Category: News This Week

U.K. Tobacco Duty Increased

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Chancellor Jeremy Hunt raised the U.K. tobacco duty in his spring budget, reports The Independent. A 20-pack of cigarettes will now cost more than £14 ($16.86).
The cigarette tax increased by 10.1 percent in line with the retail price index plus an additional 2 percent.
Hand-rolling tobacco will increase by 10.1 percent plus an additional 6 percent.
Smokers-rights activists were aghast.
“Punishing smokers for their habit during a cost-of-living crisis is heartless and cruel,” said Simon Clark, director of the smokers’ campaign group Forest. “It discriminates against poorer smokers and will drive many more consumers to the black market.
“This is bad news for legitimate, law-abiding retailers and bad news for the Treasury, which could lose billions of pounds in revenue if more smokers buy their tobacco from illicit traders.”
The last cigarette price increase was in October 2021.
The price increase is part of the effort to make the U.K. smoke-free by 2030.
Alcohol taxes are also set to increase with inflation.
March 16, 2023
Experts Address Health Professionals on Vaping

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Three experts from King’s College London and the public health charity Action on Smoking and Health recently addressed health professionals, seeking to dispel what they describe as “myths about e-cigarettes and vaping,” according to the Independent European Vaping Alliance (IEVA).
“E-cigarettes (vapes) are currently the most popular aid used to quit smoking in England and are used by around 4.3 million adults in Great Britain, the majority of whom are ex-smokers,” the authors stated, emphasizing that “… vaping poses only a small fraction of the health risks of smoking and that smokers should be encouraged to use vaping products … for stopping.” The experts fear that myths about vaping “risk undermining the use of these products as cessation aids.”
“The facts about harm reduction are on the table,” said Dustin Dahlmann, president of the IEVA. “If many more smokers who cannot quit by other means were to switch to e-cigarettes, millions of people worldwide could live better and longer lives. Health policy in the U.K. should be a shining example to all policymakers.”
March 16, 2023
Hawaii Lawmakers Propose ‘Endgame’ Bill

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A new bill introduced in the Hawaii Senate would make it illegal for anyone born after 2002 to possess, purchase or use tobacco or vaping products.
S.B. 148 would change the state’s tobacco rules to deny anyone born after Jan. 1, 2003, from purchasing and consuming these products.
Those caught selling or providing tobacco or vaping products to consumers covered by the law would be subject to a $500 fine for a first offense and a fine of between $500 and $2,000 for any offense after that.
In addition, anyone born after 2002 caught violating the law as a consumer would be subject to a $10 fine for the first offense, a $50 fine for a subsequent offense, or the option to do between 48 hours and 72 hours of community service.
If passed, the change would take effect on Jan. 1, 2024. S.B. 148 currently has six sponsors.
The concept of a generational sales ban was introduced in New Zealand in 2021 and was approved by that country’s government late last year. It has also been proposed in Malaysia, California and Nevada.
In 2015, Hawaii became the first U.S. state to increase the minimum age to purchase tobacco products to 21 years old, which has since become the federal standard.
In 2019, Hawaiian lawmakers proposed a bill that would slowly increase the age to purchase tobacco products, starting with raising the minimum age for buying cigarettes from 21 to 30 in 2020.
By 2022, no one under 50 would have been able to buy cigarettes.
March 16, 2023
BAT Urged to List in New York

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GQG Partners is pressuring BAT to move its primary listing to New York, according to the Financial Times. The shareholder reportedly believes it “makes no sense” for the cigarette manufacturer to remain on the U.K. stock market.
A BAT spokesperson said that the company does not comment on engagement with shareholders when contacted by Reuters while GQG did not respond to a request for comment on the report.
March 16, 2023
Court Rejects Challenge to California’s Flavor Ban

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A U.S. federal judge has thrown out a tobacco industry lawsuit against California’s statewide ban on the sale of flavored tobacco products, reports Law360.
On March 15, Judge Cathy Ann Bencivengo rejected the plaintiffs’ claim that the measure would unfairly discriminate against out-of-state businesses. Bencivengo argued that the contested law applies to sales only; manufacturers are still permitted to manufacture flavored tobacco products in California. Most manufacturers of flavored tobacco products are located outside California.
R.J. Reynolds and other tobacco companies sued California after voters approved the ban in a November referendum, claiming the law violates the federal Tobacco Control Act (TCA) as well as the U.S. Constitution’s commerce clause.
The law was originally passed by the state legislature but didn’t take effect after industry opponents gathered enough signatures to put the issue on the November ballot.
In rejecting the TCA claim, Bencivengo cited a 9th Circuit ruling in March 2022 that upheld a Los Angeles County ban on flavored tobacco products. The tobacco industry lawsuit also doesn’t meet the standards for arguing a state law discriminates against or unduly burdens interstate commerce, she argued.
The court also rejected the tobacco companies’ claim that out-of-state manufacturers of flavored tobacco products would be forced to change their operations to the tune of “tens of billions of dollars” to comply with the law’s new standards for tobacco products, an undue burden on interstate commerce.
California’s flavor ban doesn’t set new standards for the manufacture or marketing of tobacco products that depart from federal regulations, Bencivengo said. And financial losses for the tobacco industry alone are “not excessive enough for the court to find that the ban substantially burdens interstate commerce,” she added, citing the law’s aims to protect public health.
The TCA also gives states the authority to “opt out of the market for flavored tobacco products,” Bencivengo said in the ruling, which does not allow the tobacco companies to file an amended complaint.
March 16, 2023
Charlotte’s Web Appoints BAT Group Head to Board

