Category: Covid-19

Growing Optimism About Intertabac

Photo: Timothy Donahue
The Westfalenhallen group of companies is increasingly hopeful that, with appropriate measures in place, the Intertabac exhibition, scheduled for Sept. 18-20 in Dortmund, Germany, will take place. The event and trade fair industry worldwide has been affected by the coronavirus epidemic. “Nevertheless, due to the latest signals from politics, we are a bit more positive about the organization of trade fairs in Dortmund, [Germany],” said Sabine Loos, managing director of the Westfalenhallen group of companies.
The authorities are currently determining under what conditions trade fairs could take place after May 31. Discussions focus on hygiene measures and limiting the number of participants. Specifics are expected to be announced soon.
“Afterwards, we will evaluate these measures and, on this basis, coordinate our further course of action—especially with regard to InterTabac and InterSupply,” said Loos. “We assume that voting on this should be completed in late May and early June.”
Messe Dortmund is working to create concepts for holding trade fairs. At the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic, various measures were successfully introduced at the exhibition center in Dortmund, and an awareness campaign on various channels indicated the correct handling of the hygiene area. With the upcoming loosening of Germany’s lockdown from June 2020, new conditions will be imposed on trade fair organizers. These will be incorporated into the overall concept of Messe Dortmund and included in the planning for InterTabac and InterSupply.
May 14, 2020
Ireland: Call for Outdoor Smoking Ban as Pubs Reopen

Image by Rudy and Peter Skitterians from Pixabay
The Royal College of Physicians of Ireland (RCPI) has called for a smoking ban in outdoor pub areas.
As businesses begin opening back up in Ireland and social distancing policies are put into place to keep the coronavirus from spreading further, the RCPI has stated that outdoor areas of pubs should be nonsmoking areas to prevent secondhand smoke exposure.
“Des Cox, chair of the policy group on tobacco at RCPI, has sent a letter to Minister Simon Harris at the Department of Health calling for this proposal to be implemented as part of the country’s reopening strategy,” wrote the Limerick Post.
“Customers who are seated in the outdoor areas of bars should not be exposed to secondhand smoke,” Cox said. “If bar staff are providing table service to all customers—including customers seated in the outdoor areas—they too will be exposed to secondhand smoke.”
May 13, 2020
Poll: Lockdowns Boost Smoking

Image by Free-Photos from Pixabay
A new poll from the Foundation for a Smoke-Free World shows that the lockdowns and stay-at-home orders put in place to prevent the spread of the coronavirus have led to higher smoking and tobacco usage rates.
“Nearly 40 percent of smokers increased use of these products in recent weeks, which could equate to elevated use by more than 50 million smokers in the five countries polled,” according to a press release. Smokers have upped their tobacco and nicotine usage as a way to cope with stress and mental health issues during the social distancing orders.
The survey looks at tobacco and nicotine users in the United States, the United Kingdom, Italy, South Africa and India. Rates of tobacco usage rose more in countries where the sale of tobacco products has been banned due to the virus outbreak, such as South Africa and India.
Derek Yach
“When this pandemic curve subsides, there will be a heavy mental and physical toll on all people,” said Derek Yach, president of the foundation. “Prior to the Covid crisis, smokers were at greatest risk of lung cancer, chronic lung disease and heart attacks. They will continue to have these excess risks as the pandemic recedes. Never forget that 7 million people will die globally this year as a result of their tobacco use.”
May 12, 2020
Tax Free World Association Cancels Duty-Free Conference
The Tax Free World Association (TFWA) has canceled the 2020 TFWA World Exhibition and Conference scheduled for Sept. 27 to Oct. 2 due to the impact of the coronavirus outbreak.
The TFWA board and management committee took into account the continuing uncertainty surrounding the travel and health situation as well as the worldwide fall in industry activity.
“By agreeing significant reductions to space rental fees, making changes to the format and working with our partners in Cannes to reduce the cost of taking part in the event, we did what we could to attempt to ensure the TFWA World Exhibition and Conference could take place,” said Alain Maingreaud, TFWA president.
“Since making those changes, we have monitored the situation daily and been in constant contact with our members and partners. The way in which the situation has developed with the economic impact of the crisis becoming increasingly serious amid continuing uncertainty over restrictions on travel has forced us to review our plans.
“The management committee was unanimous in its decision to cancel the 2020 edition and in its desire for the association’s events to play a central role in the industry’s recovery from 2021.
“The cancellation of TFWA World Exhibition and Conference will have a significant impact on the association’s finances, but thanks to the sound management of our resources up to now, we have been able to build reserves to help us cope with difficult periods such as this.
“We remain determined to do all we can to help our industry emerge from its most difficult period, keep our members and partners informed and help coordinate our industry’s response to the current crisis.”
May 12, 2020
WHO: Smoking Does Not Prevent Covid-19

Image by 4924546 from Pixabay
World Health Organization (WHO) officials stated that smoking does not protect individuals from contracting Covid-19, contrary to some studies that have surfaced stating the opposite.
“There are some media reports on studies that have not been peer-reviewed that have looked at smoking prevalence among people hospitalized with Covid-19,” said epidemiologist Maria Van Kerkhove, technical lead on Covid-19 response at the WHO Health Emergencies Program. “These studies were not designed to evaluate whether smoking was protective or not in any shape or form. And they do not say that smoking is protective.
“The harms of tobacco are well known, and we know that millions of people die every year from tobacco use. Covid-19 is a respiratory illness, and smoking causes damage to the lungs,” she said. “A number of studies have found that smoking leads to the development of severe diseases and puts people at higher risk of being put on a ventilator, being admitted to intensive care and eventually of dying. We know the harms of smoking and we know that smokers, if they do get infected with Covid-19, have a higher risk of severe disease and death.”
May 11, 2020
Report: Pandemic Impact Will Last for a Long Time

