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  • Australia’s Tobacco Use Down, Pouches & Black Market Up: Survey

    Australia’s Tobacco Use Down, Pouches & Black Market Up: Survey

    Australia’s latest National Drug Strategy Household Survey shows daily smoking continues to decline, with the number of daily smokers falling by more than half since 2001 to about 1.3 million Australians, while 68.7% of people aged 14 and older report never having smoked. The 2025 survey also found daily e-cigarette use has largely plateaued since 2022, with frequent vaping among 18- to 24-year-olds dropping from 11.3% to 5.8%.

    However, researchers highlighted emerging challenges, including rising illicit tobacco use and nicotine pouches. The survey found one in three smokers now purchase black-market cigarettes — double the proportion reported in 2022 — while use of three or more nicotine products has tripled since 2019, signaling growing concern over poly-nicotine use despite overall declines in smoking.

  • Indian Consumer Group Calls for Illicit Trade Task Force

    Indian Consumer Group Calls for Illicit Trade Task Force

    India’s Consumer Online Foundation (COF) urged the Prime Minister’s Office to establish a National Task Force on Illicit Tobacco Trade under the Cabinet Secretariat or PMO to combat the growing market for smuggled cigarettes, counterfeit tobacco products, and illegal nicotine products. In a letter to the government, the consumer advocacy group said illicit trade is undermining India’s tobacco control efforts by eroding tax revenues, bypassing health regulations and age restrictions, and strengthening organized crime.

    The COF proposed a multi-agency task force involving the ministries of health, finance, home affairs, and commerce, along with customs and enforcement agencies, to develop a national anti-illicit tobacco strategy focused on intelligence-led enforcement, border security, counterfeit manufacturing, market surveillance, and consumer reporting. The foundation also called for a 100-day action plan and pointed to international experience, including Australia, arguing that tobacco taxation must be supported by robust enforcement to prevent consumers from shifting to illegal markets.

  • Minnesota AG Sues Local Company for Selling Flavored Vapes

    Minnesota AG Sues Local Company for Selling Flavored Vapes

    Minnesota AG Keith Ellison filed a lawsuit against local e-cigarette manufacturer Maduro Distributors, alleging the company sold banned flavored vape products under its The Loon brand that were marketed in ways appealing to youth. The complaint, filed in Ramsey County District Court, accuses the Fridley-based company of selling products with flavors including cotton candy and blue razz slushy, using “kid-friendly characters” in promotions, and falsely representing some products as FDA-approved.

    The Loon sells disposable and refillable vapes as well as nicotine pouches and previously received an FDA warning letter for marketing unauthorized products, according to The Minnesota Star Tribune. Maduro said it had changed flavor names before Minnesota’s 2024 ban took effect and removed the FDA approval claim from a third-party website, arguing it had cooperated with state officials.

  • Customs Joins Case Against Duty-Free Nicotine Sales in India

    Customs Joins Case Against Duty-Free Nicotine Sales in India

    India’s customs authorities joined the health ministry’s legal challenge against Adani Group’s sale of nicotine pouches at airport duty-free shops, arguing that duty-free status provides tax benefits but does not exempt retailers from broader regulatory requirements. In a filing to the Mumbai High Court, customs officials said goods being “outside customs frontiers” for taxation purposes do not grant immunity from other laws, rejecting Adani’s argument that international departure-area shops are beyond the reach of domestic regulations.

    The company has challenged a health ministry inspection that found nicotine pouch sales at Mumbai International Airport’s duty-free stores violated Indian law, arguing the products are legally sold under duty-free rules and sealed for use after passengers leave the country. The case is scheduled for its next hearing on July 28.

  • Cessation Trust Breaks from Health NZ Over Harm-Reduction Stance

    Cessation Trust Breaks from Health NZ Over Harm-Reduction Stance

    Wellington stop-smoking provider Takiri Mai Te Ata Trust ended its partnership with Health New Zealand after refusing to promote vaping as a smoking cessation tool. The trust, which has helped people quit smoking for more than 30 years, said it could not continue delivering services in a way that conflicted with its values. Regional manager Catherine Manning said the organization did not support helping people quit cigarettes by transitioning to another nicotine product.

    Health New Zealand said it worked extensively with the trust to find a solution that would allow the service to continue without directly supplying vapes, but no agreement was reached, and the contract ended by mutual consent. Health New Zealand maintains that vaping is less harmful than smoking and can help smokers quit, while stressing that non-smokers should not vape. Action for Smokefree 2025 director Ben Youdan said evidence shows vaping can be an effective cessation tool, adding that vaping is “not risk-free” but “dramatically” reduces the risk of death compared with smoking.

