Anti-tobacco campaigners in Bangladesh said yesterday that the Government’s proposed budget for 2018-19 lacked initiatives to realize the prime minister’s commitment to a tobacco-free country by 2040, according to a story in The Daily Star.
In a joint statement, the anti-tobacco organization, Progga, and the Anti Tobacco Media Alliance (ATMA) said the finance minister in his budget speech had discussed plans to ensure a tobacco-free Bangladesh by 2041. ‘Ironically, the budget he has proposed bears no sign of that intention,’ the statement said.
The minister had talked about bringing down the total number of price slabs but had kept the existing four-price-slab system intact in the proposed budget.
The government had left the prices of packs of 10 ‘top-shelf’ cigarettes untouched at Tk101 for three consecutive years, including in the proposed budget for 2018-19.
This reflected a blatant disregard for public health on the policymakers’ part because cigarettes were getting cheaper each year, given the increase in per capita national income during the past three years.
In the proposed budget, the price of a pack of 10 high-tier cigarettes would increase from Tk70 to Tk75; the price of a pack of 10 medium-tier cigarettes would increase from Tk45 to Tk48; and the price of a pack of 10 low-tier cigarettes would increase from Tk27 to Tk32. The price of 25 non-filtered bidis would remain unchanged at Tk12.5.
Category: Other Tobacco Products
Commitment questioned
Flavors have role in THR
The Heartland Institute has urged the US Food and Drug Administration to acknowledge tobacco harm reduction (THR) products as tools that have been shown to have a positive impact on public health.
The Institute was responding to an FDA advanced notice of proposed rulemaking aimed at obtaining information related to the role that flavors play in tobacco products.
Lindsey Stroud, the Institute’s state government relations manager said that anti-tobacco campaigns and tax increases had tried to curb the use of tobacco products, but that they offered only a strategy of “quit or die”. There was another approach: tobacco harm reduction, which explicitly included the continued use of tobacco or nicotine, and was designed to reduce the health effects of tobacco use.
There were numerous THR products currently on the market in the US – including snus, electronic cigarettes and vaping devices, and HNB products – all of which effectively delivered nicotine in a less harmful way than combustible cigarettes.
‘Flavors are an important component of THR products and vital to helping many smokers cease using combustible tobacco,’ she said.
Stroud’s response looks in depth at the role of flavors in THR products, at youth and tobacco harm reduction, at advertising and e-cigarettes; and it presents some recommended regulatory priorities.IQOS rumored for India
Philip Morris International is planning to launch IQOS in India, according to a story by Aditya Kalra for Reuters citing ‘four sources familiar with the matter’.
A government source was quoted as saying the government would keep an open mind if PMI approached it to discuss a device that helped people quit smoking, but added that such devices, including electronic cigarettes, could be banned if found to be harmful.
A PM spokesman was quoted as saying that the company did not comment on its plans, but that it was committed to working to replace cigarettes with scientifically-substantiated smoke-free products.
But Reuters said that the company seemed to have started building a public case for IQOS in India.
On World No Tobacco Day, R. Venkatesh, PM’s top corporate affairs executive in India, wrote a column for India’s Economic Times newspaper calling for ‘effective regulations’ for alternative smoking devices.
‘With alternatives to cigarettes available and countries already delivering on their smoke-free ambitions, the incentive is there for lawmakers to support Indian smokers – who deserve a better option,’ Venkatesh wrote.Tobacco use in decline
The current use among US high school students of any tobacco product decreased from 24.2 percent (3.69 million) in 2011 to 19.6 percent (2.95 million) in 2017, according to findings made public yesterday by the Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The findings, from the 2017 National Youth Tobacco Survey (NYTS) published in the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, showed, too, that among middle school students, current use of any tobacco product decreased from 7.5 percent (0.87 million) in 2011 to 5.6 percent (0.67 million) in 2017.
‘By product, among both middle and high school students, there were decreases in use of cigarettes, cigars, smokeless tobacco, pipes and bidis, and an increase in e-cigarette use, according to a press note issued through the FDA’s Center for Tobacco Products.
‘Despite the overall decline, in 2017, about one in five high school students and one in 18 middle school students currently used a tobacco product. ‘For the fourth year in a row, e-cigarettes continued to be the most commonly used tobacco product [the FDA deems e-cigarettes to be tobacco products] among high school (11.7 percent; 1.73 million) and middle school (3.3 percent; 0.39 million) students.
‘Furthermore, about one in two (46.8 percent) high school students who currently used a tobacco product and two in five (41.8 percent) middle school students who currently used a tobacco product reported using two or more tobacco products.’
The authors were said to have concluded that the sustained implementation of population-based strategies, in co-ordination with the regulation of tobacco products by the FDA, were critical to reducing all forms of tobacco product use and initiation among young people.
‘Youth tobacco use rates, particularly e-cigarette use, continue to be of concern to FDA,’ the note said. ‘This spring, FDA announced a Youth Tobacco Prevention Plan, which includes a series of enforcement actions to prevent initiation of tobacco products, including e-cigarettes, by youth.
