Cote D’Ivoire will start requiring cigarette manufacturers to sell their products in plain packaging in November.
According to the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids (CTFK), Cote D’Ivoire is the second nation in Africa to introduce following Mauritius.
“The Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids applauds Cote D’Ivoire for joining Mauritius in bringing plain packaging to Africa,” said CTFK President and CEO Yolanda Richardson. “These new measures should serve as a reminder that countries around the world can and must take swift action to curb tobacco use, protect public health and stop Big Tobacco companies from targeting youth.”
Not all is lost for brand owners operating in dark markets.
By Stefanie Rossel
In February, the Canadian Cancer Society released a report detailing the global progress on tobacco health warnings and plain packaging, which requires cigarette manufacturers to market their products in uniform, unattractively colored packs without brand imagery and print their brand names in generic fonts.
To date, 25 countries or territories have adopted standard packaging, the most recent ones being Myanmar, Oman and Georgia. A further 14 countries are preparing legislation, and three more have it “in practice,” meaning that they import cigarettes from a country with plain packaging requirements, as happens, for example, in Monaco, which buys its cigarettes from France. In addition, the report notes, the graphic health warnings mandated by some governments are so large that they resemble plain packaging. In nine countries, graphic health warnings account for at least 85 percent of the front and back side of the pack.
Recommended in the guidelines for implementation of Article 11of the World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC), standardized packaging is viewed by its supporters as an efficient means to reduce the appeal of tobacco products and increase the effectiveness of health warnings. By removing the visual cues that prompt existing users to purchase the product and by preventing new customers from developing brand loyalty, proponents argue, plain packaging ultimately leads to better public health.
Plain packaging is also a comparatively inexpensive intervention that can be implemented more easily than other FCTC measures, such as establishing a national tobacco cessation system. But despite abundant research since standardized packaging made its global debut in Australia in December 2012, there is still no reliable evidence that the measure achieves its objectives, as studies remain inconclusive or even contradictory. Opponents claim that the removal of branding has merely led to commoditization, causing well-established brands to lose market share to cheaper alternatives.
The Power of Word of Mouth
Mathijs Aliet
For tobacco companies, marketing products in such “dark” markets is a challenge, even more so because most of the countries that require plain packaging also ban tobacco advertising and product displays at the point of sale (POS).
A 2023 report by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission underlines the importance of the POS for the industry. In 2022, U.S. tobacco manufacturers spent more than $8.3 billion promoting cigarettes and smokeless tobacco at the POS, accounting for over 97 percent of their total marketing expenditure for those product categories.
Yet, despite the loss of conventional marketing instruments, dark markets are not lost for brand owners, according to Mathijs Aliet, founder of Square44, a brand design agency based in Bangkok. “Consumers decide if they want a product or not,” he says. “There are still needs that are fulfilled, and word of mouth is a big thing. Regulations will not stop people from talking to each other, comparing experiences and making recommendations.”
Consumers also play an essential role during the launch of new brands in dark markets, when there is zero association in the buyer’s mind. “In markets that are extremely dark, it’s often people watching people that triggers new trends,” Aliet explains. “People that meet friends that have a new product are seen as trendsetters—this is something that is hard to stop.”
Square44 operates in 20 different markets across Asia, the Middle East and North Africa and has worked for tobacco companies such as Philip Morris International, BAT and Japan Tobacco International. Due to the widespread restrictions on cigarette branding, however, tobacco jobs are “rare and few,” according to Aliet. In dark markets, Square44 has profound experience working for manufacturers of alcoholic beverages in Thailand, Myanmar, Nepal and Indonesia.
“Many markets have individual rules, and most face dark market challenges in various degrees,” says Aliet. “Brand support extends into different spaces—the smoke zones at airports, brand environment design, creating bespoke structural solutions or working on new product development concepts for test are areas where we support tobacco clients. Building connections to the trade or retail channels as well is an opportunity where still quite a bit of activity takes place, such as dealer events, partner get-togethers, etc. This is an example of spending the marketing budget in dark markets in the right way with entertaining, training and incentives to make them sell your brands.”
Generally, Aliet advises his clients to be proactive. Manufacturers who anticipate change can build a loyal following for their brands before any restrictions take effect.
