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  • India Opens Fourth National Tobacco Testing Lab

    India Opens Fourth National Tobacco Testing Lab

    Today (October 14), India opened its fourth national testing lab at NIMHANS in Bangalore, joining an apex lab in Noida and two regional labs in Mumbai and Guwahati. The new lab “is equipped to conduct comprehensive chemical and toxicological analyses of tobacco products, supporting the enforcement of regulatory standards and promoting scientific evaluation in line with national and international guidelines,” the institute said in a statement.

    “This initiative is expected to contribute significantly to evidence-based tobacco regulation and support government efforts to reduce the health burden caused by tobacco consumption in India,” the institute said.  

  • Economist Puts Australia’s Illicit Tobacco Crisis Squarely on Tax Rate

    Economist Puts Australia’s Illicit Tobacco Crisis Squarely on Tax Rate

    Australia’s illicit tobacco market has gone over the “Laffer Curve,” where excessive taxation leads to lower overall revenue, according to numerous experts, including U.S. economist Dr. Arthur Laffer. “It’s not working at all. Your taxes are way too high,” he told 7.30 News. “Australia has raised its tax rates on tobacco so high that people have found illicit products.”

    According to internal industry data, illicit products now account for 64% of all tobacco and 82% of total nicotine consumed in Australia. The black market is valued at nearly $10 billion, coinciding with a sharp drop in federal tobacco excise revenue—from $16 billion in 2020 to $7.4 billion in 2025.

    The federal government, however, has rejected calls to lower tobacco taxes, arguing that high excise rates and plain packaging have been effective in cutting smoking rates to 10.5% in 2024, down from 25% in the 1990s.

    The term “Laffer Curve” was made famous 50 years ago after Laffer drew it on a napkin at a meeting with then Ford Administration officials Dick Cheney and Donald Rumsfeld. Laffer said the concept wasn’t new, dating back to 14th-century writings.  

  • BAT Appoints Matt Wright to Board

    BAT Appoints Matt Wright to Board

    Today (October 14), BAT announced that Matthew Wright will join its board as an independent non-executive director and will serve on the company’s Remuneration and Nominations Committees, effective November 1. Wright brings decades of experience advising global organizations on senior talent recruitment, retention, and leadership development, having held senior roles at Russell Reynolds Associates, Korn/Ferry International, and other executive advisory firms.

    Luc Jobin, Chair of BAT’s board, said Wright’s appointment strengthens the company’s focus on cultural transformation and international growth. “Matt brings valuable experience in this area,” Jobin said, noting his expertise across Asia, Europe, and the US and his track record in guiding organizations through periods of growth and transformation.

    Wright currently serves as non-executive director of Berry Bros. & Rudd Ltd, chairs its Remuneration Committee, and is chairman of Cripps Leadership Advisors as well as chair designate and senior advisor of Movemeon. BAT said his leadership and people-focused experience are expected to support the company’s ongoing ambition to build a Smokeless World.

  • PM Japan Announces Two New Launches

    PM Japan Announces Two New Launches

    Philip Morris Japan (PMJ) announced it will launch the IQOS ILUMA i Galaxy Blue Model on October 29, a limited-edition device inspired by the “mysteries and infinite possibilities of the universe.” The ¥6,980 ($46) model features a deep-space blue charger with a starry gradient design. PMJ’s marketing director, Daniel Sevsik, said the edition was created to reinforce IQOS ILUMA i’s image of “innovation and future possibilities.”

    The company will also release its TEREA Clear Regular on October 27, a “smooth and balanced tobacco stick” for the IQOS ILUMA and ILUMA i series. Sevsik said the regular flavor segment has growth potential, as users tend to be more stable than menthol and flavored product consumers. The new variant becomes the sixth regular option in the TEREA lineup.

