Category: Featured

Newman Petitions to Import Cuban Tobacco

Photo: danmir12
J.C. Newman Cigar Co. has asked the U.S. Department of State for permission to import Cuban tobacco grown by “independent Cuban entrepreneurs” into the United States. The State Department currently allows American companies to legally import coffee and a few other products from Cuba. If granted, J.C. Newman will be able to import the first Cuban tobacco into the United States in 60 years.
“My family has a long history with Cuban tobacco,” said Drew Newman, great-grandson of company founder J.C. Newman, in a statement. “From 1895 until President Kennedy imposed the Cuban Embargo in 1962, my grandfather and great-grandfather imported millions of pounds of tobacco from Cuba through Tampa. Our last shipment of Cuban tobacco was the subject of a legal dispute decided by the Supreme Court.”
J.C. Newman saved its final bale of Cuban tobacco, which is now the last bale of pre-embargo Cuban tobacco in the United States. This 60-year-old tobacco continues to age in the basement of J.C. Newman’s historic El Reloj cigar factory in Ybor City.
Under the so-called Sec. 515.582 program, the State Department allows “commercial imports of certain specified goods and services produced by independent Cuban entrepreneurs” in order to “help promote [the Cuban people’s] independence from Cuban authorities.” To help support Cuban independence, J.C. Newman is requesting that the State Department include raw tobacco grown by independent farmers in this program.
Authorizing the importation of raw tobacco grown in Cuba would allow us to support independent Cuban entrepreneurs and to prove, once again, that we can roll better cigars with Cuban tobacco than Cuba can.
Drew Newman
“Prior to the Embargo, far more cigars were rolled with Cuban tobacco in Tampa than in Cuba because Tampa was home to the world’s best cigar factories,” said Newman. “Authorizing the importation of raw tobacco grown in Cuba would allow us to support independent Cuban entrepreneurs and to prove, once again, that we can roll better cigars with Cuban tobacco than Cuba can.”
June 17, 2021
Mishra to Lead PMI’s Americas Division

Deepak Mishra (Photo: PMI)
Philip Morris International has appointed former Chief Strategy Officer Deepak Mishra president of its Americas region effective July 1 as part of a restructuring initiative for that division. PMI’s Americas region covers the United States, Canada and Latin America.
The new structure in the Americas will focus on three areas: strengthening PMI’s leadership in Latin America and Canada as the company accelerates toward a smoke-free future; deepening efforts with partners to commercialize reduced-risk products in the U.S.; and building a vital launchpad for the company’s “beyond nicotine” strategy in the U.S. in coordination with PMI’s life sciences group through expanded partnerships and commercial deployment.
“I am thrilled to name Deepak Mishra, one of our top business leaders, to one of the most important roles for the future of our company,” said PMI CEO Jacek Olczak in a statement. “In less than three years with PMI, he has been instrumental in shaping our long-term strategy and bringing it to life through strategic partnerships and investments. Deepak brings to the role deep expertise in mergers and acquisitions, a likely component of our beyond nicotine strategy. He is both a visionary and a pragmatist, and I have high expectations for—and full confidence in—what he will accomplish in his new role.”
Prior to joining PMI, Mishra was managing director of portfolio operations at Centerbridge Partners, a private equity firm, where, from 2014, he led commercial, operational and digital transformations in investments in consumer services, renewable energy and distribution sectors.
Deepak brings to the role deep expertise in mergers and acquisitions, a likely component of our beyond nicotine strategy.
Jacek Olczak, CEO, PMI
Before Centerbridge, Mishra was a partner at McKinsey & Company in London. At McKinsey & Company, he was a member of the consumer goods, retail and operations leadership teams from 2001 to 2014 and supported clients in the fast-moving consumer goods, retail and private equity industries on commercial and operational transformations.
Mishra started his career as a marketing professional with Procter & Gamble in 1996 and then spent four years at Accenture’s strategy practice in India and Eastern Europe. He holds an undergraduate degree in computer science from BITS Pilani in India and a Master of Business Administration degree from the Indian Institute of Management Lucknow.