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Charlotte’s Web Holdings, a supplier of cannabidiol (CBD) hemp extract wellness products, has appointed Jonathan P. Atwood to the company’s board of directors, according to PR Newswire. Atwood is currently the group head of business communications for BAT and is responsible for BAT’s external, internal and corporate brand communications. Atwood was designated as a board nominee by BAT in connection with its November purchase of convertible debenture in Charlotte’s Web.
Atwood held senior management positions at Unilever, most recently leading global supply chain communications. Prior to that, he led sustainability and corporate communications for Unilever North America. Atwood is an advocate of sustainability and has worked closely with B Corps companies.
Charlotte’s Web is the only publicly traded CBD B Corp-certified company.
“We welcome Jonathan as a valuable addition to the board where he can support our international and sustainability ambitions. We look forward to working closely together on our mutually shared interests,” said John Held, chairman of the board of Charlotte’s Web.
Atwood’s appointment brings the total number of directors on the Charlotte’s Web board to six.
March 15, 2023
MLB Players Switching to Zyn

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Major League Baseball (MLB) players are largely switching from smokeless tobacco products to Zyn nicotine pouches, reports Vaping360.
In 2016, a rule came into effect banning new MLB players from using tobacco products, and many stadiums followed in banning tobacco product use for both viewers and players. Veteran players were allowed to continue using tobacco products, though they had to leave them in the locker room; however, stadiums that banned the products did not offer an exception for players.
Many players have since switched to the tobacco-free Zyn nicotine pouches. Zyn is manufactured by Swedish Match, which was recently bought by Philip Morris International for $16 billion and holds 64.9 percent of the U.S. nicotine pouch volume as of the second quarter of 2022.
Zyn and other nicotine pouches do not fall under the tobacco product rules because they contain no tobacco, and there are no rules against MLB athletes using nicotine products.
March 15, 2023
Congress to Close E-Cigarette Ad Loophole

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The U.S. Congress wants to end a legislative provision that allows manufacturers to claim federal tax deductions for the cost of advertising for e-cigarettes and tobacco products. That includes the ads they buy on the radio.
Senators Jeanne Shaheen and Richard Blumenthal have reintroduced the No Tax Subsidies for E-Cigarette and Tobacco Ads Act (S. 464), which if passed would not make the direct-to-consumer ads illegal but would end the ability for companies to take tax deductions for advertising expenses related to vaping and other tobacco products, according to Insider Radio.
“Tax breaks for tobacco and e-cigarette giants allow the industry to profit from its manipulative marketing,” Blumenthal said. “Our legislation ends these write-offs to protect kids and other consumers from being lured into lifetimes of addiction.”
Radio and television advertising for traditional tobacco products has been banned under federal law since January 1971, and certain other forms of tobacco advertising are restricted under the 1998 Tobacco Master Settlement Agreement. However, none of these restrictions apply to e-cigarettes.
March 15, 2023
FDA: 99 Percent of Applications Decided

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In an update, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said it has made determinations on more than 99 percent of the nearly 26 million deemed products for which applications were submitted. To date, the agency has authorized 23 new e-cigarette products.
This includes determination on applications for nearly 6.7 million products received by the Sept. 9, 2020, deadline, more than 18 million products received after the Sept. 9 deadline, and applications for nearly 1 million nontobacco nicotine products submitted by May 14, 2022, in accordance with the new federal law passed in April 2022.
Under a federal court order, manufacturers of deemed new tobacco products that were on the market as of the deeming rule’s effective date (Aug. 8, 2016) were required to submit premarket review applications by Sept. 9, 2020.
On Feb. 21, 2023, the FDA issued a refuse-to-accept (RTA) letter to one applicant notifying the company that their premarket tobacco product applications, which are associated with approximately 17 million individual tobacco products, do not meet the acceptance requirements outlined in the FDA’s regulations. The applications were for a grouped submission of e-liquids in varying size, nicotine strength and flavor combinations, each of which was treated as an individual product application according to existing premarket review processes.
During the acceptance phase of application review, the FDA reviews applications to ensure they meet a minimum threshold for acceptability for FDA scientific review. If required contents for acceptance are missing, the FDA refuses to accept the application. This company was issued an RTA letter because the company’s applications for these products lacked required environmental assessments. The company may submit a new application for these products at any time; however, the products may not be marketed unless the FDA reviews the applications and determines that marketing of the products is appropriate for the protection of the public health.
The latest updates on actions taken on these applications can be viewed on the FDA’s tobacco products marketing orders page.
March 15, 2023
Hearing on FDA Manufacturing Rules

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Registration is open for U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s upcoming public oral hearing on April 12, 2023, from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.
The hearing is an opportunity for the public to verbally comment on the agency’s proposed rule Requirements for Tobacco Product Manufacturing Practice. The FDA is proposing new requirements for tobacco product manufacturers regarding the manufacture, design, packing and storage of their products. Registration also includes a “listen-only” option for those who want to attend the session but do not want to request to speak.
Speaking spots are limited, and the FDA says it cannot guarantee that it will be able to accommodate all requests. Groups and organizations should select a single spokesperson to help the agency hear as many different perspectives as possible. While speaking spots are limited, listening spots are unlimited. Registration to provide oral comments will close on March 31, 2023.
The oral session will be recorded, and a transcript will be added to the docket of the proposed rule.
March 14, 2023