  • Harm Reduction ‘Should be Wake-Up Call’ for Policymakers

    Harm Reduction ‘Should be Wake-Up Call’ for Policymakers

    At the 2025 Asia Forum on Nicotine, Prof. Dr. Rohan Sequeira, Consultant Cardio Endocrinologist, warned that Asia remains the epicenter of the global tobacco epidemic, home to over half of the world’s 1 billion smokers and responsible for 4 million tobacco-related deaths each year. He said traditional control measures—taxation, warning labels, and public campaigns—have done little to reverse rising smoking rates in South and Southeast Asia. What the region needs, he argued, is not more prohibition but a science-based harm reduction approach that recognizes medical evidence.

    “It’s the combustion of tobacco or the use of unprocessed tobacco which causes 7,000 toxic chemicals,” Dr. Sequeira said, emphasizing that nicotine, though addictive, is not the chief cause of tobacco-related disease. “Most of the policies for tobacco harm reduction have been based on good medical science behind it.”

    Presenting data-driven projections, Dr. Sequeira called for urgent policy reform, stating that if China alone were to adopt a national harm reduction framework, up to 30 million lives could be saved over 30 years. He urged policymakers and the medical community to see harm reduction as a moral and scientific imperative. “This should be a wake-up call to policymakers,” he said. “We are fighting the good fight. We’re looking at harm reduction, and we’re looking for people to have a better quality of life.”

  • Altria Drops Suit as Elf Bar Exits California Market

    Altria Drops Suit as Elf Bar Exits California Market

    Elf Bar’s parent company, iMiracle, agreed to cease sales of flavored disposable vapes in California, effectively ending a protracted legal battle with Altria’s e-cigarette unit NJOY. Under a joint motion, iMiracle will accept a permanent injunction preventing it from selling or shipping flavored vape products into California and will also refrain from shipping to other jurisdictions if the products are likely destined for California.

    The lawsuit, initially filed in late 2023, alleged that iMiracle’s flavored products competed unfairly with NJOY’s FDA-authorized devices and violated California’s flavored tobacco ban and federal regulations. Most defendants in the original suit were dropped; iMiracle remained the principal target.

    Though iMiracle denies liability, it agreed that violation of the injunction would be treated as contempt of court. The settlement is conditioned on California maintaining its current flavor ban; if the law is repealed or amended substantially, the injunction may no longer apply.

  • Gap Growing Between EU’s Public-Health Ambitions, Economic Concerns

    Gap Growing Between EU’s Public-Health Ambitions, Economic Concerns

    The European Commission’s plan to overhaul the EU’s tobacco taxation directive has met resistance from numerous Member States, revealing deep divisions over how far and how fast the bloc should go in taxing nicotine products. The proposal, first unveiled on July 16 and discussed for the first time at the Ecofin Council in Luxembourg last week, would sharply raise minimum excise duties on cigarettes and extend taxation to new categories such as vaping and heated tobacco.

    Commissioner for Climate and Clean Growth Wopke Hoekstra defended the reform as long overdue. “Europe ranks among the highest in the world for the number of smokers,” he said. “Moreover, there are new products deliberately designed for young people, 15-year-olds, which create a new addiction to nicotine. We cannot allow the industry to reverse the narrative, spreading lies as it has already done with traditional cigarettes.”

    Under the Commission’s plan, the minimum duty on cigarettes would rise from 60% to 63% of the weighted average retail price (WAP) and from €90 to €215 per 1,000 pieces. Rolling tobacco would see its threshold climb from 50% to 62% of WAP and from €60 to €215 per kilo. The reform also introduces EU-wide minimum rates for heated tobacco and e-cigarettes, starting in 2028 at 45% of WAP or €88 per 1,000 pieces and increasing through 2032.

    While most governments support the goal of improving public health, at least 12 Member States voiced objections. Italy, Bulgaria, and Romania warned that higher taxes on traditional cigarettes could fuel illicit trade. “We have to examine the interaction between increased tax thresholds and the trafficking of illegal cigarettes,” said Italy’s economy minister Giancarlo Giorgetti.

    Croatia, Greece, Luxembourg, Malta, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Hungary described the proposed thresholds as too high. Hungary fears for its cigarillo sector, while Luxembourg rejects the Commission’s plan for automatic adjustments based on purchasing power.