Martin King (Photo: PMI)
Martin King, who has been with PMI since 2003, most recently as CEO of PMI America and previously as chief financial officer, president of its Asia region, president of its Latin America and Canada region, and senior vice president of operations, will retire on Aug. 31, 2021. Prior to joining PMI, King served in various positions within Philip Morris USA between 1991 and 2003.
“We are deeply grateful to Martin King for his many years and many accomplishments at PMI and for the impact he has had in the U.S. in the year he spent getting the market ready for the push we plan to make in bringing both reduced-risk and, eventually, beyond nicotine products to consumers,” said Olczak. “Martin is an outstanding business leader and colleague, and we wish him the very best in the years to come.”
From July 1, PMI’s strategy and program delivery function, which formerly reported to Mishra, will report to Chief Financial Officer Emmanuel Babeau. Ankur Modi will assume the position of global head of strategy and program delivery. On Aug. 1, Reginaldo Dobrowolski will take on the role of vice president and controller, and Andreas Kurali will become deputy chief financial officer of finance transformation.
June 17, 2021
Push for Warnings on Individual Sticks

Photo: Mihail
Lord Young of Cookham has introduced into the U.K. House of Lords a bill that would require cigarette manufacturers to print health warnings on individual cigarettes. The warnings—written in red on individual cigarettes—would include messages such as “smoking kills” and “you don’t need me anymore.”
“This is cost-free, popular and more effective than health warnings on packets,” said Young, who is also vice chairman of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Smoking and Health.
Young had proposed the same measures when he was a health minister in Margaret Thatcher’s government, but they were rejected under pressure of the tobacco industry, which claimed the ink on the cigarettes would cause cancer. “Plainly this is nonsense given that tobacco already contains 70 cancer-causing chemicals,” said Young.
Health groups welcomed the proposal. “Cigarettes not cigarette packs kill smokers, so obviously the sticks themselves are where health warnings are most needed,” said Deborah Arnott, chief executive of Action on Smoking and Health (ASH), in a statement.
“Lord Young’s private member’s bill could finally put the warnings on cigarettes he first proposed four decades ago. His bill is supported by parliamentarians, leading health organizations and the public.
“All that is needed is the support of government and Britain can become the first nation in the world to put ‘Smoking Kills’ where it belongs—on the cigarette itself.”
Cigarettes not cigarette packs kill smokers, so obviously the sticks themselves are where health warnings are most needed.
Deborah Arnott, chief executive, ASH
According to ASH, public support for this measure is high. In a poll conducted by YouGov for the organization, 70 percent of those surveyed supported the proposal for health warnings to be printed on cigarette sticks, two-thirds of them strongly. Only 8 percent opposed the proposal with the remainder (22 percent) answering that they neither supported nor opposed the proposal or didn’t know.
“Too many young people are still taking up smoking,” said Cancer Research U.K. Director of Policy Emlyn Samuel. “Government anti-smoking campaigns and tax rises on cigarettes and hand-rolled tobacco remain the most effective ways to stop young people starting smoking. However, we need to continue to explore innovative methods to deter them from using cigarettes to ensure that youth smoking rates continue to fall. Cancer Research U.K.-funded research shows that tactics like making the cigarettes themselves unappealing could be an effective way of doing this.”
Simon Clark from smokers’ campaign group Forest said the idea to put the warnings on cigarettes was “laughable.”
“Smokers are well aware of the health risks,” he said.
June 16, 2021
JT Publishes Human Rights Report

Japan Tobacco has published its first Human Rights Report, showcasing the group’s contributions over the past decade to the U.N. Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, marking the 10th anniversary of their inception.
The report sets out the pillars of JT Group’s human rights strategy, which is an essential part of the group’s business activities and one of three absolute requirements of its sustainability strategy.
“This important milestone for the U.N. and the global business community is an opportunity to highlight our progress and the ongoing process of embedding human rights into every area of our business,” said Masamichi Terabatake, president and CEO of JT Group, in a statement.
June 16, 2021
Lil Expands into Eastern Europe and Central Asia