‘Further, FDA continues to invest in compelling, science-based campaigns, like “The Real Cost” and “This Free Life,” to educate youth about the dangers of all tobacco products, including e-cigarettes.
‘In fall 2017, FDA further expanded “The Real Cost” campaign to include an online e-cigarette prevention ad. A full-scale e-cigarette prevention effort under “The Real Cost” brand umbrella is planned for fall 2018.’Flavors vote tomorrow
A proposed ban on the sale of flavored tobacco products in the city of San Francisco, US, has been portrayed as a fight between pro-ban David and anti-ban Goliath, but the allegory doesn’t work because David isn’t the good, little guy he’s made out to be.
In a piece for the Competitive Enterprise Institute, Michelle Minton wrote on Friday that ‘big tobacco’ was pouring millions into a campaign to maintain its ability to keep selling harmful products that target children. ‘At least, that’s the narrative most news outlets have sold about Proposition E, a measure on the city’s June 5th ballot, which would ban the sale of flavors, including menthol, for tobacco products, including e-cigarettes,’ she added as clarification.
‘The David and Goliath story is compelling, but don’t be fooled. The other side, comprised of hundreds of anti-tobacco activists, is just – if not more – powerful than big tobacco companies. These groups have an advantage by cloaking their support of Prop E under the guise of “public health” and the support of factions in government and the university system, along with the industries that compete with e-cigarettes (e.g. big pharma). They also have vast financial resources, including taxpayer money, which they can spend without reporting it as “lobbying”.’
Minton goes on to describe the amounts and types of funding behind this lobbying and ‘non-lobbying’.
And she looks at the situation as it is currently, concluding, in part, that ‘kids, it seems, are neither targeted nor very interested in vaping, despite what anti-vaping activists claim’.
‘However, adult smokers increasingly rely on these devices as a safer means of consuming nicotine.
‘While likely not risk-free, recent analyses estimate that vaping has just one percent of the cancer risk that traditional combustible cigarettes carry.
‘And flavor seems to be an essential element in keeping people from returning to cigarettes. As a 2013 study found, the number of flavors a vaper used was independently associated with smoking cessation.’Dokha sales limited
People in the UAE will soon be able to buy only limited amounts of dokha, while all such products will have to carry graphic health warnings, according to a story in The Khaleej Times citing new standards approved by the National Tobacco Control Program under the Ministry of Health and Prevention (MoHAP).
There was no mention in the story of what the limit would be and how sales would be policed. Dokha reportedly can be bought ‘anywhere’ at prices less than those of cigarettes.
Wikipedia describes dokha as a type of tobacco that is usually mixed with herbs and spices, and smoked in a Medwakh (pipe). Dokha is said to be Arabic for ‘dizziness’.
The new standards have been developed by the Emirates Metrology and Standardization Authority (ESMA) and approved by the ministry.
Graphic health warnings have been required on other tobacco-product packs since 2012.
“These regulations for dokha should be in place by the end of the year,” Dr Wedad Al Maidoor, director of the Primary Healthcare Center & National Program of Tobacco Control, told the Khaleej Times.
“These new standards are being put in place to control the unlimited use of dokha which is growing in popularity among the youth,” she said.
A draft of standards and specifications for electronic cigarettes is also ready with the ESMA but is still pending approval.
Results from a health screenings study carried out in Abu Dhabi in 2016 showed that almost 30 percent of Emiratis in their thirties smoked medwakh.Altria Group restructures
The Altria Group yesterday announced a new structure ‘to maximize its core tobacco businesses while realizing its aspiration to be the US leader in authorized, non-combustible, reduced-risk products’.
In a note posted on its website, Altria said that the key components of the new structure included:- Establishing two divisions – core tobacco and innovative tobacco products;
- Creating a chief growth officer function to accelerate speed to market for innovative products and technologies; and
- Aligning product development efforts more directly to the core and innovative tobacco product businesses.
“This is a dynamic time in the tobacco industry, and just as we lead in traditional tobacco products, we intend to lead in offering adult smokers more choices in innovative, non-combustible, reduced-risk products,” said Howard Willard, Altria’s chairman and CEO.
“We expect this new structure to accelerate our innovation pipeline, maximize our core tobacco businesses and allow us to continue to reward shareholders.”
Altria said it would adapt its structure from one where a chief operating officer oversaw all operating companies to a structure aligned with the company’s dual strategies – maximizing income from core tobacco businesses and growing new income with innovative tobacco products.
PM USA, USSTC, Middleton, and Nat Sherman will form Altria’s core tobacco division.
‘Jody Begley, as senior vice president, tobacco products, Altria, will oversee the core tobacco businesses, as well as their product development and engineering support,’ the note. ‘He will report to Billy Gifford, vice chairman and CFO.’
Leading those businesses will be:- Heather Newman, president and CEO, PM USA;
- Shannon Leistra, president and CEO, USSTC;
- Ryan Bauersachs, MD and general manager, Middleton; and
- Dominik Meier, MD and general manager, Nat Sherman.