    Sweden and Finland objected to taxing snus, with Swedish finance minister Elisabeth Svantesson insisting that “taxes should reflect the degree of harm, not the product type.”

  • Europe Risks Becoming Another Australia, BAT Boss Says

    Europe Risks Becoming Another Australia, BAT Boss Says

    Kingsley Wheaton, BAT’s Chief Commercial Officer, warned that Europe’s planned sharp tax hikes on cigarettes and alternative nicotine products risk fueling illicit trade similar to the crisis that has been created in Australia. Similar to his remarks last week at GTNF 2025 in Brussels, Wheaton told Euractiv that high excise taxes and strict regulations have pushed 80% of Australia’s tobacco market underground, resulting in taxpayer losses of AUD 9 billion ($5.9 billion) since 2019 and flourishing organized crime responsible for extortion, fire bombings, and murder.

    The warning comes as the European Commission pursues a revision of the Excise Tax Directive, proposing a 139% increase in cigarette taxes and steep rises for e-cigarettes, heated tobacco, and nicotine pouches. The EU aims to become smoke-free by 2040, targeting tobacco and nicotine consumption below 5%. While BAT acknowledges that smokeless products are not risk-free, Wheaton argued they are far less harmful than smoking and should remain accessible and affordable even as cigarette prices rise.

    Wheaton urged policymakers to focus on progressively taxing cigarettes while maintaining access to safer nicotine alternatives, alongside responsible packaging, retail licensing, and nicotine ceilings, however, the Commission continues to repeatedly reject any warning that comes from cigarette-producing companies.

  • Another Top China Tobacco Regulator Under Investigation

    Another Top China Tobacco Regulator Under Investigation

    Han Zhanwu, deputy director and Party Leadership Group member of China’s State Tobacco Monopoly Administration (STMA), is under investigation for suspected “serious violations of Party disciplinary rules and laws,” the country’s top anti-graft bodies announced yesterday (October 12). The probe is being conducted by the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection and the National Supervisory Commission. Han, 59, has been out of the public eye for nearly a month, with his last public appearance during a research trip to Jiangsu province in early September.

    Han, the highest-ranking deputy director at STMA, has previously held senior positions including Director and Party Secretary of the China National Machinery & Equipment Tendering Corporation and leadership roles within the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology. He took up his current post at the STMA in April 2020. The administration, directly under the State Council, regulates China’s vast tobacco sector.

    Han’s investigation continues a broader anti-corruption campaign in China’s tobacco system that began in 2021. More than 10 officials have been probed to date, including six current or former STMA leaders. Notably, Ling Chengxing, former Party Secretary and Director, received a 16-year sentence in May 2025 for bribery and abuse of power, while Deputy Director Xu Lin was reported under investigation in May this year.

  • Portugal Expects $2B from Tobacco, Alcohol, Sugar Consumption 

    Portugal Expects $2B from Tobacco, Alcohol, Sugar Consumption 

    Portugal’s government expects to collect an additional €79 million from tobacco and alcohol taxes in 2026, driven by higher consumption, according to the proposed State Budget. Revenue from the Tobacco Tax (IT) is projected to rise 4.4%, or €71 million, to €1.7 billion, while the Tax on Alcohol, Alcoholic Beverages, and Drinks with Added Sugar (IABA) is expected to increase by €8 million, or 2.5%, reaching €328 million.

    Combined, the two levies are estimated to generate €2 billion, accounting for 5.3% of indirect tax revenue and just under 3% of total tax revenue. The budget notes that IABA-related state fiscal expenditure will rise 2.2% to €72.2 million, largely due to exemptions for “alcohol for therapeutic and sanitary purposes” and, to a lesser extent, non-alcoholic beverages. These exemptions are projected to represent 86.7% of IABA tax expenditures in 2026.

    By contrast, the tobacco tax is expected to generate revenue without incurring any tax expenditure, reflecting its role as a net contributor to the state budget. The government cites continued private consumption as the key driver behind the anticipated growth in tobacco and alcohol tax receipts.