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  • CAPHRA Says FDA’s Pouch Pivot Should Trigger Policy Rethink 

    CAPHRA Says FDA’s Pouch Pivot Should Trigger Policy Rethink 

    The Coalition of Asia Pacific Tobacco Harm Reduction Advocates is urging governments across the Asia-Pacific region to review the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s recent authorization allowing 20 Zyn nicotine pouch products to carry reduced-risk claims for adult smokers. CAPHRA said the FDA’s decision recognizes the principle of relative risk following scientific review and should encourage regulators to distinguish between combustible cigarettes, high-risk smokeless tobacco products, and lower-risk smoke-free nicotine alternatives.

    The group called on policymakers to adopt evidence-based, risk-proportionate regulation, strengthen youth access restrictions and product standards, and ensure adult consumers receive accurate information about the comparative risks of nicotine products, arguing that treating all nicotine products as equally harmful undermines public health objectives.

  • Netherlands Provided PMI €1M for Subsidized Carbon Improvements

    Netherlands Provided PMI €1M for Subsidized Carbon Improvements

    The Dutch government awarded more than €1 million in climate subsidies to Philip Morris between 2023 and 2025 under its VEKI program, which supports industrial investments aimed at reducing carbon emissions. The funding was used at the company’s Bergen op Zoom factory to replace a natural gas installation with a heat pump system that reuses waste heat from production, improving energy efficiency and lowering emissions. Philip Morris received €373,000 in 2023, €560,000 in 2024, and €103,000 in 2025, according to Dutch broadcaster RTL Z.

    The subsidies drew attention because they were awarded to a tobacco manufacturer despite the Netherlands’ broader efforts to reduce smoking through higher tobacco taxes and tighter retail restrictions. The Ministry of Climate and Green Growth said the sustainability program operates independently of tobacco control policy, arguing that while tobacco production remains legal, manufacturers are eligible for climate funding if they meet the scheme’s requirements. The ministry emphasized that the subsidies support emissions reductions rather than tobacco production.

  • Armenia Raises Excise Taxes on Tobacco, Alcohol, Fuel

    Armenia Raises Excise Taxes on Tobacco, Alcohol, Fuel

    Armenia’s parliament approved legislation raising excise taxes on tobacco products, alcohol, gasoline, and diesel fuel, a move expected to increase retail prices. The measure introduces annual indexation of excise taxes on excisable goods, with tobacco excise rates set to increase by 7% each year, while excise taxes on heated tobacco products will rise by 30% annually. The excise tax on electronic cigarettes will double in the first year under the new framework. The bill passed its second reading with support from lawmakers in the ruling Civil Contract party.

  • Tobacco-Free Pouches Are Not Milder Alternative for Mucosa: Study 

    Tobacco-Free Pouches Are Not Milder Alternative for Mucosa: Study 

    A clinical study by Folktandvården Stockholm and the Karolinska Institutet found that tobacco-free nicotine pouches and traditional tobacco-containing snus produce different oral mucosal reactions. While both products were associated with increased tissue thickening as use increased, nicotine pouch users more frequently exhibited inflammatory changes such as erythema and, in some cases, ulceration, making their effects less predictable than those seen with traditional snus.

    The study, which evaluated 272 adults aged 18–30, found no increased risk of cavities or periodontitis in either group over up to six years of use, but researchers said the findings highlight the need for further research into the oral health effects of nicotine pouches and different flavor formulations.

  • Court Says HHS Can’t Impose Civil Penalties on Vape Retailer

    Court Says HHS Can’t Impose Civil Penalties on Vape Retailer

    A divided panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit vacated a $19,192 civil penalty imposed by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services against Texas-based vape retailer Texas Tobacco Barn, ruling that the company was entitled to a jury trial under the Seventh Amendment. The case involved the sale of unauthorized vaping products, with the court finding that HHS could not impose civil monetary penalties through an administrative proceeding without affording the company the opportunity for a jury trial, citing recent U.S. Supreme Court precedent on agency enforcement actions. The court rejected the company’s separate challenge to FDA’s authority to regulate vaping products, leaving that framework intact.

    The 2-1 decision sends the case back and could have broader implications for how federal agencies pursue civil penalties in tobacco and vaping enforcement cases. The majority concluded that such monetary penalties are analogous to traditional legal claims historically decided by juries and do not fall within the narrow “public rights” exception that allows agency adjudication without a jury. The dissenting judge argued the administrative process was constitutionally permissible because the enforcement action lacked a close common-law analogue.

