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Category: Around the Industry

  • Geneva Meeting Boosts Action Against Illicit Tobacco

    Geneva Meeting Boosts Action Against Illicit Tobacco

    The fourth session of the Parties to the Protocol to Eliminate Illicit Trade in Tobacco Products wrapped up in Geneva on November 26, with 60 Parties agreeing to strengthen international cooperation and enforcement. Decisions include compiling and analyzing tobacco seizure data, forming working groups on research and best practices, and improving licensing fee monitoring. Illicit trade is estimated to account for 11% of the global tobacco market, costing governments billions.

    The meeting also welcomed Vanuatu as the Protocol’s 71st Party, reinforcing global efforts under the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control.

  • Imperial Offers Video Series to Battle Public Misconceptions

    Imperial Offers Video Series to Battle Public Misconceptions

    Imperial Brands launched a new video series aimed at addressing the common misunderstandings associated with next-generation nicotine products (NGP) like vapes and pouches. The company’s Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) survey shows widespread confusion about the risks of NGP)s, with 63% of young people and 53% of adult smokers wrongly believing vaping is as harmful or more harmful than smoking.

    Imperial Brands Science says such misconceptions weaken the public-health potential of NGP and offers the series to tackle claims that vapes are unregulated, cause “popcorn lung,” or are as harmful as cigarettes, and clarifies differences between passive vaping and passive smoking.

    Dr. Thomas Nahde, Imperial’s Head of Harm Reduction and Engagement, said misinformation is discouraging some smokers from switching to potentially less harmful alternatives. The videos aim to make the science more accessible and promote evidence-based discussion.

    Find out more about NGP myths and misconceptions on the Imperial Brands Science website’s dedicated page.

  • USA Vape Lab Sues FDA Over PMTA Delay

    USA Vape Lab Sues FDA Over PMTA Delay

    USA Vape Lab, maker of the Naked100 line of bottled e-liquids, filed suit against the Food and Drug Administration, alleging it unlawfully delayed action on its premarket tobacco applications for more than five years. The suit was filed November 21 in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.

    In the complaint, the Huntington Beach, Calif.–based company says it submitted extensive PMTAs for its flavored and tobacco e-liquid products ahead of the September 9, 2020 deadline. Despite a Tobacco Control Act provision requiring FDA to issue decisions within 180 days, the agency has yet to act, the suit states. USA Vape Lab is asking the court to order FDA to issue final determinations.

    The company also argues FDA must consider what it describes as robust population-level evidence included in its submissions. According to the filing, a randomized controlled trial showed nearly one-third of participants achieved six-month cigarette abstinence when using Naked100 e-liquids—quit rates the company claims are two to three times higher than those reported for FDA-approved nicotine replacement therapies. USA Vape Lab further alleges that flavors such as Really Berry and Strawberry Pom demonstrate net public-health benefits that outweigh potential youth risks and exceed those of comparable tobacco flavors.

    “We felt that we had no choice but to initiate this lawsuit,” founder Huy Nguyen said in a statement, criticizing the agency for years-long delays while threatening enforcement actions against products lacking marketing orders.

    USA Vape Lab manufactures a range of popular e-liquids, including American Patriots, Crisp Menthol, and Lava Flow.

  • Half of Thai Smokers Have Undiagnosed Diabetes, Doctors Warn

    Half of Thai Smokers Have Undiagnosed Diabetes, Doctors Warn

    Doctors in Thailand have raised alarm that more than 700,000 smokers are living with diabetes, with nearly half unaware of their condition, according to last year’s Thai Health Examination Survey conducted by Ramathibodi Hospital alongside the Ministry of Public Health and other health agencies.

    The survey found 6.1 million Thais have diabetes. Of the 779,060 smokers with the disease, 377,542 are undiagnosed, and 42,099 know they have diabetes but are not receiving treatment. Only 133,027 are listed as maintaining good control of the disease.

    Dr. Prakit Vathesatogkit of the Action on Smoking and Health Foundation highlighted that smoking increases the risk of diabetes by 30–40% and worsens blood-sugar control, accelerating complications such as heart disease, kidney failure, nerve damage, vision loss, and poor circulation.

  • CORESTA Conference Abstracts Available

    CORESTA Conference Abstracts Available

    Cooperation Centre for Scientific Research Relative to Tobacco (CORESTA) announced that it has made its abstracts and presentations available from its 2025 Science-Techno Conference held in October in Annecy, France. The document is available here.

  • 25 Attorneys General Call to Tighten Online Tobacco Sales

    25 Attorneys General Call to Tighten Online Tobacco Sales

    California Attorney General Rob Bonta and the City of New York co-led a bipartisan coalition of 25 attorneys general in urging Shopify Inc. to take stronger action against merchants selling illegal tobacco products, particularly e-cigarettes, through its platform. In a letter sent November 24, the coalition requested a meeting with Shopify to develop a comprehensive solution, noting that despite existing policies, sellers continue to use the service to market unlawful products. Shopify, California’s Department of Justice said, has previously cooperated with enforcement actions, terminating certain e-cigarette sellers flagged by California officials.

