A commission of health care experts has proposed a new list of restrictions to discourage consumption of tobacco and alcohol in Norway, but Heath Minister, Jonas Gahr Støre, apparently thinks they went too far, according to a story on newsinenglish.no.
He quickly rejected several of their recommendations.
The commission had wanted to ban snus in Norway and limit the sale of cigarettes to those over the age of 20.
The commission’s members had also recommended banning the sale of wine in three-liter cartons, which have become popular in recent years.
Menthol prices in India have fallen due to the bans that have been imposed in some states on certain types of chewing tobacco, according to a story by Keshav Seth for TopNews.
The FMCG company, Emami, was quoted as saying that it was enjoying lower raw material costs because of the bans and a growth in the production of mint, from whose leaves menthol oil is extracted.
The bans have affected formerly popular tobacco-containing, oral products including paan masala and gutkha.
Emami believes that menthol prices will remain at their current low levels.
The Cultivation of Tobacco, the monumental artwork created in 1960 by the husband-and-wife Greek engravers, Tassos (Anastasios Alevizos), and Loukia Maggiorou, is returning to Stavroupouli in Thessaloniki, according to a story by Nicky Mariam Onti for the Greek Reporter
The masterpiece shows men and women engaged in the cultivation and processing of tobacco in all its stages.
Last April, the work was said to have been transferred to the National Gallery for ‘maintenance, storage and protection’.
With the maintenance completed, it will join the collection of the State Museum of Contemporary Art.
The Altria Group is due to host a webcast of its business presentation at the annual Consumer Analyst Group of New York (CAGNY) conference in Boca Raton, Florida, starting about 13.45 hours Eastern Time on February 19.
The webcast, which will be in listen-only mode at www.altria.com, will feature a presentation by chairman and CEO, Martin J. Barrington, and members of Altria’s senior management team.
Pre-event registration is necessary at www.altria.com, where an archived copy of the webcast will be made available.
Imperial Tobacco’s market manager in Finland has been honoured for excellence in customer engagement by one of the country’s largest retail organizations.
Kari Heikkila was recently guest of honour at the centenary dinner for the Finnish K-Retailers’ Association, where he was presented with a medal in recognition of his efforts working with trade partners over the past 17 years.
The association represents about 1,300 store owners in the K-Group across Finland.
‘Heikkila was honoured for the valuable work done in demonstrating “outstanding co-operation” between Imperial and Finnish retailers,’ Imperial said in a note posted on its website.
‘The retail group added the consistent level of professionalism and support shown by Kari and his team was “highly appreciated” by trade partners.’
“I’m delighted to accept this honour on behalf of all of our people in Finland,” said Heikkila.
“Our ongoing commitment to working closely with customers like the K-Group has helped to make Imperial a key partner in the tobacco sector.”
Pieter Sikkel will become president and chief executive officer of Alliance One International on March 1. Sikkel is currently the company’s president and a member of its board of directors. Mark W. Kehaya, currently chairman of the board of directors and interim CEO, will continue as nonexecutive chairman of the board of directors and will assist in the transition.
“This transition in leadership marks an end to our significant restructuring that began in December of 2010, and the company once again has a firm foundation. We want to thank Mark for his leadership and efforts in driving the restructuring and the refocusing of the business,” said William Sheridan, lead independent director.
“The board of directors and I are extremely pleased to appoint Pieter to the role of president and chief executive officer,” said Kehaya. “Mr. Sikkel has served Alliance One and predecessor companies for over 30 years as China country manager, Asia regional director, executive vice president [of] business strategy and relationship management, and most recently as president of the company and a member of the board of directors.
“Pieter’s exceptional experience, strategic insight and extensive industry knowledge make him well positioned to lead our global team, both to continue and expand on the company’s key initiatives and innovations, and to further strengthen the company’s market position by delivering additional value to our shareholders, customers and growers. I would personally like to thank all of our employees for their efforts, loyalty and talents that they have brought to bear during the last two years.”
“I’d like to thank Mark Kehaya for his excellent work leading the restructuring of the company,” said Sikkel. “As a result of his efforts, Alliance One is in a substantially stronger position to address the varied challenges and opportunities of this industry.
“Alliance One remains firmly focused on both the present and the future. From seed, through leaf and sales, we are committed to supplying the product type and quality that our customers require, to providing the highest quality service, and to being the lowest cost supplier in every market in which we operate.
