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Category: Around the Industry

  • Experts Urge South Korea’s Government to Raise Cigarette Prices

    Experts Urge South Korea’s Government to Raise Cigarette Prices

    Anti-smoking experts are calling on South Korea’s new government to double cigarette prices and strengthen tobacco regulations to curb smoking rates and protect public health. In a new report, Professor Cho Hong-joon of Ulsan University and Lee Sung-kyu of the Korea Tobacco Control Research Education Center outlined seven key policy recommendations, including raising cigarette prices to 10,000 won ($7.20), enforcing plain packaging, and banning tobacco advertising in convenience stores.

    South Korea currently sells cigarettes at around 4,500 won ($3.24) per pack—less than half the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development average. The researchers argue the price hike is overdue and would bring Korea in line with international standards, noting that cigarette prices are significantly higher in other countries, like Australia’s 45,000 won ($32.40) and France’s 20,000 won ($14.40).

    The report also highlights the widespread presence of tobacco ads in stores, including near schools, and urges stricter enforcement of existing laws.

  • Pakistan’s National Assembly Panel Calls for Reforms to Support Tobacco Growers

    Pakistan’s National Assembly Panel Calls for Reforms to Support Tobacco Growers

    Pakistan’s National Assembly Standing Committee on National Food Security met last week to address challenges facing tobacco growers, urging immediate reforms and greater inclusion of farmers in policymaking. Committee Chairman Syed Tariq Hussain emphasized the need to modernize agriculture and expand tobacco cultivation, citing global advances like drone technology.

    Officials revealed that general sales tax is applied to cigarettes but not raw tobacco, and that Rs949 million ($3.3 million) in research funds remain unused due to a key vacancy at the Pakistan Tobacco Board (PTB). The committee demanded swift appointments to all vacant PTB posts to unblock stalled development projects.

    Lawmakers also criticized the exclusion of tobacco growers from PTB committees overseeing local tax funds, corporate social responsibility programs, and crop development. The committee directed the ministry to ensure growers are included, calling their involvement essential for meaningful reform.

  • Portugal Latest to Reject EU Tobacco Tax Hike Proposal

    Portugal Latest to Reject EU Tobacco Tax Hike Proposal

    This weekend, Portugal formally announced its opposition to the European Union’s tobacco tax proposals, warning the changes could cost the country up to €1.5 billion in lost revenue. The objection targets both the Tobacco Excise Duty Own Resource (TEDOR)—a proposed 15% EU tax to help fund the €2 trillion 2028–2034 EU budget—and the plan to hike cigarette taxes across the bloc. In Portugal, the price of a pack of cigarettes would rise by €1.22 under the proposal.

    Portugal is also challenging the EU’s plan to tax alternative nicotine products, like e-cigarettes and heated tobacco, the same as traditional cigarettes, arguing this contradicts public health goals.

    “Less harmful products should face lower taxes to encourage switching,” the government stated, warning that equal taxation could deter smokers from moving to reduced-risk alternatives and boost black market activity.

    The European Commission proposed a 139% increase in excise duties, from €90 to €215 per 1,000 cigarettes. While 15 countries, including France, Ireland, and the Netherlands, already back the plan, others, particularly Bulgaria, Greece, and Italy, have been vocal in opposing the hikes, warning of growing black markets and financial strain on consumers.

    The EU, aligning with WHO guidance, maintains that all tobacco and nicotine products carry health risks and should be taxed uniformly to discourage use and prevent cross-border trade distortions.

    The proposed revision to the Tobacco Excise Duty Directive must receive unanimous approval from all 27 EU member states to move forward.

  • CAPHRA Slams Global Public Health Failures, Urges Policy Reform

    CAPHRA Slams Global Public Health Failures, Urges Policy Reform

    The Coalition of Asia Pacific Tobacco Harm Reduction Advocates (CAPHRA) released a scathing report this weekend, calling out governments for failing to uphold basic human rights in public health policy, particularly in their handling of tobacco control.

    Titled “The Right to Health and Public Health Policy,” the report criticizes the continued overregulation or banning of safer nicotine alternatives like vaping, while combustible cigarettes remain widely accessible. Authors Nancy Loucas and Clarisse Virgino argue this contradicts international human rights laws guaranteeing the right to health.

    “Governments are demonstrating extraordinary hypocrisy in their approach to tobacco control,” said Loucas. “They simultaneously tax tobacco products, creating reliance on tobacco revenue, whilst claiming to fight tobacco use.”

    The report calls for urgent reform, demanding public health systems prioritize accessibility, scientific integrity, and harm reduction. Without accountability and transparency, CAPHRA warns, global health inequalities will only worsen.

    Read the entire position paper here. 

  • Pakistani Officials Restrained from Interfering in Tobacco Processing Unit

    Pakistani Officials Restrained from Interfering in Tobacco Processing Unit

    This weekend, Pakistan’s Peshawar High Court (PHC) stopped government officials from interfering in the work of a tobacco processing unit in Mardan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province, following a petition by business owner Mujeebur Rehman.

    Rehman claimed his legally registered unit, which employs hundreds and supplies raw tobacco for cigarette manufacturing, was facing harassment despite tax compliance. His legal team argued that the deployment of Inland Revenue officers and Rangers, as well as the forced installation of surveillance equipment, violated constitutional rights and disrupted business operations during peak tobacco threshing season.

    The PHC asked government respondents, including the Revenue Department and Federal Board of Revenue, to submit their replies while temporarily halting security personnel deployment at the site.