Plain packaging is a comparatively inexpensive intervention—for governments anyway—that can be implemented more easily than other FCTC measures.
Innovation Is Key
Another strategy to sustain brand awareness is developing surrogate brands in an unrelated, nonrestricted category, according to Square44. “Back in the days in Europe, the Camel brand invented outdoor clothing to keep their brand alive beyond cigarettes,” says Aliet. “This was at that point a clever way out. The brands that survive are the ones that pay extra attention to channels or touchpoints where they are still allowed to connect.”
Surrogate brands also help with events, according to Aliet. “You can get the brand out and organize something around a smoke-infused snack or beverage that happens to carry the same name,” he says. “B2B events are largely unregulated and an important influential factor for most manufacturers that play an important word-of-mouth role. Building solutions that drive value, solve problems or address needs there are will always result in success.”
Generally, brands that survive in dark markets establish their unique identifying brand assets and elements well, observes Aliet. “Use that across touchpoints in 2D graphics, even 3D environments. Colors, shapes—anything where we don’t show brand but queue recognition is what comes to mind.”
Social media can play a role too. “Depending on the location of platform, a manufacturer might not be able or allowed to localize messaging, but we see user-generated content pick up big time, especially on social selling channels,” says Aliet. “We’re luckily not that far yet that governments are telling platforms to ban images of consumers smoking or using product. Using influencers is getting heavily restricted market by market.”
Self-regulation and brand innovation are other vital, Aliet points out. “There’s no doubt that brands should pivot,” he says. “Governments are making legislation tougher, and certain categories will most likely not survive. We see this in the energy space as well, where fossil fuels are facing a lot of negative press. The smart companies pivot and innovate beyond category—cannabis, vaping, liquid drinks—as people are still looking to fulfill a need. Brands can reinvent themselves around needs with newer solutions that appeal to a clean, next-gen lifestyle. That’s what brands must do regardless—innovate around market movements and changes in consumer preference.”
A Different POS
Depending on the degree of restrictions, the point of sale may turn from a place of communication and product variety into a wasted space. In Australia, for example, customers who want to buy cigarettes must ask the store clerk. There are no signs directing smokers to the POS, according to Christoph Moser, managing director of POS Tuning, a German company that offers POS shelf and storage solutions to customers worldwide.
According to Moser, priorities are different at a dark market POS. “In classic dark markets, product availability is getting ever more important. Shelves are equipped with sliding doors or flaps, and the opening time is limited. There is a defined time slot during which presentation and removal of a pack takes place, which makes it more important that the merchandise can be seen immediately at the time of opening. Push-feed systems are therefore essential, as they facilitate access for the salesperson.”
His company offers mechanical as well as digital systems that allow customers to take stock immediately. “This works with an indicator for the inventory or with a digital push-feed system that records inventory levels in real time and signals when stocks are too low or if there is an out-of-shelf [situation],” he says.
In many dark markets, the placement of tobacco products has changed. Instead of being displayed on the back wall of the store, as is often the case in less restrictive markets, cigarettes are placed under the counter, where they are invisible to customers. “Sixty percent of sales at petrol stations are generated with tobacco products,” explains Moser. “If displaying the products is banned or restricted, it has consequences. POS Tuning has developed specific push-feed solutions to place the vast variety of tobacco products that are usually stored in the back wall in the limited space of a counter. These solutions allow for placement of several brands in one row behind one another, meaning the same amount of product can be placed on a significantly smaller surface.”
Moser observes that many retailers in countries changing to a dark market try to put off the transition as long as possible—and are thus insufficiently prepared. “Fast and efficient solutions are required that enable the covered presentation of goods in existing shelves. We offer various retrofit kits for this,” he says.
Just like the appearance of the POS, the attitude of consumers in dark markets has changed, notes Moser: “Customers get used to this kind of [product] presentation,” he says. “In most cases, it’s a planned purchase, which means customers prefer a certain brand, which they then buy, thereby accepting other pack sizes.”
Stefanie Rossel is Tobacco Reporter’s editorial contributor. An experienced trade journalist, she combines sharp reporting skills with in-depth knowledge of the tobacco and vapor industries. Prior to joining Tobacco Reporter, Stefanie was editor-in-chief at Tobacco Journal International, where she worked for a decade. Fluent in English, German and French, Stefanie covers tobacco news around the world. She is based in Germany.
