Hong Kong’s smoking rate dropped to 9.5 percent in 2021, for the first time hitting single-digits, reports The Standard, citing a survey by the city’s Census and Statistics Department. In 2019, 10.2 percent of Hong Kong’s population smoked.
The survey results showed that there were some 581,500 daily conventional cigarette smokers in 2021, accounting for 9.5 percent of all persons aged 15 and over in Hong Kong.
The survey also found daily conventional cigarette smokers consumed on average about 13 sticks of conventional cigarettes a day, the same as that in 2019.
Despite the drop in overall tobacco use, the number of people using e-cigarettes surged from 7,200 in 2019 to 17,500 last year.
The number of people using alternative smoking products is likely to decrease in the wake of Hong Kong’s ban on the import, manufacturing, sale and distribution of electronic cigarettes and heated tobacco items, which took effect April 30.
Health secretary Sophia Chan Siu-chee said that Hong Kong aims to lower the smoking rate to 7.8 percent by 2025. To achieve this, the government is considering expanding statutory nonsmoking areas, reducing the overall attractiveness of tobacco products and preventing young people from developing smoking habits.
Altria Client Services will pay $100.5 million for assets and properties used in Poda Holdings’ business of developing, manufacturing and marketing multisubstrate heated capsule technology, according to a Poda press release. The deal includes the owners’ associated patents and the company’s license of certain of those patents pursuant to an amended and restated royalties agreement dated April 12, 2019.
“This agreement represents a significant milestone for Poda and its employees,” said Ryan Selby, Poda’s CEO, director and chairman of the company’s board of directors. “Our teams have worked diligently on this technology since the company’s inception, and we believe these agreements maximize its value for the company and its shareholders.”
Poda’s multisubstrate heated capsule technology uses proprietary biodegradable single-use capsules. The design of the technology prevents cross-contamination between the heating devices and the capsules, which eliminates cleaning requirements and provides users with a convenient and enjoyable experience, according to Poda Holdings.
This agreement represents a significant milestone for Poda and its employees.
Poda’s technology is fully patented in Canada and is patent pending in over 60 additional countries, covering almost 70 percent of the global population.
Altria Client Services’ parent company, Altria Group, currently holds a license to distribute Philip Morris International’s IQOS HnB product in the United States. That product, however, has been subject to an import ban in the wake of an intellectual property dispute with BAT.
Analysts have also speculated on the likelihood of the IQOS distribution deal being renewed when it expires in 2024. PMI and Altria currently disagree about whether Altria has thus far met the milestones to earn the renewal option for an additional five-year deal.
22nd Century Group has acquired GVB Biopharma. As a contract development and manufacturing organization, GVB is believed to be one of the largest providers of hemp-derived active ingredients for the pharmaceutical and consumer goods industries worldwide based on total tonnage.
GVB’s strengths complement 22nd Century’s existing upstream and downstream value chains, which includes expertise in cannabinoid receptor science with CannaMetrix, plant research and proprietary genetics through its KeyGene partnership, breeding expertise with Extractas, and cultivation capabilities at Needle Rock Farms.
GVB expects 2022 revenue of approximately $48 million, a 58 percent increase year-over-year, gross margin in excess of 44 percent and positive cash flow. Upon closing, the transaction is expected to more than double 22nd Century’s revenue, be immediately accretive to adjusted EBITDA, and generate positive cash flow from the acquired assets in the near term.
“GVB represents a transformational acquisition for 22nd Century that will enable us to rapidly grow our hemp/cannabis franchise,” said James A. Mish, chief executive officer of 22nd Century Group, in a statement.
“GVB is one of the largest CBD suppliers globally, possessing innovative, vertically integrated cannabinoid product manufacturing technologies driving industry leading scale and cost efficiency. In addition to immediately expanding our hemp/cannabis franchise capabilities, GVB represents an opportunity to double our revenue and internalize a comprehensive contract manufacturing and extraction platform which can be used to directly and exclusively monetize our differentiated and proprietary hemp/cannabis plant genetics and intellectual property. We are enthusiastic to begin working with the highly regarded and very experienced management team at GVB.”
