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  • Trinidad & Tobago Doubles Excise Duties on Tobacco, Eyes Vapes

    Trinidad & Tobago Doubles Excise Duties on Tobacco, Eyes Vapes

    Trinidad and Tobago increased excise duties by 100% on locally and Caricom-manufactured beer, rum, malt beverages, cigarettes, and tobacco, aligning import rates with domestic products. The move, part of the 2026 Budget, is expected to generate $1 billion in revenue while aiming to reduce smoking and alcohol consumption, planning minister Kennedy Swaratsingh said.

    The government emphasized that the increases also protect local manufacturers from unfair competition with Caricom imports and address illicit trade in cigarettes, with additional enforcement measures planned. Duty rates on foreign alcohol and tobacco remain high, ensuring price buffers for imported products.

    “In some instances, cigarettes that are manufactured locally for export to other Caricom markets are smuggled back into T&T and are now cheaper, as excise duties and customs duties haven’t applied,” Swaratsingh said. “To combat illicit smuggling that hurts local manufacturers, Government intends beefing up Customs and Excise’s enforcement apparatus, ensuring a more level playing field for local manufacturers.”

    Swaratsingh also said the government is monitoring vapes, pointing to their growing use among younger generations and potential health risks, signaling possible future regulation of e-cigarettes in T&T.

    “Vapes are also harmful,” Swaratsingh said. “Studies are still being done to determine the extent of damage they cause compared to cigarettes. Government is looking and will contemplate the required action against vapes in the near future.”

    Swaratsingh said the Budget’s decision to increase excise duties on “sin products” isn’t a punitive measure, but a planned and well-thought-out initiative aimed at a multi-pronged result for T&T’s physical, socio-economic, and future well-being.

  • Acting CTP Director Offers ‘Groundbreaking’ Views at FDLI

    Acting CTP Director Offers ‘Groundbreaking’ Views at FDLI

    Bret Koplow, Acting Director of the FDA Center for Tobacco Products (CTP), outlined a notable change in the agency’s approach to tobacco regulation, emphasizing tobacco harm reduction as a central principle, as he opened the Food and Drug Law Institute (FDLI) Tobacco and Nicotine Policy Conference on October 28.

    Chris Allen, CEO of UK-based consultancy Broughton, called the keynote “one of the most significant speeches we’ve heard in years,” marking the FDA’s first public acknowledgment of harm reduction as a principle embedded in its regulatory framework in years, while public health expert Cliff Douglas posted on X that the speech was “refreshing and potentially groundbreaking,” noting Koplow’s clear articulation of the benefits of switching from cigarettes to alternative products.

    According to social media posts from the two experts, Koplow highlighted the importance of streamlining review and authorization processes to make harm reduction measures effective, and said the FDA will soon provide guidance on the continuum of risk for tobacco and nicotine products and signaled potential support for expanding flavored e-cigarettes using age-gating technology if they serve public health goals. He also stressed the need for a regulated marketplace of authorized reduced-risk products, warning that without proper oversight, unregulated alternatives could dominate the market.

    “This is encouraging, but we will need to see what form this takes and how well it is executed. The follow-up panel on the future of tobacco policy in the context of #MAHA [Make America Healthy Again] correctly highlights the welcome change in tone in Director Koplow’s remarks,” Douglas wrote, referencing the conference’s opening panel,
    The Future of Tobacco Policy: Aligning CTP’s Present with MAHA’s Vision, which featured industry experts Beth Oliva, Cheryl K. Olson, Jeff Weiss, Jeffrey Willett, and Robyn Gougelet. “This should not be overlooked, as his clear articulation of the benefits of switching from cigarettes to pouches and vapes, for example, is refreshing and potentially groundbreaking.”

    Allen agreed, saying that the industry has sought FDA clarity for years.

    “This was more than a language shift. It was a reframing of how CTP interprets the ‘appropriate for the protection of public health’ standard at the heart of the Tobacco Control Act,” Allen wrote. “This shift opens the door for more transparent communication on relative risk, more efficient regulatory pathways, and ultimately, a more pragmatic approach to reducing smoking-related disease and death.

    “It’s not just a policy update, it’s a philosophical evolution.”

    After speaking on the MAHA panel that followed Koplow’s remarks, Olson said it was a pleasure hearing the director’s talk about shifting schemes.

    “Government framing of nicotine is overdue for a rethink,” Olson wrote on LinkedIn. “Smoking rates are stuck among vulnerable groups such as older adults. If you look at what government websites say about smoking cessation, they mostly give the same advice they’ve given for decades. The old HHS Framework assumes that people who smoke are passive victims of industry manipulation. 

    “If MAHA is about empowering people to make choices…that could help create a new framework that puts the needs of people who use nicotine at the center.”

