Turkey is expected this year to export tobacco worth more than $1 billion, which would represent an 18.3 percent increase on last year’s exports, worth $845 million, according to a Hurriyet story quoting data supplied by the Turkish exporters’ association.
In July, the value of the country’s tobacco exports surged to $90.3 million, up 120 percent on that of July 2012, $41.0 million.
The tobacco sector was the second-highest export earner in July, after the olive and olive oil sector.
The Altria Companies Employee Community Fund (ACECF) said last week that it had awarded more than $2.9 million in grants to 140 nonprofit organizations based in some of its operating communities.
“Given these difficult economic times, many nonprofits are in more need than ever to continue their missions to address acute needs in their communities,” said Jennifer Hunter, chairperson, ACECF board of directors. “With this unique opportunity, Altria companies’ employees are able to help make a difference in the places they call home through their commitments of money and time.”
The ACECF—an employee-funded charitable giving program managed and supported by Altria companies’ employees—is one of the only employee-driven, workplace-giving programs publicly reported among US companies, according to the Changing Our World organization.
Throughout its history, the ACECF, which is based in Richmond, Virginia, USA, and which has been in existence since 2000, has awarded 1,452 grants totaling $40 million to nonprofit organizations in some of the communities where Altria companies’ employees live and work.
Employee committees in each community select the ACECF grant categories, review the grant requests and select the nonprofit organizations for funding.
The recent focus areas for grant requests were domestic violence, emergency services, hunger relief, homelessness and youth and adult services.
Since Altria makes a contribution to cover ACECF’s administrative costs and also makes a contribution to the fund, every employee dollar raised goes directly to supporting local nonprofit organizations.
Lorillard on Friday declared a quarterly dividend on its common stock of $0.55 per share, payable on Sept. 10 to stockholders of record as of Aug. 30.
EU legislation does not prohibit the testing of tobacco products on animals.
This was the gist of an answer given by the European Commission to a number of questions posed by Polish MEP Jarosław Leszek Wałęsa.
In introducing his questions, Wałęsa said that while the testing of cosmetic products on animals and the importation of such products into the EU had been largely regulated, the testing of tobacco products on animals, in particular on rats, monkeys or dogs, remained a gray area.
Although tests that involved exposing animals to tobacco smoke for many years under atrocious conditions were prohibited in the EU, he said, there were no such restrictions on tobacco products imported into the EU “by the well-known manufacturers which carry out these tests.”
Wałęsa asked:
1. How does the Commission intend to promote EU practices outside its borders in such a way as to influence the actions of tobacco groups and producers?
2. Does the Commission intend to block imports of tobacco products tested on animals?
3. How can the Commission argue in favor of maintaining the European Union’s cooperation with tobacco companies when the above proves them to be indifferent to the fate of animals?
But the MEP was mistaken in believing that the EU protected animals from such tests, even within its own territory.
The Commission answered:
“The EU legislation does not include a prohibition for testing tobacco products with animals. However, Directive 2010/63/EU, that took full effect on 1 January 2013, provides a legal framework to replace, reduce and refine the use of animals used for scientific purposes in the EU.
“At this stage the Commission has not taken any specific action against imported tobacco products in this respect, nor are there any immediate plans to do so.
“Article 5(3) of the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) obliges the EU and its Member States to protect their public health policies from any commercial and other vested interests of the tobacco industry.”
Imperial Tobacco said on Thursday that it was continuing to make “good progress” with its initiatives in the “e-vapor sector” through its subsidiary Fontem Ventures, and that it remained on track to launch its own products in 2014.
In publishing an interim management statement, Imperial reported that its stick equivalent [cigarettes and fine-cut] volume fell by 7 percent and its underlying volume [excluding the effect of trade destocking] was down by 5 percent during the nine months to the end of June.
The company’s key strategic brands were said to have outperformed market trends, but reported volume for these brands was down by 4 percent and underlying volume was down by 1 percent.
Within the overall trend, fine-cut tobacco performance was described as “excellent,” while there was said to have been good growth in premium cigars and snus.
“I’m pleased with the significant progress we’re making with the strategic transition of the business, which is strengthening our sustainable sales growth capabilities and optimizing our costs in line with our strategy,” said CEO Alison Cooper.
“Our full-year expectations remain unchanged. We continue to focus on maximizing opportunities for our total tobacco portfolio in the EU against a backdrop of weak industry volumes and are driving good in-market performances in Asia-Pacific and Africa and Middle East, with our share improving in many markets.
“Whilst opportunities to grow sales in the short term are being impacted by the environment challenges, we remain focused on generating high-quality returns and sustainable growth from our portfolio.”
Japan Tobacco Inc.’s domestic cigarette sales volume during July, at 10.5 billion, was increased by 3.3 percent on its July 2012 volume, 10.2 billion, which was down by 18.5 percent on that of July 2011, according to preliminary figures issued by the company on Friday.
Volume during April–July, at 39.8 billion, was up by 0.7 percent on that of April–July 2012, 39.5 billion, which was increased by 28 percent on that of April–July 2011.
