The head of Philip Morris Korea cited scientific evidence today (February 5) in defense of the global tobacco company’s ongoing efforts to shift from traditional cigarettes to electronic vaping products for healthier living. Managing Director Hannah Yun emphasized the importance of scientifically proven data in persuading the government about the benefits of electronic cigarettes. Her remarks were directed at the Korean government, which has highlighted their harmfulness, urging citizens to quit both tobacco and electronic smoking.
Yun acknowledged that, as a cigarette company, it has often faced criticism regarding public health. She added that the company’s efforts to encourage smokers to quit by promoting a potentially less harmful alternative have rarely received outright support from outside the industry, including from the Korean government.
The government has consistently criticized smoking without distinguishing between e-cigarettes and traditional cigarettes or acknowledging the potential benefits of the former. Instead, it has treated e-cigarettes as “just another type of smoking you must quit” through various advertisements and TV campaigns.
The Ministry of Health and Welfare in November released the results of an external report, which studied synthetic nicotine used in vaping, a type of e-cigarette smoking. The report concluded that synthetic nicotine contains multiple types of hazardous chemicals, which is contrary to what vaping product makers have said.
“We have been stacking up scientific data and making reports promoting those data to prove the benefits of e-cigarettes. This is our only way to get at the government,” Yun said at a press conference in Seoul, where Philip Morris International (PMI) and its Korean subsidiary unveiled a new model for its flagship e-cigarette device brand IQOS to Korea.
“We want the government to know that our e-cigarette business is not about pursuing our own business interests. It is rather our campaign promoting a healthier way to smoke based on scientific data. We wish the government would look at our business and understand it scientifically.”
Philip Morris Korea’s External Affairs Director Kim Joo-han asked the government to “check a broader range of data before introducing policies or pursuing campaigns” to better understand e-cigarette smoking.
“Member states of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development [OECD] have introduced e-cigarette-friendly policies to promote the practice and help the public quit smoking more effectively,” Kim said. “The Korean government should look into those examples.”
During the event, Philip Morris Korea unveiled IQOS Iluma i, the latest version of its IQOS product, which was first launched globally in 2014 and in Korea in 2017.
As of last October, the company occupied a 40 percent share of Korea’s e-cigarette market, while KT&G led with 49 percent and BAT Rothmans accounted for 11 percent. Meanwhile, JTI Korea, a Korean subsidiary of Japan Tobacco International, also released its new e-cigarette device model, Ploom X Advanced, in October 2024.
“One out of every five adults in Korea are now smoking e-cigarettes,” Yun said. “We believe we are truly doing the right thing by helping the rest four out of every five adults quit tobacco smoking.”
Vassilis Gkatzelis, PMI’s president of East Asia, Australia, and Duty-Free Region, said during the press conference that PMI aims to log two-thirds of its entire sales from e-cigarette products by 2030.
“What is truly expected of a tobacco company? The answer is straightforward,” Gkatzelis said. “It is introducing the smoke-free future.”
Gkatzelis said that among PMI’s 180 market countries, Korea “holds a very special place” because it is among the top five countries in its global e-cigarette market. “IQOS is accelerating the transition away from tobacco cigarettes,” he said. “It is ushering in the world where combustion smoking is increasingly becoming obsolete and will [just be seen in] a museum.”