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay
The disruption caused by the coronavirus will be felt for a long time even in the traditionally recession-resilient tobacco industry, according to a new report made available by Research and Markets.
“This report examines the outlook for the coronavirus (Covid-19) global pandemic on the tobacco industry,” according to Businesswire. “The social, economic and health effects of the Covid-19 crisis will be felt in every global market for several years to come. While it is the case that the tobacco industry is less dramatically impacted in the near term in most (though not all) world markets, the temptation to treat the pandemic as a short period of disruption before a return to normalcy should be avoided.”
The report covers the economic outlook, industry impact, geographic impact and the corporate response to the pandemic.
May 11, 2020
Boka Opens Auction Floor in Karoi

Photo: Taco Tuinstra
Boka Tobacco Floors (BTF) has opened a tobacco sales floor in Karoi, Mashonaland West Province. This sales floor will help reduce the number of farmers traveling to Harare to sell their tobacco, ultimately helping prevent further spread of the coronavirus.
The Boka selling floor will serve farmers in Hurungwe District, including Tengwe, Kazangarare, communities around Karoi, Nyama resettlement, Nyamakate and Magunje as well as areas around Chinhoyi.
The auction space is currently a rented building, but BTF is constructing a 12,000-square-meter facility that would be ready for the 2021 selling season.
Measures compliant with the Tobacco Industry and Marketing Board (TIMB) have been put in place to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
May 7, 2020
Foundation Debates Covid-19 Crisis’ Impact on Harm Reduction

Sally Satel during the 2019 GTNF in Washington DC | Photo David Parker
The Reason Foundation will host a webinar on May 19, 2020, at 12:30 p.m. Eastern time to discuss how Covid-19 is affecting tobacco harm reduction and policymaking.
Guy Bentley, director of consumer freedom research for the Reason Foundation, will host the webinar. Other speakers will include Sally Satel, resident scholar at the American Enterprise Institute, Michelle Minton, senior fellow at the Competitive Enterprise Institute, and Tim Andrews, executive director for the Taxpayers Protection Alliance.
The webinar is open to the public.
May 6, 2020
Scientists Urge Caution With Smoking-and-Covid Claims

Image by maja7777 from Pixabay
Recent studies that have found a disproportionally low number of smokers among Covid-19 patients have not provided direct evidence that smoking is protective against the illness, according to Health Feedback, a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization dedicated to science education.
Claims that smoking might protect against Covid-19 have been reported in several media outlets and are currently going viral, with more than 410,000 interactions on Facebook in April 2020.
However, the Health Feedback scientists point out several problems with findings. A French study, for example, did not appropriately factor in comorbidities such as diabetes and hypertension, which can also adversely affect the clinical course of Covid-19, according to the Health Feedback scientists.
“While the preprint did report the prevalence of such conditions within the combined study cohort of inpatients and outpatients, it did not report age or disease prevalence according to smoking status,” they wrote. “It is therefore unclear whether the nonsmoking group comprised more older individuals and/or those with preexisting health conditions than the other, which might have influenced the results.”
Other studies showed similar shortcomings, according to the Health Feedback scientists.
While acknowledging that the findings of disproportionally low numbers of smokers among Covid-19 patients are interesting and deserving of further investigation, the Health Feedback scientists say it would be unwise to begin smoking based on unproven claims that it might protect against Covid-19.

May 4, 2020
Industry Threatens Lawsuit Over Tobacco Ban Extension

Photo: Taco Tuinstra
The tobacco industry is threatening legal action after South Africa reversed a decision to end its ban on the sale of tobacco products.
To prevent the spread of the coronavirus, the government earlier this year suspended sales of cigarettes. The ban was scheduled to end on May 1, but on Wednesday, the government suddenly reversed course after it received 2,000 requests to keep the measure in place.
Retailers had placed thousands of orders for cigarette and vapor products ahead of the anticipated lifting of the ban.
Smokers across the country fumed, with an online petition garnering close to half a million signatures by May 1.
British American Tobacco (BAT) South Africa complained that, unlike the ban’s supporters, the tobacco industry, retailers and tobacco consumers were not given an opportunity to comment on the proposed reinstatement of the ban.
“This was grossly unfair and unlawful,” said BAT, adding that the online petition of more than 400,000 in favor of lifting the ban dwarfed the 2,000 individual submissions.
Meanwhile, the Fair Trade Independent Tobacco Association said it was confident of overturning the ban, having decided to proceed with legal action after the government’s backtrack.
“We had a meeting with our legal team, and the decision was unanimous, and we will be proceeding with the legal steps,” said chairperson Sinenhlanhla Mnguni.
Shadrack Sibisi, chairperson of the South Africa Tobacco Transformation Alliance, which represents black emerging tobacco farmers, said the continued ban would impact more than 8,000 workers and 30,000 dependents.
“Our losses are huge. From March 27 until today, we have sold nothing,” he said. “We harvested in early January and were ready to go, but then lockdown happened. We have been sitting with boxes ready, and now with the recent rains we are going to have to redry and repackage. The tobacco still needs to be processed.”
Others applauded the government’s decision to continue the tobacco sales ban, saying that health considerations supersede commercial interests. “While the right of the individual is important, when we are facing a crisis that poses a danger to society, the rights of the collective to health must take precedence,” said Professor Pamela Naidoo of the Heart and Stroke Foundation.
May 4, 2020