Category: Featured

Mariana Islands Fails to Adopt Tobacco Report
Credit: PVL
The Senate of the Northern Mariana Islands, a commonwealth of the United States, has failed to adopt its committee report that recommends the passage of its version of a House of Representatives bill.
That bill aims to increase government revenue by amending the definition of cigarettes to ensure that all tobacco products are properly taxed.
Four senators voted “yes,” and four senators voted “no” to a motion to adopt the report of the Committee on Fiscal Affairs, but Senate president Edith E. DeLeon Guerrero announced that the report would not be adopted and would no longer exist, according to local media.
DeLeon Guerrero, Senate vice president Sen. Donald M. Manglona, Sens. Paul A. Manglona, and Celina R. Babauta voted for the committee report’s adoption.
House Bill No. 23-7 proposes to amend the definition of “cigarette” to include any product that resembles similarities to cigarettes based on its appearance, weight, usage, and packaging, such as “little cigars”, “filtered cigars”, or “roll-your-own.”
April 14, 2024
Uzbekistan Plans to Ban Heated Tobacco, Vapes
Tashkent TV Tower Aerial Shot During Sunset in Uzbekistan (Credit: Lukas)
The Ministry of Health in Uzbekistan has proposed a ban on the circulation of electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) products, e-liquids and heated tobacco products, Trend reports.
This is shown in the draft law published on Uzbekistan’s portal to discuss draft normative legal acts.
According to the law, the circulation of ENDS products on the “territory of the country is prohibited.”
The Ministry of Health also proposes to introduce administrative and criminal liability for violation of this ban—a fine in the amount of $1,000 to five years of imprisonment.
According to data from Uzbekistan’s Statistics Agency, the production volume of tobacco products in the country reached 2.1 billion pieces from January through February 2024.
From January through February 2024, the country’s exports of tobacco products reached $7.8 million, while imports amounted to $10.5 million during the same period.
April 14, 2024
Tobacco Product Prices Up in Cuba

Credit: Timothy S. Donahue
Beginning on April 12, Cuban tobacco users experienced higher retail prices for cigarettes and cigars. The brands are the domestic tobacco products sold in local stores used by Cuban residents, not tourists.
According to the report, the prices of cigarette-style brands like Criollo, Titanes, and Popular are now CUP 30 ($1.25) per pack of 20. H. Upmann Clásico, a short cigar sold with and without filters, is CUP 50, and Popular Auténtico is now CUP 60. (It should be noted that an American dollar on Cuba’s black market averages about CUP 300 to $1; this would put the price of a 20-pack of Populars at about $0.10.)
Minister of Finance and Prices, Vladimir Regueiro, told Cuban media that the current cost does not cover all the costs and expenses related to the production and commercialization of the tobacco products.
In a press conference, he added that the measure would “contribute to reducing the fiscal deficit in the country, and new financial resources may be mobilized from the state budget to support the social expenses of priority sectors.”
He also said that tobacco is not a necessity for the population and that the responsibility of the State and the government is to guarantee an appropriate level and assortment of food products.
April 14, 2024
Maine Lawmakers Change Tobacco Bill to Save Shop

The Maine House of Representatives passed LD 2157, sponsored by Rep. Matt Moonen of Portland. The bill would prohibit tobacco sales within 300 feet of schools, in an effort to prevent tobacco and nicotine addiction among children.
“At 300 feet, this would affect one existing business,” Moonen said on the House floor Tuesday night. “That business is in my district, this business sells tobacco within 26 feet of my school, and I would like that to stop.”
That business is Fresh Approach, located in Portland’s West End. It’s right across the street from the Reiche Elementary School, according to media reports.
“I’ve been here for 30 years, and in 30 years, I’ve yet to have a fourth grader come in here and try to buy a pack of cigarettes,” Chet Knights, owner of Fresh Approach, said. “It’s just kind of silly.”
He says Fresh Approach is primarily a neighborhood grocery store, but some people come in to grab a sandwich and a pack of cigarettes. If he is prohibited from selling tobacco, those customers will go elsewhere.
“When the construction guys come along, and they want to get a sandwich, a soda, and a pack of Marlboros, and they can’t get a pack of Marlboros, you’re gonna go down the street to the store with the big fancy signs,” Knights said, explaining that he does not advertise for tobacco products at his store. “For me, that business is just gone.”
On Friday, the Maine state Senate amended that bill, so stores could not obtain a tobacco license within 300 feet of schools, but they could renew a tobacco license if they already had one. This essentially grandfathers Fresh Approach in and allows them to continue to sell tobacco products.
The bill now goes back to the House.
April 14, 2024
Nyasa Tobacco Enters Lilongwe Leaf Market

