Myanmar’s military-owned Myanma Economic Holdings (MEH) has massively increased production of its Red & Blue cigarette brand since 2022, reports Myanmar Now.
Following the 2021 military coup, many consumers and activists opposed to the coup boycotted the two better known military-owned cigarette brands.
Few boycott the Red & Blue brand because it is not widely known that MEH has a role in producing it.
Since 2022, the quantity of Red & Blue cigarettes produced has increased fifteenfold.
Myanmar has postponed the implementation of standardized tobacco packaging until April 2023, following a lobbying campaign by opponents of the measure, reports Eco-Business. The law was originally set to take effect on April 10, 2022.
The new packaging regulations require the outer surfaces of tobacco product packages to be a standardized dull dark brown, flat, smooth and devoid of any attractive designs or decorative elements.
Health advocated criticized the delay.
“Instead of postponing its implementation by 12 months, the government should have penalized tobacco companies for not complying by the April 10 deadline,” said Ulysses Dorotheo, executive director of the Southeast Asia Tobacco Control Alliance.
“Only the tobacco industry will profit from this bad decision while the government and people of Myanmar will suffer more diseases, healthcare costs, deaths and their related socioeconomic burden,” added Dorotheo.
Myanmar is set to implement the Standardized Packaging Notification that was issued by the country’s Ministry of Health Oct. 12, 2021, according to Eco-Business.
The notification will go into effect April 10, 2022, followed by a 90-day phase out period for old tobacco packaging; old packaging must be phased out by July 12, 2022.
New packaging must be a standardized dull dark brown color, be flat, smooth and devoid of any attractive colors, designs or decorative elements. Pictorial health warnings are required to cover 75 percent of the packaging’s front and back surfaces. Tobacco product packages include boxes, cases, cartons, etc.
“With standardized packaging, Myanmar will be implementing a highly effective public health policy that will help denormalize tobacco use,” said Ulysses Dorotheo, executive director of the Southeast Asia Tobacco Control Alliance. “We look forward to the full and strict implementation of this regulation and call on the government to swiftly identify and penalize any tobacco company that does not comply by the April 10 deadline.”
“Standardized packaging is a cost-effective and strategic way to discourage tobacco use; it prevents the tobacco industry from using packaging to attract consumers in a creative but deceptive way. Pictorial health warnings more effectively convey to the public the dangers of tobacco use,” said Dorotheo.
British American Tobacco will withdraw from Myanmar by the end of this year, reports The Daily Star.
Responding to a query from Reuters about the status of its operations in the Southeast Asian country, the company said the decision was taken having assessed the long-term viability of its Myanmar business.
“Like any global company, we continuously evaluate our operations around the world,” the company said.
“Having evaluated the long-term operational and commercial viability of our business in Myanmar, we have taken the decision to withdraw from the country and cease all operations.”
BAT did not provide a specific reason for its decision.
Other Western companies have left Myanmar in the wake of February’s coup, which has left the nation in turmoil. The country’s economy is now in dire straits, with the kyat currency losing more than 60 percent of its value last month, pushing up food and fuel costs. The World Bank has forecast an 18 percent contraction in gross domestic product this year.
BAT started operating in Myanmar in 2013, two years after a quasi-civilian government embarked on sweeping reforms to lure investors.
Anti-smoking groups, said to be alarmed by the rising use of electronic cigarettes in Myanmar, want the authorities to control the sale of these devices.
According to a story in the Myanmar Times, the People’s Health Foundation (PHF) and its partner organizations are planning to submit their proposals to the relevant ministries.
The PHF is concerned that electronic cigarettes are not covered by the current tobacco law.
Among the suggestions that are likely to be forwarded to the government are that the government should control e-cigarette imports, and that these devices should not be sold to anyone under the age of 21.
“We expect our proposals on electronic cigarettes to be submitted to the ministries in February,” said Dr Than Sein, PHF’s president.
Meanwhile, a spokesperson for the Non-Communicable Disease unit of the Department of Public Health was quoted as saying that “electronic cigarettes are harmful to public health as they contain chemical ingredients like nicotine”.
According to a 2014 survey of Myanmar, about 43.8 percent of men and 8.4 percent of women are smokers, while 62.2 percent of men and 16 percent of women are tobacco users.
The Burmese Tobacco Trading Company (BTTC) has said it is to collaborate with the Robaina tobacco family to roll out the Don Alejo Robaina Cigar brand next year in Europe, North America and Asia.
According to a BTTC press note issued through PRNewswire, BTTC was set up by the Huang family, described as a ‘prominent Chinese-American group of business owners’.
‘Together with Robaina family engineers, they discovered promising land in Pyin Oo Lwin, Myanmar (Burma) that is very similar to the tobacco farmlands of Pinar del Rio, Cuba,’ the press note said.
‘The now-established farm: “Myanmar Farms” boasts close to 80 acres, and has been supervised and managed by select members from the Robaina family’s team.’
“The Robaina team members are extremely excited with the quality of tobacco that has been produced at Myanmar Farms,” said Jimmy Huang.
“The altitude, climate, and rich virgin-soil in Burma was an undiscovered treasure until now. We look forward to the roll out of our premium cigars in the near future.”
