president of the tobacco division, in a statement. “Our goal with VLN is to meet California consumers where they are with a combustible product that helps people smoke less.”
July 17, 2023
FDA Grant to Study Effects of Flavors

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The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has given the Center for Tobacco Research at The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center a $3.9 million grant to evaluate the effects of e-cigarette flavors on smoking behaviors of current adult smokers, according to News Medical Lifesciences.
The study will be co-led by Theodore Wagener, director of Ohio State’s Center for Tobacco Research, and Tracy Smith from the Medical University of South Carolina Hollings Cancer Center.
Wagener says, “the FDA must decide how to balance its goals of protecting young people and offering harm-reduction options to adults. This new trial will generate critical data to help make more informed public health decisions that have a lasting impact.”
“The FDA is currently making regulatory decisions about e-cigarette flavors with incomplete scientific data,” Wagener said. “Existing data show that smokers also prefer flavored e-cigarettes, and while there are a few survey studies suggesting that flavored e-cigarettes may be more helpful for switching to vaping, these studies are not rigorous enough for the FDA to base its regulatory decisions on. Our study will be the first to provide the FDA with definitive information as to the benefit, if any, of e-cigarette flavors to adult smokers.”
The national, randomized, controlled trial will recruit up to 1,500 cigarette users from across the country, and researchers will measure e-cigarette flavor impact on product uptake and appeal, cigarette craving, symptoms, dependence and smoking behavior. Combination nicotine-replacement therapy will be used as a comparator to determine potential increased benefit of e-cigarettes versus nicotine-replacement therapy.
“If our study demonstrates no significant improvements in switching with flavored e-cigarette use, then the continued sale of these products is likely indefensible; however, if improvements are significant, these findings will provide a critical counterweight to the current FDA regulations and will aid future decision-making,” Wagener said.
July 13, 2023
Microalgae to Reduce Emissions at PM Korea

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Philip Morris International will establish a demonstration facility for carbon capture and utilization technology at its factory in Yangsan, North Gyeongsang Province, South Korea, according to the Korea Environment Corp. (KECO), reports Korea Bizwire.
The facility will leverage the carbon dioxide absorption of microalgae, which is expected to reduce the factory’s annual carbon emissions by 2.15 tons.
The facility will operate solely on solar power and utilize wastewater as well as repurpose the microalgae as fertilizer or feed after use, providing the repurposed products free of charge to local communities.
The site and funding were provided by the South Korean arm of PMI, coordinated by KECO, and research and development support were provided by the Korea Environment and Merchandise Testing Institute.
July 13, 2023
Hong Kong Solicits Feedback on Anti-Smoking Measures

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Hong Kong health authorities have asked city residents for feedback on several anti-smoking measures, including a generational tobacco ban, reports the South China Morning Post.
The public consultation, which began July 12 and is expected to end Sept. 30, covers four strategies: regulating supply and suppressing demand; banning promotion and reducing attractiveness; expanding nonsmoking areas and mitigating harm; and enhancing education and supporting those quitting smoking, according to Health Minister Lo Chung-mau.
“To protect our next generation from the harms of tobacco and to ensure the sustainability of our healthcare system, we need to draft strategies that keep up with the times,” Lo told a press briefing. “As a doctor, I don’t want our next generation to suffer from the harms of smoking and secondhand smoke.”
There were 17 possible measures included in the questionnaire for the consultation, including whether Hong Kong should “prohibit the sale of tobacco products to persons born after a certain date.”
Other questions include whether increasing the tobacco tax to 75 percent of the package price should be done rapidly or gradually every year and if a further ban on possessing e-cigarettes and heated-tobacco products is necessary. A ban on importing, promoting, manufacturing and selling e-cigarettes and heated-tobacco products was implemented last year.
In its consultation, the government excluded more aggressive measures, such as requiring shops to get a license to sell tobacco, penalizing third parties who give or sell cigarettes to under-18s, labeling tobacco products imported legally and requiring smokers to use a government app to show their ages when buying goods to verify their eligibility.
July 13, 2023