Lil Solid 2.0 with Armenian health warnings
(Phot: KT&G)
KT&G’s Lil Solid 2.0 device and its Fiit heated-tobacco stick continues its global expansion with new launches in Central Asia and Southeastern Europe.
As part of a collaboration agreement between KT&G and Philip Morris International, Lil Solid 2.0 has been introduced into four Eurasian countries during the second quarter of 2021.
The device and its consumables debuted in Armenia on June 14. The products were also commercialized in Serbia and Kyrgyzstan on June 3 and 7, respectively. Lil Solid 2.0 and Fiit were previously introduced in Kazakhstan on May 13.
Lil Solid 2.0 is a second-generation model of KT&G’s heat-not-burn product with enhanced performance and design to improve consumer satisfaction. The product was first launched nationally in Korea in January this year. According to KT&G, it gained significant traction with its upgraded battery efficiency and induction heating technology.
The Lil Solid 2.0 device is available in two colors, Stone Grey and Cosmic Blue, in its new markets. The sticks come in seven types, including Fiit Regular, Fiit Viola And Fiit Crisp. Three or four types are sold in each country depending on the market situation.
Following the recent commercialization of Lil Solid 2.0 in four new markets, the Lil brand now is present in seven markets outside of South Korea. Previously, varieties of the brand were introduced in Russia, Ukraine and Japan.
“As Lil Solid 1.0 and Lil Hybrid 2.0 have been well received in their respective markets, we look forward for encouraging performance from Lil Solid 2.0 as well,” said Wang Seop Lim, chief of KT&G’s next-generation products business division, in a statement. “We will continue to provide broader choices to consumers outside Korea in the second half of this year through collaboration with PMI.”
June 16, 2021
BAT: Modern Oral Comparable to NRT
New research published today indicates that BAT’s modern oral products in the form of tobacco-free nicotine pouches have a toxicant profile that is comparable to nicotine-replacement therapies (NRTs) and much lower than traditional oral snus, a category of products that when used as the sole nicotine product is already established as a reduced-risk product compared with cigarettes.
The study, published in Drug and Chemical Toxicology, analyzed four variants of one of BAT’s modern oral nicotine pouch products Lyft+, three snus products, and two different NRT products in a lozenge and a gum format. Each of these products was tested for a range of known harmful and potentially harmful constituents.
The results showed that the modern oral products had a comparable toxicant profile to NRTs, which are currently considered to be the least risky of all nicotine products. The study also estimated that users of the studied modern oral products are likely to be exposed to far fewer and significantly lower levels of toxicants than those who use snus.
According to BAT, the findings suggest that modern oral products, such as Lyft and Velo, should be placed close to NRTs at the lowest exposure end of the nicotine product toxicant delivery continuum.
“These results add to the growing body of evidence to support the reduced-risk potential of modern oral products compared to continuing to smoke,” said Aaron Williams, head of science and R&D, in a statement.
These results add to the growing body of evidence to support the reduced-risk potential of modern oral products compared to continuing to smoke.
Aaron Williams, head of science and R&D, BAT
“They provide important new evidence to support the role of modern oral products in tobacco harm reduction by demonstrating that they have far fewer and much lower levels of toxicants compared with cigarette smoke and even compared with Swedish-style snus, which is already well established as a reduced-risk product when used as the sole nicotine product.
“This means smokers looking for an alternative nicotine product have another alternative offering greatly reduced exposure to toxicants that comes in an oral format that some may find convenient and easy to use.”
June 16, 2021
Experts Call For Global Access to Safer Nicotine

Photo: Aleksej
International public health specialists, scientists, doctors, tobacco control experts and consumers are convening for the Global Forum on Nicotine 2021 June 17 and 18 in Liverpool, U.K., and streaming free online, to highlight the vital role of safer nicotine products in the fight to reduce global smoking-related death and disease.
Experts at the forum will discuss tobacco harm reduction, a concept that calls for encouraging adult smokers who cannot quit nicotine to switch from dangerous combustible or oral products to safer nicotine products, including e-cigarettes, pasteurized snus, nontobacco nicotine pouches and heated-tobacco devices.
“Up to 98 million consumers worldwide have already made the switch to safer nicotine products,” said GFN director Gerry Stimson, emeritus professor at Imperial College London, in a statement.

Public health will not be served nor lives saved by a war on nicotine, as doomed to failure as the war on drugs. The WHO must refocus its efforts on supporting 1.1 billion adult smokers to quit by all available means.
Gerry Stimson, Imperial College London
“In England, health authorities support vaping to quit smoking, and vapes are now the most popular quit aid. Tobacco-related mortality in Sweden, where snus has almost replaced smoking, is the lowest in Europe. And in Japan, cigarette sales have dropped by a third since heated-tobacco products came to market. Manufacturers must now ensure safer alternatives are affordable to people in LMIC [low- to middle-income countries], not just consumers in high income nations,” he said.
“Worryingly, international tobacco control leaders are doggedly pursuing an irresponsible prohibitionist approach to tobacco and nicotine, while the WHO actively perpetuates misinformation on new nicotine products. Public health will not be served nor lives saved by a war on nicotine, as doomed to failure as the war on drugs. The WHO must refocus its efforts on supporting 1.1 billion adult smokers to quit by all available means.”
June 16, 2021
PMI to Repurchase up to $7 Billion in Shares