Konrad Buckle, chairman of the Nyasa Group of Companies (Photo: Taco Tuinstra)
Nyasa Tobacco Co. officially launched its operations in Lilongwe, Malawi, on April 9.
Speaking during the opening ceremony, Agriculture Minister Sam Kawale noted that the participation of Nyasa Tobacco in the local market would not only increase competition but also encourage leaf production and earn much-needed foreign currency.
“Government is always interested to see more companies or stakeholders coming on the auction because the more companies joining the markets, the better the prices will be because of competition and the more our farmers benefit, and the better the economy is going to grow,” he was quoted as saying by the Nyasa Times.
Konrad Buckle, chairman of the Nyasa Group of Companies, expressed satisfaction with the government’s commitment to tobacco farmer and promised to help farmers get a fair value for their leaf.
“Our main vision is to try and establish market presence on behalf of the government and make sure farmers get fair value,” he said.
Speaking on the sidelines of the official opening of Malawi’s 2024 selling season, Buckle said Malawi’s tobacco farmers had been getting an unfair deal due to the low prices offered to them, suggesting that competition from his company would help remedy that situation.
“We are here to stay,” he was quoted as saying in a separate Nyasa Times article. “And we want to make difference to the growers.”
Nyasa entered the leaf market toward the end of the marketing season last year. It has been manufacturing cigarettes in Malawi for more than a decade.
Tobacco Reporter profiled Nyasa Manufacturing in it June 2017 issue.
April 12, 2024
‘Quit Like Sweden’ Global Effort Takes Off

Photo: QLS
International health experts rallied behind a major new global effort to replicate Sweden’s success at eradicating smoking by embracing a comprehensive approach that could prevent millions of premature deaths globally.
Quit Like Sweden (QLS), launched at a conference in Brazil featuring medical professionals, politicians and policymakers, aims to motivate and support countries worldwide to emulate the example of Sweden, which is set to become the first nation to attain official “smoke-free” status later this year.
“Sweden has achieved this remarkable feat by ensuring that safer alternatives to smoking are accessible, acceptable and affordable,” said QLS founder Suely Castro, a Brazil-born harm reduction advocate in a statement.
“A country where 49 percent of men used to smoke regularly has virtually wiped out this scourge by allowing its smokers to switch to products that pose just a fraction of the risks, such as snus [traditional smokeless tobacco] and other smoke-free alternatives like vapes and nicotine pouches.
“Swedes are reaping the health dividend with significantly lower cancer cases and mortality rates compared to their European counterparts. Now, Quit Like Sweden will amplify this message globally, leveraging expertise and fostering collaboration across stakeholders to help countries replicate the Swedish experience.”

Sweden is winning the war against smoking with a comprehensive approach to tobacco control that supplements traditional cessation and preventive measures with an all-important added element: giving smokers the opportunity to switch to safer alternatives.
Anders Milton, former chair of the World Medical Association and former secretary general of the Swedish Medical Association.
Castro was joined at the launch of her platform by leading harm reduction experts who unveiled new research showing that Brazil could save 1.36 million lives by 2060 by adopting the Swedish approach.
Earlier research has shown that 3 million more Europeans would be alive today if other countries had implemented Sweden’s comprehensive approach to helping smokers quit.
Meanwhile, a study of low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs) shows that, through the adoption of Swedish-style policies, Kazakhstan could prevent 165,000 premature deaths in the next four decades while South Africa, Bangladesh and Pakistan could save 320,000; 920,000 and 1,200,000 lives, respectively.
“Sweden is winning the war against smoking with a comprehensive approach to tobacco control that supplements traditional cessation and preventive measures with an all-important added element: giving smokers the opportunity to switch to safer alternatives,” said research co-author Anders Milton, a former chair of the World Medical Association and former secretary general of the Swedish Medical Association.
“It has set out a policy roadmap that should be treated as a gift to global public health and, potentially, one of the greatest ever breakthroughs in tackling noncommunicable diseases (NCDs).
“That’s why QLS is so important. By spreading the message of the Swedish experience to all corners, many millions of premature deaths—including almost 1.4 million here in Brazil—could be prevented in the next four decades.”
April 12, 2024
SATTA Urges Action Against Illicit Trade

Photo: Tobacco Reporter archive
The South African Tobacco Transformation Alliance (SATTA) has called for stronger action against the smuggle, manufacture and sales illicit products.
Last year, South Africans smoked 37 billion cigarettes, but the South African Revenue Service (SARS) taxed only 13 billion. “Illicit tobacco is “the biggest fight we face now,” said Edward Kieswetter, SARS commissioner.
“Government should allocate more resources to Sars to pursue these complex crimes,” said SATTA spokesperson Zachariah Motsumi in a statement. “As the commissioner pointed out, illicit tobacco products account for 60 percent to 70 percent of cigarette sales and causes tremendous damage to the fiscus.”
The national fiscus is not the only area affected by the illicit trade. “Cigarette producers like BATSA has to retrench tobacco factory workers and about 500 jobs are currently at risk in third-party logistics companies that transport their products,” said Motsumi. BATSA has already cut 584 jobs due to a 40 percent decrease in [legal] cigarette sales from 2020.
“People are not smoking less—it is the sale of legal cigarettes that decreased,” said Motsumi. “The net effect of this is twofold: It has devastated tax collection and decimated the legal tobacco sector.”
April 12, 2024
Spain Approves Anti-Smoking Plan