“In addition, through our continued emphasis on agronomy ingenuity, we remain focused on improving farmer income and sustainable global supply security. We have also instituted programs that are targeted at reducing operating cycle and improving financial metrics, and through such initiatives are seeking to create and capitalize on opportunities that should enhance shareholder value.”
ATD Machinery of the Netherlands has become an independent company, ATD Machinery BV, as of Jan. 1, 2013.
Previously the technical department of Agio Cigars, ATD has over the years evolved into a full-fledged supplier of machinery to the global cigar industry.
To learn more about the newly independent ATD Machinery, visit www.atdmachinery.nl.
Alex Goldman has joined Swisher International as president of its new premium cigars division, Royal Gold Cigars. Goldman’s tenure began on Jan. 2, 2013, to spearhead the division specifically created to build upon his extensive industry experience.
“Alex’s leadership of House of Oxford/Mom’s Cigars as its owner and president for the past 20 years positions him perfectly to develop and market our new premium cigar lineup,” says Peter Ghiloni, president of Swisher International.
Goldman will lead Royal Gold Cigars in developing and introducing various cigar lines to compete with key players in the premium cigar market. Test marketing of the new line up is planned for April with a national launch set for the International Premium Cigar & Pipe Retailers Association trade show in July in Las Vegas.
“As a fourth-generation tobacconist, I have cemented relationships that will enable Royal Gold Cigars to develop, source and market an array of premium products that customers will enjoy at competitive price points,” Goldman explained. “Operating as a division of Swisher International gives Royal Gold Cigar the opportunity to tap into Swisher’s leadership and leverage its resources, while maintaining an independent business model.”
“This as an exciting new chapter for Swisher International, which aligns with our growth plans in several key areas of the overall tobacco market,” adds Ghiloni.
Technical Development Corp. (TDC) of the Netherlands, a sister company of International Tobacco Machinery, has developed the Osiris, a new nonstop inline pouch-manufacturing machine.
Using advanced and reliable technology, the machine can produce perfectly shaped pouches without compromising flexibility, according to TDC.
The Osiris can produce pouches with a variety of specifications. Width and height settings can be easily adjusted. The Osiris can accommodate a range of optional, customer-specific modules for pricing labels, booklet stickers, zip applications or additional sealing.
The Osiris can be directly connected with the Isis pouch packer or integrated within an existing Isis line. If desired, pre-made pouches can be manually fed into the Isis. Without any conversion the Isis pouch packing line changes from mainstream to small batch production.
Double bobbin holders, an automatic bobbin splicer and an easy-to-use operator panel make Osiris a user-friendly pouch-making solution.
The Osiris strengthens TDC’s portfolio, which also includes the Ibis tobacco weigher, Isis pouch packer and Anubis bundle machine.
The funds contributed by four multinational tobacco manufacturers to the EU purportedly to help fight the illicit trade in tobacco products are paid into the EU’s general budget. There is no earmarking of the funds.
This was made clear by the European Commission in answer to two written parliamentary questions by the Irish member of the European Parliament, Nessa Childers.
In a preamble to her questions, Childers said that to address the problem of contraband and counterfeit cigarettes, OLAF had signed legally binding and enforceable agreements with the world’s four largest tobacco manufacturers under which they had agreed to pay a collective total of US$2.15 billion to the EU and countries participating in the agreement, and to support action to prevent their products from falling into the hands of criminals.
‘Does the Commission not believe this extensive financial relationship creates a potential conflict of interest between OLAF as the EU’s anti-fraud office, the Commission as the regulator, and the tobacco industry?’ Childers asked.
‘What safeguards does the Commission have in place to prevent a conflict of interest in this case?’
In answer, the Commission said that the agreements were between the tobacco manufacturers on the one hand and the EU and the participating member states on the other.
The funds received by the EU in accordance with the agreements amounted to just under 10 per cent of the total and were paid directly into the general budget of the EU in line with the principle of universality. There was no earmarking of the funds.
The remaining funds received were transferred to the participating member states.
There was no financial relationship and no conflict of interest between OLAF and the tobacco manufacturers, the Commission said.
At least two other questions arise from this. How much of the money provided by the manufacturers goes towards the fight against the illicit trade in tobacco products?
Why is the smoker being taxed in this way – given that it is the smoker who ultimately pays the levy?