  • Ex-WHO Director Calls for Global THR Shift

    Ex-WHO Director Calls for Global THR Shift

    Former World Health Organization (WHO) director Professor Tikki Pang urged global health authorities to embrace tobacco harm reduction, saying rigid opposition to alternative nicotine products is undermining progress against smoking-related deaths. Speaking at the Asia Forum on Nicotine, Pang said that while the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control saved millions of lives, its impact has stalled, especially in lower-income countries. He blamed slow policy implementation and rejection of less harmful products like e-cigarettes and nicotine pouches despite “overwhelming evidence” of the safety, efficacy, and cost-effectiveness of these (alternative) products.

    “Global health authorities have adopted a very strong anti-tobacco harm reduction stance,” Pang said. “[They] actually state that these products are as harmful as combustible cigarettes and call on their member states to ban them and actually give awards to countries which have done so.”

    Pang called for independent, evidence-based platforms to unite governments, scientists, and industry to promote transparency, proportional regulation, and harm reduction success stories.

    Pang also quoted renowned physician Alex Wodak, saying, “And I quote Alex – WHO’s position on this issue is now as irrelevant as the position of governments in Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union in the 1980s on the future of central command economies. WHO’s position will collapse at some point, but I don’t know when.”

  • BAT Pauses Vuse One Vape Launch Amid FDA Scrutiny

    BAT Pauses Vuse One Vape Launch Amid FDA Scrutiny

    Yesterday (October 28), Reuters reported that BAT paused its pilot launch of the Vuse One disposable vape in the U.S., highlighting the regulatory hurdles in the rapidly growing nicotine products market, news that was confirmed by a spokesperson for Reynolds American, BAT’s U.S. subsidiary. The pilot will be postponed while the company focuses on its existing portfolio, including a nicotine pouch currently under PMTA review that FDA has promised to fast-track.

    “We will bring Vuse One to market at the appropriate time,” the spokesperson said. “Vuse One is one of the few disposable vapor products that meet the in-market and PMTA-deadline requirements that Congress established in 2022. We have communicated with our customers to ensure that they are fully informed about our decision.”

    The move follows increased U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) enforcement against unapproved vapes, many imported from China, which have eroded profits in the $22 billion U.S. smoking alternatives sector. Earlier this year, it was reported that several manufacturers, frustrated by the lack of progress within the FDA, were considering launching products prior to official approval, similar to those already available on the market.

    The pause underscores the industry’s broader push for reforms to streamline FDA approvals, which often take years. Philip Morris International and Altria are also navigating similar challenges, balancing regulatory compliance with the competitive pressure from unlicensed products. The FDA has signaled intentions to accelerate applications, though public health groups warn that any loosening of review standards could undermine safety and oversight.

    The FDA recently sent a letter to “remind” manufacturers that selling new nicotine products without authorization is unlawful.

  • EU Considers Cigarette Filter Ban Ahead of WHO COP11, Sparking Industry Concerns

    EU Considers Cigarette Filter Ban Ahead of WHO COP11, Sparking Industry Concerns

    A proposal to ban cigarette filters is reigniting debate across the European Union, with public health advocates backing the move while several member states and industry players express hesitation. The draft EU position, prepared ahead of the WHO COP11 meeting in Geneva next month, highlights the potential of a filter ban to reduce smoking appeal, however, countries including Germany and Italy have opposed implementing the measure within the bloc.

    According to Eurativ, “a European Commission spokesperson has since clarified that the measure would not apply within the EU. However, despite resistance from some countries, the latest draft of the EU’s position retains a reference to a global filter ban, suggesting the EU executive may want to keep the option for future application in Europe.”

    Filters, the EU says, are a major source of environmental pollution, with the WHO estimating 4.5 trillion cigarette butts discarded annually worldwide. Gijs van Wijk of the Smoke Free Partnership called filters a “deceptive design feature” and urged regulators to consider similar restrictions for e-cigarettes and heated tobacco products.

    Making cigarettes harsher and less attractive theoretically makes sense, says Tadas Lisauskas, the CEO of Greenbutts, a company that focuses on eliminating the ecological impact associated with cigarette filters, but he points to decades of research that shows filters keep significant amounts of particles out of smokers’ lungs.

    “Public health must be grounded in science and practical outcomes—not symbolism,” Lisauskas said. “On closer inspection, a filter ban is both illogical and counterproductive.

    “Unfiltered cigarettes would reintroduce hazards society moved away from generations ago. A policy intended to protect public health should not expose consumers to additional, immediate physical harm.”

    The filter ban proposal comes amid broader regulatory pressure on the tobacco sector, including proposed excise tax hikes and the TEDOR levy, which could raise €11.2 billion annually.

  • Industry Veteran Escalona Joins Don Emmanuel Cigars

    Industry Veteran Escalona Joins Don Emmanuel Cigars

    Don Emmanuel Cigars announced that Carlos Escalona, a longtime veteran of Davidoff of Geneva, has joined the company to help steer its growth and expansion. The move is a significant step for the emerging premium cigar brand, according to its founder, Brazilian Master Cigar Sommelier Don Emmanuel.

    The connection was made through legendary blender Eladio Díaz, who collaborated with Don Emmanuel to craft the brand’s debut Anunnaki line—an artisanal collection featuring seven tobaccos, including a rare Dominican wrapper.