Photo: nyker
Spain has approved a new anti-smoking plan that will expand the number of places where smoking is prohibited, implement a sharp increase in tobacco taxes and place vapers in the same category as conventional smokers as “deterrent” measures, according to Eurasia Review.
The document was approved April 5 by the Spanish Health Ministry and will be included in a new legislative package to be formally approved in Parliament.
“As of today [Friday, April 5], this plan is a reality, and this achievement is a source of national pride,” said Health Minister Monica Garcia, a member of the left-wing Sumar platform, a junior partner in Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez’s coalition government.
The document is an update to the current 14-year-old plan and aims at reducing the number of smokers, protecting public health and preventing new tobacco consumers.
The Plan for the Prevention and Control of Smoking 2024–2027 has five main objectives: preventing the onset of smoking, encouraging smoking cessation and facilitating help to stop smoking, reducing environmental exposure to tobacco emissions and related products in public and private spaces, and promoting applied research and monitoring in tobacco control as well as promoting coordination and the establishment of anti-tobacco alliances.
There is a question of whether in the near future smoking will be banned on bar and restaurant terraces; the leisure and tourism sector accounts for 13 percent of Spain’s national GDP.
The plan includes the “legislative extension of smoke-free and e-cigarette aerosol-free spaces in certain community and social outdoor environments,” but there is no current ban only a “recommendation” not to smoke in these public spaces.
An increase in tobacco taxes is expected. Since 2005, tobacco taxes have increased by 122 percent.
The plan also includes generic or neutral packaging for tobacco products—unattractive color, brand name in Arial typeface and in smaller font size to allow for larger health warnings such as “smoking kills” or “tobacco kills.”
Additives that “give flavors to tobacco and related products (in line with what the EU agrees)” will also be banned under the new plan.

April 12, 2024
Patent Filed for Pouch Technology
Photo: ir1ska
TJP Labs has filed for patent protection of a novel nicotine particulate that dramatically increases the speed of nicotine release.
According to the company, the new technology releases nicotine significantly faster than polacrilex, a resin complex commonly used in nicotine replacement therapy products.
Other features of the nicotine particulate include:
Versatile particulate size customization; from ultra-fine to several hundred microns for precise product design.
Precision-targeted binding, which improves nicotine release rate, which enhances effectiveness.
Broad spectrum of adaptable core materials, which expands product versatility and application possibilities.
Efficient raw material use, allowing for nicotine loading several orders of magnitude over Polacrilex.
Eco-friendly and versatile composition. The product is optimized for organic and inorganic forms, including biodegradable resins, enabling diverse, innovative applications.
Streamlined manufacturing, which accelerates product development.
Seamless integration: The technology is designed for easy incorporation into nicotine pouch formats and related products.
“This landmark initiative powerfully showcases TJP Labs’ commitment to redefining nicotine consumption through innovation,” said TJP Labs Chief Relationship Officer David Richmond-Peck in a statement. “With other innovations in our pipeline, safeguarding our intellectual property remains integral to our strategy, matching our innovative efforts with consumers’ evolving preferences.”
TJP Labs anticipates initial evaluation data for these particulates to be available toward the end of the second quarter of 2024
TJP Labs is a wholly owned subsidiary of KIK ASS Products, a full-service contract manufacturer of next-generation products focusing on modern oral nicotine.
April 12, 2024
Chalkey to Boost PCA Government Affairs

Credit: Thapana Studio
The Premium Cigar Association (PCA) has hired Richard Chalkey as its new director of Coalitions and Policy. Chalkey brings over a decade of professional experience from work in government and the private sector, according to an emailed press release.
“The Premium Cigar Association has worked with Richard since his time in the West Wing of the White House through Congress and we look forward to having him join our team,” stated PCA Deputy Executive Director Joshua Habursky. “It is rare to find someone in Washington who has worked in the House, Senate, and White House –especially someone who worked four years in a White House and in the West Wing. We are glad to have the perspective and network that Richard will bring.”
Previously, Chalkey served as the associate director of the National Economic Council and as the associate director of the Office of Legislative Affairs in the Trump White House. During his four years of service at the White House, Chalkey managed policy rollouts for the directors of his departments and in coordination with White House Senior Staff and Cabinet Agencies.
Most recently, Chalkey served as deputy chief of staff for Rep. Nancy Mace of South Carolina in the 117th and 118th Congress. Prior to the White House, Chalkey also served in the office of former U.S. Senator Mark Kirk and former Congressman Rodney Davis, both of Illinois.
Chalkey holds a bachelor of science in Management – International Business and a bachelor of science in Marketing from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He is a U.S. State Department Gilman Scholar for studying abroad at the University of Hong Kong and currently is a May 2024 expected executive MBA candidate for the Darden School of Business at the University of Virginia.
April 12, 2024