JT’s market share stood at 60.7 percent in July, at 60.6 percent during April–July, and at 59.6 percent for the full year to the end of March.
JT’s domestic cigarette revenue during July, at ¥57.6 billion, was increased by 2.9 percent on its July 2012 revenue, ¥55.9 billion.
Revenue during April–July, at ¥218.5 billion, was up by 0.3 percent on that of April–July 2012, ¥217.7 billion.
Hong Kong is the main source of fake electronic cigarettes and e-liquids entering the EU, according to the European Commission’s 2012 annual report on the enforcement of intellectual property rights (IPR).
A commission press note said that last year EU customs “detained” almost 40 million products valued at nearly €1 billion “suspected of violating” IPR.
Cigarettes were said to have accounted for 31 percent of “interceptions.”
Postal and courier packages accounted for about 70 percent of customs “interventions,” with 23 percent of the “detentions” in postal traffic involving medicines.
China was said to be the main source of fake goods entering the EU.
Imperial Tobacco is supporting a scheme to improve adult literacy in the Dominican Republic and to promote greater social inclusion in the Caribbean nation.
The Altadis Foundation and Imperial’s local subsidiary, Tabacalera de García, are jointly backing the Ministry of Education’s “Quisqueya Aprende Contigo” (“Dominican Republic learn with you”) initiative.
The foundation will pay for specialist teachers and fund a community campaign in La Romana, where Imperial’s cigar factory is based.
Under the initiative, employees who have difficulty reading and writing will be provided with access to education resources along with the support of volunteers from the factory acting as coordinators.
“We’re helping our people and the wider community tackle an important issue in the Dominican Republic,” said Altadis Foundation General Manager Ines Cassin.
“The aim is to provide a basic education to those who didn’t have the same start in life as others, and our people will also be engaged in ensuring the success of this project.”
In the Philippines, Imperial employees are helping to maintain a river basin which drains into Manila Bay near the company’s Rosario factory.
Imperial’s subsidiary, the Philippine Bobbin Corporation, has joined with other businesses in adopting the Maalimango River as part of a local environmental protection scheme.
Thirty-eight employees from the factory volunteered to take part in a clean-up operation to remove rubbish from the waterway, and they joined volunteers from other local companies in planting trees along the riverbank to help prevent rubbish from ending up in the river.
“The Maalimango is important during the rainy season to help drain away floodwaters from the surrounding area,” said factory manager Carlos Saez-Diez Reberdito.
“However if it is clogged up by garbage it cannot do its job effectively, which can impact on the Rosario region.”
And in the Canary Islands, a group of Imperial volunteers has been working to help preserve one of its biggest natural pine forests.
The Tamadaba Park forest on Gran Canaria covers more than 7,500 ha and is extremely important for capturing rainwater.
It also provides a secure nesting area for birds and a wildlife haven for other protected species.
But in the summer months, the forest becomes very dry and the risk of forest fires is extremely high; so a group of 40 employees worked in 39-degrees-Celsius heat to pick up around one 1 tonne of pine needles from the forest floor and thereby alleviate the risk of fire.
Adhesives provider H.B. Fuller has broken ground for a new technical center at its existing site in Lüneburg, Germany. The ceremony, on Aug. 12, was attended by Mayor Ulrich Mädge, along with representatives from the company’s leadership team and local employees.
Covering an area of 2,300 square meters, the center will have three sections—one with offices and development laboratories; one containing a staff canteen, meeting rooms and building services; and one that will serve as a customer center, where H.B. Fuller will carry out tests, demonstrations and training.
The expansion is part of a wider business transformation project, designed to streamline and modernize operations and facilitate profitable growth. Construction is scheduled to be completed in the summer of 2014.
In a report summarizing “key thoughts” on e-cigarettes, financial services provider Morgan Stanley acknowledges it has been surprised by the success of e-cigarettes, given the commercial failures of other innovative products such as Accord and Eclipse and the slower-than-envisioned development of tobacco segments such as snus and dissolvables.
E-cigarettes have already achieved volume equivalent to about 1 percent of the U.S. market. Morgan Stanley attributes the sector’s success to effective nicotine delivery, broader consumer acceptance of technology, widespread consumer perception of less health risk versus conventional combustible products, growing societal pressure against cigarette smoking and the current regulatory vacuum, which allows for aggressive marketing.
At the same time, the bank notes that e-cigarettes won’t necessarily benefit established tobacco companies. The potential business risks to the traditional industry include cannibalization of tobacco cigarette sales volumes, FDA regulations preventing the marketing of e-cigarettes under tobacco cigarette name brands and uncertainty about the capacity of e-cigarettes to develop the brand equity and consumer loyalty that is typical for traditional cigarettes.
According to Morgan Stanley, Lorillard is best positioned to take advantage of the new segment because it owns the current e-cig market leader Blu Ecigs, while Reynolds American “probably has the most to gain from cigarette industry discontinuity.” Altria, as the dominant cigarette incumbent, has the most to lose.
Future success for e-cigarettes, according to the investment bank, depends on the scale and pacing of technological and product performance improvements, along with ultimate FDA regulation and federal/state excise tax structure, the analyst said.