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Category: News This Week

  • Italy’s New Cigarette Prices Take Effect

    Italy’s New Cigarette Prices Take Effect

    Beginning today (Sept. 28), Italy implemented another round of tobacco price increases, with updated Customs and Monopolies Agency (ADM) price lists covering about 75 products, including cigarettes, cigarillos, cigars, and fine-cut tobacco, according to La Sicilia. Increases are as much as €0.30 per pack, with several Japan Tobacco International brands affected, including Camel, Winston, and Benson & Hedges. Examples cited by La Sicilia include Camel hard packs at €6.30, Winston at €5.80, and Benson & Hedges Gold at €6.80.

    The latest increases follow adjustments in January that affected Philip Morris brands, including Marlboro. The price changes are linked to Italy’s revised tobacco excise structure, which raises the fixed component of the cigarette excise duty from €32 per 1,000 cigarettes in 2026 to €35.50 in 2027 and €38.50 from 2028. Minimum tax charges for fine-cut tobacco and cigarillos are also scheduled to increase through 2028.

  • Brazil Intercepts 200K Illicit Vapes

    Brazil Intercepts 200K Illicit Vapes

    Brazil’s Federal Revenue Service seized a container at the Port of Santos containing about 200,000 smuggled electronic smoking devices in an operation conducted Sept. 18. The shipment originated in Yantian, China, and was destined for Montevideo, Uruguay, but was falsely declared as LED screens and electronics.

    Authorities found that about 95% of the cargo consisted of undeclared electronic cigarettes without marketing authorization. The seizure followed information provided by Philip Morris International’s Illicit Trade Prevention team, which alerted Brazil’s General Coordination of Customs Administration after identifying that the vessel would stop in Santos before continuing to Uruguay.

  • Elitecon Inks $60M South African Tobacco Supply Agreement

    Elitecon Inks $60M South African Tobacco Supply Agreement

    Elitecon International entered into a Product Supply Framework Agreement with South Africa-based World Class 77 covering potential exports of cut blended tobacco, homogenized tobacco, cigarettes, and fast-moving consumer goods, according to a report in Business Standard. The agreement, signed Sept. 26, establishes an indicative program ceiling of up to $60 million, or approximately ₹574.2 crore, based on a contractual reference rate of ₹95.70 per U.S. dollar.

    The agreement runs through Aug. 31, 2027, and provides a commercial framework for Elitecon’s export supplies to South Africa. The company said the agreement is intended to support the continued development of its international business.

  • Cabbacis Reports $1.3M Loss in 1H 2026

    Cabbacis Reports $1.3M Loss in 1H 2026

    Cabbacis reported a net loss of $1.34 million for the first half of 2026, compared with $735,560 in the same period a year ago, while cash used in operations increased to $726,729 from $479,948. The development-stage tobacco company reported no revenue and said it had $61,220 in total liabilities. Cabbacis is preparing a Premarket Tobacco Product Application for its iBLEND very-low-nicotine cigarettes, which contain about 95% less nicotine than the average U.S. cigarette, and plans to begin a larger U.S. study following a six-week study of 70 adult smokers in Switzerland.

    The company also expanded its portfolio with X95, a very-low-nicotine cigarette made without hemp, and formed a wholly owned subsidiary to handle final processing of its hemp blends. Cabbacis has engaged Moody Capital Solutions to raise up to $7.5 million through a Regulation A offering, with about $1.7 million raised to date, and said proceeds will support product development, FDA filings, manufacturing scale-up, and other corporate purposes. The company said it expects to introduce its products in select international markets beginning in the first half of 2027.

  • IKE Tech Launches Continuous Compliance Platform for Nicotine Products

    IKE Tech Launches Continuous Compliance Platform for Nicotine Products

    IKE Tech LLC announced the launch of IKE 2.0, a platform designed to provide continuous compliance controls for regulated products, initially focusing on the global nicotine category. The platform connects identity verification, product authentication, configurable policy enforcement, and compliance intelligence across the product lifecycle, including after retail sale. The company said the system is designed to verify users, authenticate products, and apply requirements based on factors such as jurisdiction, product, and SKU.

    IKE 2.0 is available through a web platform for manufacturers and brand operators and a configurable consumer application. IKE Tech said the platform uses a Human Identity Token to abstract verified personal information, with biometric processing performed on-device. The company said it is SOC 2 Type II certified and designed for GDPR and CCPA compliance. The platform is covered by 11 issued patents, with additional applications pending.

    The company said its technology was the subject of a standalone component PMTA filed with the FDA in April 2025 for interoperable age-verification technology, which the agency accepted for review in 2025. IKE Tech said a controlled Human Factors Study involving 102 participants prevented underage device activation in all attempted cases, while reporting a 91% adult ease-of-use rating and a user error rate below 1%. The study has not been peer-reviewed.