  • PCA Concerned Over FDA’s Proposed Tobacco Rules

    PCA Concerned Over FDA’s Proposed Tobacco Rules

    The Premium Cigar Association (PCA) said it will submit comments opposing portions of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s proposed rule on tobacco product establishment registration and product listing, arguing the measure could impose significant compliance costs on manufacturers and retailers. The association noted that premium cigar manufacturers remain exempt from the proposal as a result of successful litigation overturning the FDA’s Deeming Rule for premium cigars, but warned that many other products sold by its 3,500 retail members—including pipe tobacco and non-premium cigars—would be subject to new registration, recordkeeping, and inspection requirements.

    PCA CEO Joshua Habursky said the organization is concerned the proposal could lead to additional regulation and higher costs throughout the supply chain, particularly for small businesses. The association said it intends to oppose provisions it considers unnecessary and argues that increased compliance costs for manufacturers would ultimately be passed on to retailers and consumers through higher prices and reduced product choice.

  • ITGA Chief Calls for Better Incomes for Zimbabwe’s Tobacco Farmers

    ITGA Chief Calls for Better Incomes for Zimbabwe’s Tobacco Farmers

    Outgoing International Tobacco Growers Association (ITGA) President José Javier Aranda called on the Zimbabwe government, merchants, and contractors to prioritize farmers’ livelihoods, warning that the long-term sustainability of the global tobacco industry depends on growers earning a living income. Speaking at the ITGA Africa Regional Meeting 2026 in Harare, Aranda said tobacco farmers continue to bear rising production costs, climate-related risks, and increasing regulatory pressures while receiving shrinking returns, despite value creation elsewhere in the supply chain.

    Zimbabwe Agriculture Minister Anxious Masuka, speaking as both a government official and tobacco farmer, acknowledged that this season’s prices had been disappointing and noted production costs have risen about 90% since 2017, calling for targeted farmer support and measures to improve profitability. The meeting, which concludes this week, also highlighted concerns that oversupply is squeezing contractors and financiers, with delegates urging greater collaboration across the industry to strengthen grower incomes and ensure a sustainable future for the sector.

  • Zimbabwe Moves to Tobacco Industry Act

    Zimbabwe Moves to Tobacco Industry Act

    Zimbabwe’s Cabinet approved the principles for amending the Tobacco Industry and Marketing Act, clearing the way for the first major overhaul of the legislation since 1997. The proposed reforms aim to modernize the legal framework by addressing developments in contract farming, tobacco research, corporate governance, and emerging tobacco products, while closing regulatory gaps related to contract breaches and side-marketing. Agriculture Minister Dr. Anxious Masuka said the amendments will also strengthen the regulatory role of the Tobacco Industry and Marketing Board, align the law with public governance and financial management legislation, and expand the mandate of the Tobacco Research Board to include research on both manufactured and unmanufactured tobacco products, alongside greater support for farmers through research, extension services, and capacity-building.

  • Pakistan Revises Excise Duties 

    Pakistan’s Federal Budget 2026-27 left cigarette excise duty rates unchanged while increasing the federal excise duty on e-liquids for electronic cigarettes from Rs10,000 to Rs16,500 ($36 to $59.40) per kg and reducing the duty on acetate tow, a key cigarette filter input, from Rs44,000 ($158.40) to Rs10,000 per kg. In an analysis of the budget, the Sustainable Development Policy Institute said the combination of stronger enforcement measures, unchanged cigarette taxes, and lower duties on cigarette manufacturing inputs raises questions about the overall coherence of the country’s tobacco tax policy.

    The institute also noted that cigarette excise rates have remained unchanged since February 2023, reducing their real value in an inflationary environment, while the government chose not to introduce a proposed third tier of cigarette excise taxation. Looking ahead, the analysis recommends periodic reviews of cigarette excise rates, reassessing tax treatment of manufacturing inputs, refining the taxation of e-liquids to better reflect market practices, and exploring environmental levies on tobacco products as part of a more integrated fiscal strategy.

  • Zambia Tobacco Sales Near $105M Through 11 Weeks

    Zambia Tobacco Sales Near $105M Through 11 Weeks

    Zambia’s tobacco industry generated more than $104.9 million in cumulative sales through Week 11 of the 2026 marketing season, according to the Tobacco Board of Zambia. Farmers sold 51.96 million kg of tobacco during the period, led by 44.45 million kg of flue-cured Virginia tobacco, which generated $87.34 million at an average price of $1.97 per kg. Air-cured Burley tobacco sales totaled 7.51 million kg, earning $17.63 million at a higher average price of $2.35 per kg.