Meanwhile, Altria said that its innovation company, Nu Mark, would focus on developing a compelling portfolio of non-combustible products that adult smokers enjoyed and that had the potential to drive adult smoker conversion. ‘This portfolio includes oral nicotine-containing products, e-vapor and innovative inhalable products,’ the note said.
‘Brian Quigley, as president and CEO, Nu Mark, will oversee the innovative products business, reporting to Howard Willard.’
At the same time, Altria said it had established a chief growth officer function that would ‘identify and pursue Altria’s strategic and innovative growth priorities across the tobacco landscape’. ‘This function will identify marketplace and adult tobacco consumer insights and translate them into strategies for product development, consumer engagement, future of commerce and business development,’ it said.
‘K.C. Crosthwaite is appointed senior vice president and chief growth officer, Altria Client Services LLC (ALCS), reporting to Howard Willard.’
The changes are due to go into effect on June 1.Jailed for smoking shisha
Six people have been sentenced to four months in prison by a court in Mombasa, Kenya, after they pleaded guilty to smoking shisha, according to a story in The Star.
The six were among 10 people charged with smoking shisha in a restaurant in the Sparki area of Mombasa county.
The other four, who denied the charges, were each released on a Sh50,000 bond.
Police officers were said to have raided the restaurant after a tip-off.
The former Health Cabinet Secretary Cleopas Mailu in December banned importing and smoking shisha, on the grounds that smoking shisha was a health hazard.
Earlier this year, justice Roseline Aburili declined to lift the ban pending the hearing and determination of a legal challenge to the ban.
The judge said even though the applicants had an arguable case, this didn’t mean their case would be successful.
She said lifting the ban would be a wrong move and not in the interests of the public.
The judge was of the view that should the court rule in favor of the applicants after the full hearing, it would not be impossible to revert to the initial status.NCD strategy proposed
Growing evidence from the US and other countries suggests that less-harmful products, such as smokeless tobacco, heat-not-burn devices, and electronic cigarettes, are viable alternatives to combustible cigarettes, according to a comment made by The Heartland Institute to the World Health Organization’s Independent High-level Commission on non-communicable diseases (NCDs).
The comment, signed by Lindsey Stroud, the Institute’s state government relations manager, said that these products were far more effective smoking-cessation tools than were those provided by the US’ current system of taxation and regulation, which had been remarkably ineffective in helping smokers quit.
‘We believe products such as smokeless tobacco, heat-not-burn, and electronic cigarettes have significant potential in aiding the WHO in its mission to eradicate NCDs,’ Stroud said. ‘As the evidence for their potential as effective cessation tools continues to grow, public health agencies should focus on policies that promote their use. Not only should these products be regulated differently than traditional cigarettes, public health groups should inform the public of their health potential and use these tools to combat smoking.
‘The Heartland Institute recommends the WHO:- ‘Assist nation-states with the creation and oversight of tobacco-control programs that promote the use of less-harmful products for cessation aids. Significant health gains will be lost without the promotion of these products, as there is ample evidence indicating they are some of the most effective cessation tools.
- ‘Governments should promote policies that encourage the use of less-harmful alternatives to cigarettes, rather than creating regulatory hurdles that prevent smokers from using these products.
- ‘WHO should encourage governments to continue working with the private sector to find free-market alternatives to combustible tobacco cigarettes.’
Business heating up
Imperial Brand’s total tobacco volume during the six months to the end of March, at 123.6 billion stick-equivalents, was down by 2.1 percent on that of the six months to the end of March 2017, 126.3. Stick-equivalent volume is said to include cigarette, fine-cut tobacco, cigar and snus volumes.
During the same period, the company’s Growth Brand volume was increased by 6.3 percent, from 73.0 billion to 77.6 billion.
In the US, Stick-equivalent volume was down by 3.7 percent to 10.8 billion.
Imperial’s tobacco net revenue during the six months to the end of March, at £3,531 million, was down by 5.0 percent on that of the six months to the end of March 2017, £3,716 million.
Tobacco adjusted operating profit was down by 8.0 percent to £1,533 million, while logistics adjusted operating profit increased by 20.7 percent to £99 million, and total adjusted operating profit fell by 6.7 percent to £1,624 million.
Adjusted earnings per share were down by 6.2 percent to 114.3p.
Commenting on Imperial’s interim results, which were issued today, chief executive, Alison Cooper, said Imperial was continuing to make good progress in both tobacco and next generation products (NGP).
“Investment in our key tobacco brand equities has strengthened our position in our priority markets, with further share gains driven by Growth Brands,” Cooper was quoted as saying.
“Within a tough but improving environment, we exited the first half with much stronger price/mix and expect to convert our improved share into top-line growth in the second half.
“In NGP our product and market launches are on track. My blu is generating positive trade and consumer feedback and we continue to invest in developing our pipeline of proprietary innovations, including heated tobacco, to enhance the consumer experience and realise our growth ambitions.
“As we sharpen our focus on the brands, products and markets that are central to our strategy, we are progressing opportunities for divestments, initially targeting proceeds of up to £2 billion within the next 12-24 months. This will further simplify the business, enhance performance and release capital to pay down debt, deliver returns to our shareholders and, where appropriate, invest in our growth agenda.”