    The coalition identified 29 illegal e-cigarette websites currently hosted on Shopify and enclosed an exhibit listing more than 200 additional sites selling unlawful tobacco products. The other attorneys general represent Arizona, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Utah, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.

    Bonta has previously taken action against individual sellers, including lawsuits against companies marketing flavored disposable e-cigarettes.

  • JT Announces Board, Leadership Changes

    JT Announces Board, Leadership Changes

    Japan Tobacco Inc. (JT) announced several resolutions from its Board of Directors concerning the company’s new and revised executive appointments, including changes among its Representative Directors. The most notable change is that Takehiko Tsutsui is being promoted from executive vice president of JT International to assume the office as president and Chief Executive Officer, replacing Masamichi Terabatake, who will become the deputy chairperson of the Board. The move will be effective January 1, 2026, subject to ratification at the company’s shareholders’ meeting and approval of the Board of Directors. Tsutsui joined JT in 1997 and has been a vice president since 2012.

    The company also announced that Shigeaki Okamoto will become the new chairperson of the Board, appointed Yukiko Uchida to the Board, and announced the resignations of Yukiko Nagashima and current chair Mutsuo Iwai. The Board changes will be effective at the conclusion of the shareholders’ meeting scheduled for March 25, 2026.

    In other moves, Adam Vilalta was named senior vice president of marketing of Tobacco Business in Japan with the resignation of Igor Dzaja, and Hisashi Shimobayashi was promoted to senior vice president, Chief Technology & Information Security Officer.

  • HPW Says ‘Industry Interference’ Stalled COP Decisions

    HPW Says ‘Industry Interference’ Stalled COP Decisions

    In its overview of the Eleventh Conference of the Parties (COP11), Health Policy Watch said that “industry interference remains the main issue preventing concrete steps toward more effective control of new tobacco products.” The article said that despite extensive debate, delegates failed to reach a consensus on issues such as plastic cigarette filters and disclosure requirements, opting instead for informal consultations, blaming outside forces that influenced delegates who pitched “competing drafts.”  

    “We know very well what works and what doesn’t,” Filippos Filippidis, Chair of the Tobacco Control Committee at the European Respiratory Society and Associate Professor at the School of Public Health at Imperial College London, was quoted in the article “The problem is that because of interference and the big money that is involved, some countries remain reluctant to apply some of these policies.”

    According to Health Policy Watch, delegates agreed to increase state funding for domestic tobacco control programs, consider more forward-looking measures such as generational bans on cigarettes, and approved calling on Parties to consider stronger legislative action to deal with criminal and civil liability related to tobacco control.

    However, Health Policy Watch said the “most controversial topic,” which did not get settled, concerned the way new products, such as electronic and heated tobacco and nicotine products, should be addressed, which leads into the “harm-reduction” argument that many anti-tobacco advocates believe is Big Tobacco propaganda. Industry representatives argue that the controversy and contention could be reduced via open discourse with all interested parties, and often criticize the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) for working in secrecy and prohibiting open dialogue.

    Andrew Black, Acting Head of the Secretariat, said the unsolved discussion would be addressed at COP12 in Armenia in 2027, while Gan Quan, senior vice president of Tobacco Control at the New York City-based Vital Strategies, gave little hope that outside input would be welcomed.

    “We saw an unprecedented level of industry interference at this COP,” Quan said. “In terms of the composition of the delegations, it’s a bit out of control. The goal for future progress is to do a better job in keeping the industry out of that discussion.”

  • Malaysia to Study Effects of IQOS

    Malaysia to Study Effects of IQOS

    Malaysia’s Home Ministry recommended that the National Poison Center conduct a study on IQOS, Philip Morris’ heated tobacco product. Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail said the health effects of the device are not yet known, but an initial study would help prepare the government for future legislation. Speaking at a seminar, he described the product as a “new innovation posing regulatory challenges.” He emphasized that laws on poisons and drug abuse must remain dynamic to address emerging substances.

    Saifuddin added that while the device’s marketing campaign advises non-smokers not to start and encourages smokers to quit or switch, the government must be proactive in assessing potential risks. He suggested that legal amendments could be drafted broadly to prevent loopholes.

  • Labstat Introduces New President

    Labstat Introduces New President

    Labstat Inc., a Certified Group company and the world’s largest independent nicotine testing laboratory, announced that it has appointed Scott LaNeve as its new president. LaNeve brings more than three decades of leadership experience across life sciences, diagnostics, and healthcare technology, having held senior roles at Abbott Laboratories, Roche Diagnostics, and Quest Diagnostics, as well as executive positions in national laboratory networks and technology firms.

    In a statement, LaNeve said he was honored to join Labstat, which operates laboratories in Canada, the U.S., and Europe specializing in nicotine, tobacco, and cannabis testing. He emphasized his commitment to advancing Labstat’s role in global tobacco harm reduction by delivering trusted testing and actionable, data-driven insights to clients. Certified Group CEO David Morgan welcomed the appointment, citing LaNeve’s strategic vision and operational expertise as key to reinforcing Labstat’s leadership worldwide.