Photo: PMI
The board of directors of Philip Morris International (PMI) has authorized a new share repurchase program of up to $7 billion, with target spending of $5 billion to $7 billion over a three-year period expected to commence after the company’s second-quarter 2021 earnings call.
The board also declared a regular quarterly dividend of $1.20 per common share payable on July 12, 2021, to shareholders of record as of June 25, 2021. The ex-dividend date is June 24, 2021.
“Since our spinoff in March 2008, we have returned, on a cumulative basis, approximately $115 billion to our shareholders through dividends and share repurchases,” said PMI CEO Jacek Olczak in a statement.
“Our announcements today are further testament to our steadfast commitment to generously reward our shareholders as we transform into a smoke-free company.”
June 15, 2021
Germany Approves Tobacco Tax Hike

Photo: JFL Photography
The Bundestag on June 11 approved legislation to make smoking in Germany more expensive as of next year, reports Iamexpat. The tax on a pack of 20 cigarettes will rise by an average of €0.10 ($0.12) in 2021. A year later, a further €0.10 will be added, and in both 2025 and 2026, another €0.15 per pack will be added.
The greatest increases, however, have been reserved for e-cigarettes and tobacco-heating products, which were previously only lightly taxed.
Currently, a 10 mL bottle of vape liquid costs around €5 in Germany. In 2022, an extra €1.60 will be added to this price in taxation, and this will rise to €3.20 by 2026. An additional tax is also to be introduced for heated-tobacco, so that in the future, it will be treated similarly to cigarettes for tax purposes.
Vapor industry representatives slammed the tax hikes, arguing that their products contain significantly fewer harmful substances than tobacco cigarettes and should therefore be taxed at lower levels.
The Association of the E-Cigarette Trade (VdeH) warned that the move would not only prompt vapers to revert to smoking but also destroy numerous small and medium-sized businesses.
“The mere fact that e-cigarette liquids are generally taxed more heavily than tobacco cigarettes and thus ignore the 95 percent lower potential for damage is insane health policy,” said VdeH Managing Director Michal Dobrajc in a German-language statement. Taxing nicotine-free products as well as cigarettes defies common sense, he added.
Dobrajc said Germany should learn from the experience of other countries that were forced to lower their vapor taxes as vapers returned to smoking and anticipated revenues failed to materialize.
“The Tobacco Tax Modernization Act is a disaster in both health and economic terms,” said Dobrajc. “If you are serious about reducing the smoking rate, then you have to support the industry that is making a significant contribution to reducing it instead of destroying it.”
The Alliance for Tobacco-Free Enjoyment said that it intends to go to the Federal Constitutional Court to file a complaint against what it sees as a disproportionate tax increase.
Around one in four adults in Germany smokes regularly. Last year, tobacco taxes contributed approximately 14.7 billion to the government’s coffers. The last time the tobacco tax was increased was in 2015.
June 13, 2021
Brazil: Anti-Child Labor Initiatives Paying off

Iro Schuenke
The tobacco industry in Brazil has made great strides in its battle against child labor, SindiTabaco announced on the International Labor Organization’s (ILO) World Day Against Child Labor on June 10.
SindiTabaco launched its “The Future is Now” program in 1998—four years before the ILO debuted World Day Against Child Labor.
Today, the tobacco sector is the only one to require proof of school enrollment of its farmers’ school-age children. Tobacco companies will renew production contracts with growers only if they can present a certificate of school attendance.
According to SindiTabaco president Iro Schuenke, the first actions intended to create awareness of the importance of school attendance. “At that time, the companies got organized in contact with the municipalities in order to actively solve one-off questions related to school evasion, mainly caused by the lack of schools or deficient transport systems affecting farmers’ children,” he explains.
As the years went by, these initiatives evolved and gave rise to the Growing Up Right Institute, which has already benefited 500 teenagers in rural areas. The institute pioneered professional learning programs for the young in the countryside, qualifying adolescents through rural management and entrepreneurship courses.
“For most of the young, besides being an opportunity for developing their skills without having to leave their communities, it is also their first formal job, as the program complies with the learning law, and the young participants receive a salary proportional to 20 hours a week,” says Schuenke, who is also the director president of the Growing Up Right Institute. “It is a manner for them to spend their time in the course and at school, far away from tasks inappropriate for their age.”
Tobacco Reporter profiled the Growing Up Right Institute in April.
June 13, 2021