  • Laos to Enforce Tough Penalties on Tobacco Firms Over Graphic Warning Violations

    Laos to Enforce Tough Penalties on Tobacco Firms Over Graphic Warning Violations

    Beginning August 15, Laos will strictly penalize tobacco companies and retailers that fail to comply with graphic warning label regulations on cigarette packaging, the Ministry of Health announced. The rules, in effect since May 2024, require cigarette packs to carry one of 10 approved graphic health warnings. Despite a 180-day compliance window, companies have delayed implementation by over a year.

    Penalties will include fines up to LAK 50 million ($2,300), product seizures, and potential license suspensions. Repeat offenders risk legal action and full business closure.

    Laos is the third ASEAN nation to mandate graphic warnings, aiming to combat high smoking rates. Authorities say stricter enforcement is key to protecting public health, especially among youth.

  • Study: 78M Cigarettes Smoked Daily in Britain

    Study: 78M Cigarettes Smoked Daily in Britain

    More than 78 million cigarettes are smoked each day across England, Wales, and Scotland—equating to roughly 900 every second—according to a new study by University College London (UCL), funded by Cancer Research UK.

    The study, published in Nicotine & Tobacco Research, highlights sharp inequalities in smoking habits. People from lower socioeconomic backgrounds smoke more—11 cigarettes a day on average—compared to 9.4 among more affluent groups. Regionally, smokers in the North East and Scotland top the charts with 11.7 cigarettes per day, while Londoners smoke the fewest at 8.4.

    Despite falling smoking rates—from 18.8% in 2013 to 11.9% in 2023—Britain is unlikely to meet its smokefree targets. England, aiming for 5% prevalence by 2030, is projected to hit that mark by 2039. Scotland may not reach it until the late 2040s.

  • Czech Museum Slammed for VR Exhibit Glamorizing Smoking

    Czech Museum Slammed for VR Exhibit Glamorizing Smoking

    The Czech National Museum is under fire for its new virtual reality exhibition, Steps of Progress, over claims that it glamorizes smoking and potentially violates tobacco advertising laws. Launched July 1, the exhibit immerses visitors in a digital journey from the 19th century to the future. However, several scenes prominently feature historic Czech figures smoking, without any health warnings.

    In one segment, inventor František Křižík lights a cigar for composer Antonín Dvořák, while another shows actress Olga Scheinpflugová pulling out a box of cigars in casual conversation. More problematic for critics is a futuristic scene that includes two robots casually discussing nicotine use for stress.

    “It could be a clear promotion of nicotine products,” said Radek Jurnikl of Sananim, an organization focused on addiction treatment, who admitted not having personally seen the exhibit and warned that the context is critical.

    The exhibit’s sponsor, Philip Morris ČR, the country’s largest tobacco company, is credited in the display and online, sparking deeper concern. Philip Morris ČR denied that any branding appears in the experience, claiming it adheres to strict marketing codes. “None of our brands appear in the virtual reality content,” said company spokesman Vojtěch Severýn. “We follow a strict marketing code to keep nicotine products out of the hands of minors.”

    The National Museum insists the scenes reflect historical accuracy and are not promotional. “Progress is the driving force of human development, but it’s not a straight path without mistakes and errors,” said museum spokesperson Kristina Kvapilová, attempting to underscore that smoking is indeed a negative trait when explaining the name of the exhibition.

    However, critics argue that the lack of disclaimers and prominent tobacco presence, even in futuristic scenes, undermines public health messaging, especially as Czech law now bans sponsorships that promote smoking and restricts flavored e-cigarettes. They further argue that the controversy has sparked a wider debate about the ethics of corporate sponsorship and the blurred lines between history and promotion in public exhibitions.

  • CAPHRA Challenges WHO’s Tobacco Control Approach

    CAPHRA Challenges WHO’s Tobacco Control Approach

    A new Shadow Report from the Coalition of Asia Pacific Tobacco Harm Reduction Advocates (CAPHRA) criticizes the World Health Organization’s (WHO) global tobacco control strategy for neglecting harm reduction — a key component of the WHO’s own Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC). CAPHRA’s report argues that countries strictly following WHO’s MPOWER measures, like Thailand and India, have seen only limited declines in smoking, while nations adopting harm reduction tools, such as vaping, have achieved greater success. It cites the UK, Japan, New Zealand, and Canada as leading examples.

    With over 1 billion smokers worldwide, CAPHRA calls for “practical, science-based solutions” to replace abstinence-only approaches. The group also condemns the exclusion of harm reduction advocates from policy discussions under FCTC Article 5.3.

    “This is a call to action,” the report states. “We must replace moralistic dogma with practical solutions. It is time to make smoking — the deadliest form of tobacco use — public enemy No. 1, and to deploy harm reduction as a frontline strategy.”

  • Philippines Raises Minimum Prices for Cigarettes and Vapes

    Philippines Raises Minimum Prices for Cigarettes and Vapes

    The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) in the Philippines raised the minimum retail prices for cigarettes and vape products to reflect updated tax and production cost estimates, according to a revenue regulation issued July 18. The floor price for a pack of cigarettes is now set at ₱85.57 ($1.45), up from ₱78.58 ($1.34), with the estimated production cost increased to ₱10.25 ($0.17) per pack. Heated tobacco products now carry a floor price of ₱61.47 ($1.04) per 20-piece pack.

    For vape products, the minimum price for a 2ml nicotine pod surged to ₱353.18 ($6) from ₱180.67 ($3.07). Disposable pods are now priced at ₱183.31 (3.12), prefilled pods at ₱174.89 ($2.97), and disposable devices at ₱98.18 ($1.67)—all for 10ml products.

    The BIR collected ₱58.97 billion ($1 billion) in excise taxes from tobacco products in the first half of 2025, a 34% increase year-on-year. Vape excise tax collections soared by 738%, reaching ₱1.5 billion ($25.5 million).

    The updated prices will take effect 15 days after publication in the Official Gazette or the BIR’s website.