  • Türkiye Drafting Tobacco Control Bill That Includes Generational Ban

    Türkiye Drafting Tobacco Control Bill That Includes Generational Ban

    Türkiye is preparing legislation that would prohibit people born after Jan. 1, 2015, from using or selling tobacco products throughout their lives, according to Professor Toker Ergüder, who is involved in drafting the proposal. The Health Ministry has been preparing the legislation for about a year and is expected to submit it to Parliament in October. The draft would also tighten smoking restrictions in indoor and outdoor public spaces, introduce new cigarette packaging rules, eliminate slim cigarettes, and prohibit smoking in restaurant areas, while designated smoking areas would be established in parks and public-building grounds. The proposal also includes a longer-term plan to prohibit tobacco production and sales in Türkiye from 2040. Ergüder said annual cigarette sales increased from about 91,000 tons, or 4.5 billion packs, in 2012 to approximately 160,000 tons, or 8 billion packs, in 2025.

  • Bangladesh Seizes 8.25 Tons of Tobacco-Like Materials

    Bangladesh Seizes 8.25 Tons of Tobacco-Like Materials

    Bangladesh customs officials seized about 17.5 tons of goods at Chattogram Port after finding discrepancies between the declared and actual contents of two consignments imported under the name of Authoy Enterprise. The shipment included tobacco or tobacco-like materials and scrap paper, according to the National Board of Revenue.

    The first consignment was declared as pan masala and zarda, or chewing tobacco, but contained 8,250.4 kilograms, or about 8.25 tons, of tobacco or tobacco-like material. Some materials appeared to be powdery substances resembling narcotics, though laboratory testing is required to determine their composition. The second consignment was declared as printed paper catalogues but contained 9,263 kilograms, or about 9.26 tons, of scrap paper.

    Authoy Enterprise’s proprietor told customs officials that he and the company were unaware of the imports and suspected their name and import information had been misused. Authorities are investigating the shipments and whether any offences were committed.

  • Trump Administration Looking to Change PMTA Process

    Trump Administration Looking to Change PMTA Process

    The Trump administration is reportedly preparing changes to the FDA’s review process for new tobacco products that could make it faster and easier for products such as flavored vapes and nicotine pouches to receive marketing authorization, according to The Wall Street Journal. The FDA is expected to revisit requirements established in 2021 for Premarket Tobacco Product Applications (PMTAs), following years of industry criticism over lengthy reviews.

    Reuters reported it could not independently verify the report, but quoted an HHS spokesperson as saying, “The Trump administration is committed to keeping nicotine out of the hands of kids, getting ⁠counterfeit vaping products off the streets and providing safer alternatives for adults who want to quit smoking cigarettes.”

    Industry groups and companies welcomed the potential changes. Laura Leigh Oyler, vice president of regulatory affairs at Haypp Group USA, said the FDA has not met congressional review deadlines for noncombustible products and has authorized fewer than 100 reduced-risk products compared with thousands of combustible products. “An overhaul isn’t just welcome, it’s necessary,” Oyler said, adding that the current process has contributed to the influx of foreign, illicit products.

    Charlie’s Holdings also supported the reported changes, saying it has been seeking FDA authorization for certain tobacco-derived nicotine e-liquids since 2020 and hundreds of synthetic nicotine products since 2022. CEO Henry Sicignano said the PMTA process has imposed high costs on smaller U.S. businesses while illicit products have entered the market. Charlie’s said it currently retains 678 timely filed PMTA assets and expects a streamlined authorization process to increase the value of its portfolio.

  • Canada Health Minister Rejects Calls to Loosen Pouch Rules

    Canada Health Minister Rejects Calls to Loosen Pouch Rules

    Canadian Federal Health Minister Marjorie Michel said she is not considering changes to Canada’s regulations governing nicotine pouches, which are regulated as smoking-cessation aids and restricted to adult sales through pharmacies. Zonnic, manufactured by Imperial Tobacco, is currently the only authorized nicotine pouch brand, with sales limited to 4 mg pouches and restricted flavors. Unsmoke Canada, part of Philip Morris International’s Rothmans, Benson & Hedges business, has campaigned for allowing pouches to be sold through retail stores, arguing that broader legal availability could address the illicit market.

    Michel acknowledged challenges with illicit sales, including online sales of products such as Zyn, while tobacco-control groups called for stronger enforcement rather than looser rules. The groups said nicotine pouch use among Canadian youth is increasing and warned that wider retail availability could increase youth access.

  • BAT Urges UK Retailers to Respond to Nicotine-Product Consultation

    BAT Urges UK Retailers to Respond to Nicotine-Product Consultation

    British American Tobacco continues to urge UK retailers to respond to the government’s consultation on proposed changes to the packaging, appearance, display, and marketing of tobacco and vape products before it closes Oct. 2. BAT UK and Ireland Commercial Director Tolga Kilic said retailers’ experience should inform the final regulations and urged them to highlight potential operational and financial impacts.

    Kilic cited the government’s impact assessment, which estimates vape retailers could face more than £420 million in cumulative lost profits through 2036 from proposed point-of-sale display restrictions. The consultation also covers product packaging, flavor descriptions, and other measures affecting the sale and presentation of nicotine products.