The tobacco industry is asking the government of Kenya to distinguish between traditional cigarettes and tobacco-free alternatives, such as vapes and nicotine pouches, when crafting health warning labels, reports The Star.
Kenya’s health ministry is currently gathering public feedback on a proposal that would require cigarette manufacturers to print new graphic health warnings on packs of nicotine products. The consultation ends May 15.
The industry says that most of the proposed images do not correlate with the products for which they are proposed.
“We are looking at information that does not mislead the user, is factual and evidence-based,” said BAT Kenya’s scientific engagement manager, Douglas Weru, during a public participation workshop hosted by the Ministry of Health. “The message coming through from stakeholders in this public participation sessions, and which we agree with, is that the images should correlate to the risk associated with the product,” said Weru.
The Retail Trade Association of Kenya (Retrak) said the proposed warnings require an amendment to the 2007 Tobacco Control Act, given that many of the new products were not widely available when the law was written.
Kenya’s health ministry is gathering public feedback on a proposal that would require cigarette manufacturers to print new graphic health warnings on packs of nicotine products, reports The Standard.
The new rules will require tobacco manufacturers to display labels covering 80 percent of the packaging of cigarettes, nicotine pouches and e-cigarettes.
“The objectives of the graphic health warnings are to increase knowledge about risks associated with tobacco use, to deter initiation to tobacco, to reduce tobacco consumption and persuade tobacco users to quit and to break the challenges of languages and the inability to read text-only messages,” said the Ministry of Health in a public notice.
Some 8.6 percent of Kenyans smoked in 2020, according to World Health Organization data. The government wants to reduce this figure to less than 5 percent by 2025.
Tobacco industry representatives contend that the proposed measure does not appropriately distinguish between cigarettes and smoke-free nicotine products, such as nicotine pouches, which they tout as less hazardous than cigarettes.
“There is a need for legislation in Kenya to separate tobacco products from nicotine products and for an appreciation of the role played by alternative nicotine-delivery products,” an unnamed official was quoted as saying. “The current graphic health warnings campaign does not distinguish between the two products.”
The Philippines’s Department of Health (DOH) is urging businesses, distributors and importers to start printing graphic health warnings (GHW) on vaporized products, reports Tribune.
The first set of GHW templates for vape products is set to take effect on May 12.
Under Republic Act No. 11900, also known as the Vape Law,
Operators who fail to comply with the new rules risk fines of between PHP2 million and PHP5 million and imprisonment of up to six years.
Manufacturers, importers, distributors and sellers may also face revocation or cancellation of permits and licenses as well as immediate recall, ban, or confiscation of products at the direction of the Bureau of Internal Revenue.
In addition, foreign individuals found in violation risk deportation.
Kenya’s Ministry of Health has invited the public to comment on 13 proposed large graphic warnings for tobacco products, reports The Star.
If the changes are approved, graphic warning depicting impotence, cancerous growths and sick fetuses will also be printed on new tobacco and nicotine products sold in Kenya. Currently, only cigarette packets are required to display such warnings. The law requires a combined picture and text health warning to occupy at least 30 percent of the front and 50 percent of the back of smoked tobacco products. Among the proposed labels is also a message indicating that nicotine pouches are not a safe alternative.
“These warnings are very important because they speak even to those who can’t read and they attract attention. They also scare people and pass information more clearly and immediately compared to text,” said Joel Gitali, head of the Kenya Tobacco Control Alliance.
Health warnings were introduced in Kenya as part of the 2007 Tobacco Control Act, which came into force in July 2008 and included requirements for 13 rotating text-only health warnings in Kiswahili and English.
In 2014, the government introduced 15 new images for smoked and smokeless tobacco packages. The regulations were to be implemented in June 2015 but were delayed due to a legal challenge by cigarette manufacturers, who lost the case at the Supreme Court. The images were introduced beginning September 2016.
The 2014 regulations require tobacco manufacturers to rotate the picture and text warnings in a 12-month period.