    Youdan said that while he recognized the trust’s concerns, many organizations have seen real benefits from using vaping as part of smoking cessation efforts.

  • Altria Schedules Financial Webcast for July 30

    Altria Schedules Financial Webcast for July 30

    Altria Group will host a live audio webcast on July 30 at 9 a.m. ET to discuss its 2026 second-quarter and first-half financial results, which will be released at approximately 7 a.m. ET that day. The webcast will feature Chief Executive Officer Sal Mancuso and Chief Financial Officer Heather Newman, who will review the company’s operating and financial performance and participate in a question-and-answer session with investors and the media. The event will be available in listen-only mode, with pre-registration required, and an archived replay will be posted on Altria’s investor relations website.

  • Alliance One’s New Seeds Transforming Tanzanian Yields

    Alliance One’s New Seeds Transforming Tanzanian Yields

    Tobacco farmers in Tanzania’s Tabora Region are reporting higher yields and improved incomes following the introduction of proprietary Alliance One Varieties (AOV) tobacco seeds by Alliance One Tobacco Tanzania Limited. Farmers said the new varieties, including AOV 212, AOV 405, and AOV 815, produce higher-quality leaf, offer greater resistance to disease and drought, and significantly outperform traditional seed varieties. According to growers, yields have increased from about 1,350 kg per hectare with conventional seeds to 3,000–3,500 kg per hectare with the new varieties.

    Alliance One said the seeds were developed through extensive research, with field trials conducted in collaboration with the Tanzania Tobacco Research Institute (TORITA), producing yields of more than 3,200 kg per hectare. Industry stakeholders said the improved seed varieties could strengthen Tanzania’s tobacco sector by boosting farm productivity, improving export-quality leaf, increasing grower incomes, and supporting higher agricultural export revenues. 

  • Switzerland Backs Cantons in Disposable Vape Ban

    Switzerland Backs Cantons in Disposable Vape Ban

    Switzerland’s Federal Court upheld the canton (state) of Valais’ ban on the sale of disposable e-cigarettes, dismissing legal challenges brought by the Swiss Tobacco Trade Association, Philip Morris Switzerland, and other parties. The ruling confirms that the ban, which took effect in May 2025 after being approved by the canton’s parliament in 2024, is compatible with federal law and serves legitimate public health and environmental objectives.

    The court found that while the federal government has the authority to prohibit disposable e-cigarettes nationwide, individual cantons may enact their own restrictions until such action is taken at the national level.

  • VB Distribution Expands Ahead of UK’s Vape Duty Change

    VB Distribution Expands Ahead of UK’s Vape Duty Change

    VB Distribution announced the opening of a new 100,000-square-foot business park in Lancashire, England, expanding its national warehousing network to 500,000 square feet and strengthening its customs bonded storage capacity ahead of the U.K.’s Vaping Products Duty, which takes effect on Oct. 1. The company said the HMRC-approved bonded warehouse will allow duty-suspended storage, helping retailers better manage inventory and cash flow as the new tax is implemented.

    Company CEO Natalia Gosciniak said the investment positions VB Distribution to provide compliant stock and supply continuity, alleviating cost pressures faced by smaller distributors without bonded infrastructure. VB Distribution, which supplies more than 50,000 retail shelf placements across the U.K. and reports an annual turnover of £500 million, said the facility is fully operational and could create up to 1,000 jobs as part of its broader expansion strategy.

  • Macau Moves Toward Tighter Nicotine Controls

    Macau Moves Toward Tighter Nicotine Controls

    Macau’s Legislative Assembly’s Third Standing Committee completed its review of amendments to the city’s tobacco law and endorsed the government’s proposals ahead of a final legislative vote, moving it closer to adopting stricter tobacco controls. The bill would expand smoke-free zones to within 10 meters of hospitals, health centers, and schools; prohibit the possession or use of e-cigarettes in smoke-free and certain public outdoor areas; and ban the manufacture, sale, import, and export of nicotine pouches, herbal cigarettes, and hookahs. It also raises fines for illegally transporting these products across Macau’s borders from MOP4,000 to MOP10,000 ($480 to $1,200), while requiring cigar packaging to carry health warnings covering 70% of both sides.

    If approved, most provisions would take effect on Jan. 1, 2027, with standardized tobacco packaging and expanded warning labels phased in beginning July 1, 2028.