    “To see someone like Carlos Escalona believe in what we’re creating is deeply meaningful,” said Emmanuel. “Eladio and I built these cigars with soul and precision. Carlos brings the same dedication and understanding of what true luxury represents.”

  • Public Health Groups Drop Lawsuit Over FDA Menthol Ban Delay

    Public Health Groups Drop Lawsuit Over FDA Menthol Ban Delay

    A coalition of public health organizations, led by the African American Tobacco Control Leadership Council (AATCLC), voluntarily dismissed its lawsuit against the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) yesterday (October 27). The lawsuit, originally filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California in November 2024, sought to compel the FDA to finalize a long-awaited rule banning menthol cigarettes. The plaintiffs’ action comes after the incoming Trump administration officially withdrew the proposed menthol ban in January 2025, effectively making the lawsuit’s core demand moot, according to Bloomberg.

    The case centered on the FDA’s “unreasonable delay” in issuing a final rule, which began with a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking in May 2022. The Biden administration’s failure to finalize the rule, reportedly due to political concerns, prompted the legal challenge. However, the subsequent administrative reversal under the new presidential administration closed the door on this particular federal strategy.

    With the federal avenue for a menthol ban now closed, the public health advocates involved in the lawsuit have confirmed they will shift their focus to state and local-level initiatives, according to Bloomberg. By voluntarily dismissing the case, the plaintiffs can redirect their resources and strategic efforts toward more viable legal and political pathways. The dismissal was filed “without prejudice,” meaning the case could theoretically be refiled, but the current political climate and regulatory withdrawal make a renewed federal challenge unlikely in the near term.

  • Survey: UK Vape Bill Threatens Corner Shops

    Survey: UK Vape Bill Threatens Corner Shops

    A survey of 500 UK corner shops revealed that one in 10 owners would consider closing their business if the Tobacco and Vapes Bill is enacted. The survey, commissioned by retailer platform C-Talk, found that 79% of shop owners view the Bill as an unprecedented threat, with 35% planning to reduce staff hours or lay off employees, and 26% considering price hikes to offset losses.

    The legislation, which returned to Parliament earlier this week, proposes banning tobacco sales for anyone born on or after January 1, 2009, and restricting e-cigarette marketing, packaging, and flavors. Retailers warn these measures could push consumers toward the black market.

    In response, C-Talk founder Paul Cheema delivered 1,435 letters from concerned shop owners directly to Business Secretary Peter Kyle, urging the government to consider the impact on local businesses and jobs.

  • NZ Faces Rising Illicit Tobacco Trade

    NZ Faces Rising Illicit Tobacco Trade

    More than one in four cigarettes consumed in New Zealand came from the illicit market last year, according to a new independent report commissioned by Imperial Brands and BAT New Zealand. The study found that 27% of total tobacco consumption was illegal, up from 23.6% the previous year, resulting in lost excise revenue estimated at over NZ$600 million ($348 million). The rise is largely driven by a 41.9% increase in smuggled, contraband cigarettes.

    Industry representatives warned that without decisive intervention, New Zealand risks facing the same challenges seen in Australia, where delayed responses allowed illicit trade to flourish post-COVID. “The report shows New Zealand’s illicit tobacco trade continues to escalate,” said an Imperial Brands spokesperson. “It would be a mistake to assume the violence and criminal networks associated with an uncontrolled illicit market couldn’t happen here.”

    BAT New Zealand echoed the call for immediate action, highlighting the importance of proactive measures. “Australia presents a cautionary tale of how quickly illicit tobacco can take hold,” a BATNZ spokesperson said. “New Zealand has the opportunity to act now to prevent the exponential growth of illegal tobacco and protect both public health and government revenue.”

    Read the full report here.

  • BAT Launches €1.2 Billion Hybrid Capital Securities Issue

    BAT Launches €1.2 Billion Hybrid Capital Securities Issue

    Today (October 28), BAT announced the publication of a prospectus for a €1.2 billion dual-tranche hybrid capital securities offering. The issue comprises a €600 million perpetual non-call 5.25-year security (NC5.25) with a 4.20% initial coupon, and a €600 million perpetual non-call 8-year security (NC8) with a 4.75% initial coupon. The securities are subordinate to all senior creditors and will be accounted as equity under IFRS standards, receiving 50% equity credit from Moody’s, S&P, and Fitch.

    Proceeds from the issuance will be used for general corporate purposes, including the repurchase of the company’s outstanding Perpetual Subordinated NC 2026 Securities, which began with a tender offer on October 21, and the repayment of existing debt. The first call dates for the securities are October 20, 2030 to January 30, 2031, for the NC5.25 tranche and July 30, 2033 to October 30, 2033, for the NC8 tranche.

    Settlement is expected on October 30, 2025, with both tranches to be listed on the main market of the London Stock Exchange. The prospectus has been approved by the UK Financial Conduct Authority and is available online via the London Stock Exchange here and the National Storage Mechanism here.