However, the law does not state how frequently the health minister must update the warnings. The World Health Organization advises governments to change tobacco health warnings every 12 to 36 months.
Health advocates are urging the government of Pakistan to reject an application by Pakistan Tobacco Co. (PTC) for permission to pack cigarettes in cartons of 10 sticks, reports The Nation.
According to Malik Imran Ahmed, country head of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, 10-stick packs would undermine efforts to discourage smoking among young people and other at-risk demographics.
To deter consumption by minors and other at-risk groups, Pakistan law requires tobacco companies to sell cigarettes in packs of at least 20 cigarettes. Sales of individual sticks are permitted, however.
The rule is placing at risk a large order for PTC to deliver $20.5 million worth of cigarettes to Sudan by mid-May. The contract requires PTC to supply the cigarettes in packs of 10 sticks each. Sudan does not have minimum stick laws, according to PTC officials.
PTC has requested the government to amend the rules and limit the 10-pack selling restriction to domestic consumption, according to Tribune.
The Ministry of Health has referred the matter to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to seek its input on the matter in light of the World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control.
In 2019, PTC also lost an export order due to a lack of clarity on 10-pack cigarette manufacturing. At that time, the Ministry of Commerce gave the go-ahead for exports, but the Ministry of Health objected.
PTC has been exporting cigarettes since 2019 and has earned $156 million from that business to date. In 2023, the company paid PKR148 billion ($531.35 million) in taxes, making it the country’s second-largest taxpayer after Pakistan State Oil.
Parkside has appointed Luke Clark as its new business development manager.
Boasting almost 20 years of experience working in sales roles within the packaging industry, Clark will focus on growing Parkside’s consumer goods and tobacco segments as the company looks to further enhance its plans across Europe, the Middle East and Asia.
“I am delighted to join Parkside to help drive our business forward,” said Clark in a statement. “We have a long-established reputation across the flexible packaging market for service and quality coupled with a broad and innovative product range meeting many of the ever-changing market demands and needs. The opportunity to help present these to customers is something I’m looking forward to.
“I have known Luke for over 10 years,” said Parkside Group Sales Director Paul McKeown. “I am aware of his background knowledge and his skill set in the flexible packaging sector. His ambition, energy and development plans match those of us here at Parkside. We are excited to see what Luke will achieve as he works with the Parkside team to bring our sustainable portfolio and market-leading technical capabilities to the market.”
Legal requirements to sell tobacco products in generic, unbranded packaging continue to spread, according to a report released on Feb. 6 by the Canadian Cancer Society (CCS).
The CCS report, titled Cigarette Package Health Warnings: International Status Report, details global progress on plain packaging, ranks 211 countries and territories on the size of their health warnings on cigarette packages and lists the countries and territories that now require graphic picture warnings.
The report also features the new Canadian requirement for a warning on every individual cigarette. This world precedent setting measure will start to appear on cigarettes in Canada by April 2024. Australia is in progress to become the second country to adopt the measure.
“There is a strong global trend for countries to implement plain packaging,” says Rob Cunningham, senior policy analyst at the CCS, in a statement. “Australia was the first country to implement plain packaging in 2012, followed by France and the U.K. in 2016, and now more and more countries are implementing the measure. These developments are very encouraging as plain packaging is a key measure to protect youth and to reduce tobacco use.”
There are now 25 countries and territories that have adopted plain packaging, up from nine countries in 2018 and 21 countries in 2021.
The report reveals there are now 138 countries and territories that require picture health warnings on cigarette packages, an increase from 117 in 2018 and 134 in 2021. This represents 66.5 percent of the world’s population. Canada became the first country in the world to require picture health warnings in 2001.
“There is continuing progress for countries to use graphic pictures on cigarette packages to show the lethal health effects of smoking,” says Cunningham. “It is extremely positive for global public health that more than 130 countries and territories have required picture health warnings and have increased warning size and that so many are moving toward plain packaging. The international trend will reduce global tobacco industry sales and will save lives lost to cancer and other tobacco-related diseases.”
The release of the CCS report coincides with the 10th Conference of the Parties to the World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC), which takes place in Panama this week. The FCTC mandates that all parties require health warnings that cover at least 30 percent of the principal display areas and at least 50 percent of the display areas.