The Don Alejo Robaina brand will be dedicated to the memory of the ‘Godfather of Cuban tobacco’, Don Alejandro Robaina.
‘The Robaina family is globally known for growing some of the highest quality tobacco worldwide, from their plantations in Pinar del Rio, Cuba,’ the press note said.
‘Alejandro Robaina, the long-time family patriarch was globally recognized by many as the “Godfather of Cuban tobacco”. After his passing, the Robaina family continues to carry out his legacy in Cuba.
‘They are endeavoring to further the Robaina surname, in this case, by working with the Burmese Tobacco Trading Company. The Robaina family looks forward to producing a truly unique cigar using the time honored practices of Alejandro Robaina.’
Cheroots, previously a staple of Myanmar’s smokers, are close to extinction as manufacturers struggle with high taxes, high production costs and stiff competition from imported and local cigarettes, according to a story by Khin Su Wai for the Myanmar Times.
Nowadays, cheroots were found only in two out of a hundred tea shops in the country, cheroot-manufacturer Ko Hlaing Zayar Oo, Shwe Su, was quoted as saying.
His output during the past three years has dropped to 60 baskets (one basket contains 1300 cheroots) per month from a high of 200 baskets five years ago.
Ko Hlaing Zayar Oo noted also that the price of the basic materials for cheroot production, tobacco stalks and tobacco leaves, had risen respectively from K3,000 per viss (one viss is about 1.6 kg) to K8,000 per viss, and from K2,500 per viss to K3,500 per viss.
He said the piece rates for the women who manually rolled the cheroots had risen to K400 for a hundred cheroots, though it was not stated what those rates were previously. Each of his workers can produce 700-1,000 cheroots per day.
Cheroot production started in Myanmar during the reign of King Shinphyushin, who ruled between 1763 and 1776.
And at their peak, a few decades ago, big cheroot manufacturers could produce up to six million a month, but their production declined by 50 percent last year.
Cheroot manufacturers complained about the several taxes they have to pay: commercial tax, special tax and profit tax.
U Khin Mg Win, who manufactures Kyae Ni cheroots in Oktwin in the Pegu division, said that last year he paid taxes amounting to K30 million and that this year he expected to pay K80 million.
Meanwhile, Daw Khin San Hlaing, secretary for the Myanmar Cheroot Production and Distribution Association, reportedly told The Myanmar Times that the government should help cheroot makers improve leaf production efficiencies and reduce cheroot production costs.
Daw Khin San Hlaing called on the government also to reduce the taxes imposed on cheroots and to help producers explore export markets.
The Myanmar government is planning to ban smoking in public places in Yangon, according to a Xinhua News Agency story.
But the project seems to be modest in its ambition. With the help of the non-profit organization, the Public Health Foundation, the government is said to be making efforts to establish 20 smoke-free zones in 20 years in the former capital.
The story said that, for the purpose of protecting citizens, especially young people, from being impacted by smoke-related health problems, the authorities would set up smoke-free areas in sports arenas and stadiums, public parks, playgrounds, schools, universities, bus stops, cinemas, markets, hospitals and pagodas.
Public areas in cities across six regions and states of Myanmar are due to be designated tobacco-smoke-free zones this year, according to a story in The Myanmar Times.
Under the plan, smoking will be banned in hospitals, schools and pagodas in cities in the regions of Mandalay, Yangon, Sagaing and Magwe, and in the states of Kayin and Shan.
Dr Than Sein, Public Health Foundation chair, said the plan would be implemented with the co-operation of the regional and state governments.
“We will designate smoke-free areas in public locations to prevent youths from smoking and to protect from diseases that are caused by passive smoking,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Times story quoted U Naing Win Tun, a smoker of Mandalay, as saying that the plan was good in that it was a way of protecting the health of children, the elderly and women. “But, there should be a plan for smokers, and smoking zones should be designated for them,” he added.
The World Health Organization’s report, World Health Statistics 2017, which was published on Wednesday, indicated that Myanmar was one of the worst countries for air pollution. Its toxic air accounted for 230.6 deaths per 100,000 people, the report said, whereas the equivalent number in Mexico was 23.5 per 100,000 and in Sweden it was 0.4 per 100,000.
Myanmar’s Public Health Foundation chairperson, Dr. Than Sein, has said that three pagodas in Mandalay will be declared no-tobacco-smoking zones to protect visitors, according to a story in The Myanmar Times.
He was speaking last week at a workshop on establishing smoke-free areas.
“Women and children are among the visitors to the pagodas,” he said. “Pregnant women and parents are also among them and thus we plan to ban it. We plan to make those areas free from cigarette smoke.”
The three pagodas are the Maha Myat Muni Pagoda, which is a tourist attraction site, the Maha Lawka Marrazein Pagoda, where world-heritage-listed stone inscriptions are located, and the Kyauk Taw Gyi Pagoda.
Pagoda trustee secretary U Kyaw Kyaw Oo said that signboards would be put up stating ‘gain merit by not smoking or chewing betel quid’.
“If that method fails, we will start imposing fines,” he said. “Details will be discussed with leading monks.”
The secretary said that no-smoking areas had been declared in the past, but that enforcement had been weak.
Than Sein said that in time and in co-operation with the other trustees of the board, the no smoking zone would apply to other pagodas.