“We are excited to combine with 22nd Century group, pairing our production and manufacturing capabilities together with the best hemp/cannabis plant science in the world,” said Phillip Swindells, chief executive officer at GVB. “Since 2017, we have built a loyal customer base and continue to add new, rapidly growing customers as demand in our industry accelerates. We sold more than five billion doses of CBD in 2021, and we look forward to further scaling our business as a part of 22nd Century’s comprehensive platform.”
GVB operates three U.S. manufacturing facilities in Oregon and Nevada, including a 30,000-square-feet hemp ingredient manufacturing facility in Central Oregon, a 40,000 square-feet white-label, finished product manufacturing facility in Las Vegas, and an industrial-scale hemp extraction facility in Prineville, Oregon.
Experts share their views on sustainability during the In Focus webinar.
TR Staff Report
Patricia Kovacevic
Sustainability: We see and hear the word everywhere. But what does it mean for the tobacco and nicotine sectors? How are sustainable strategies meeting the needs of our businesses and stakeholders today while ensuring that future generations can also thrive?
On May 5, a group of experts convened virtually at the In Focus webinar to explore how tobacco and nicotine are transforming to protect the future of people and the planet. Among other topics, they discussed product stewardship and leadership.
The In Focus event series was launched in 2021 with the focus of the first event on tobacco harm reduction. The new series evolved from the prestigious Global Tobacco and Nicotine Forum and aims to explore vital themes in greater depth.
The May 5 event featured five keynote speakers and two panel discussions and was moderated by Patricia Kovacevic, global legal and regulatory strategist and principal of RegulationStrategy.com.
Credit: splitov27
Pippa Bailey
Pippa Bailey, head of climate change and sustainability practice at Ipsos U.K., a global market research and public opinion specialist, set out the concerns, perceptions and attitudes of people around the world toward climate change and sustainability. According to Ipsos, 83 percent of citizens across the globe believe that the environment is heading toward disaster. This is felt most acutely in South America where the impact of climate change has been greatest. Concerns around waste packaging and single-use plastics rank ahead of climate change, likely because this topic is very visible through dramatic images of polluted oceans and coastlines.
Cigarette butts are the most littered product on the planet, and solving this problem will require both leadership and innovation, according to Bailey.
Ipsos research shows that global citizens feel that they have given governments and businesses a mandate to address the environment. Sixty-two percent of citizens believe the Covid-19 pandemic was caused in part by people’s misuse of the environment
Social and environmental concerns are becoming increasingly linked, and Bailey advised companies to avoid operating in environmental, social and governance (ESG) silos. Consumers do not think that way, she noted—so neither should companies. Instead, their approach should be more holistic.
One challenge in achieving sustainability goals is the “say-do” gap, according to Bailey. While most citizens say that they care about the environment, their actions don’t always reflect their ambitions. Ipsos found that people tend to overestimate the impact of the actions they take. Businesses and governments, she says, need to make it easier for people to understand what more they could do to effect change.
Behavioral change is a big part of getting consumers to recycle, according to Bailey. Citizens are not willing to pay extra to achieve that, however. They are willing to make the sustainable choice, but the financial and social benefits must be equal in their eyes.
Erik Bloomquist
Examining sustainability from a financial perspective, Erik Bloomquist, a global nicotine and tobacco investment consultant, noted that the main priority for investors is tobacco companies’ transition to harm reduction products that can drive returns in the future.
In anticipation of the Foundation for a Smoke Free World’s 2022 Tobacco Transformation Index, Bloomquist presented data from 2020 to examine how much progress individual companies have made in shifting their business from combustible cigarettes to less harmful nicotine-delivery products. Product sales, capital allocation and expenditure are key criteria to assess that transformation, according to Bloomquist.
He also presented data from the index showing how the companies’ price/earnings ratios compare with their Tobacco Transformation Index rating. Swedish Match, Philip Morris International and BAT topped the list.
Bloomquist insisted that engagement, not exclusion, is key to progress and that investors support this.
Adrian Payne
Sarah Bostwick
Liem Khe Fung
Karen Hall
Ronald Ngwira
The first In Focus panel discussion, moderated by Adrian Payne, a consultant on corporate social responsibility and tobacco harm reduction, focused on leadership in a sustainable world.
Sarah Bostwick, head of sustainability stakeholder engagement at PMI, described her company’s ambition to phase out cigarettes and build new businesses in healthcare and wellness. She said the company aims to generate substantial revenues from these segments.
In the company’s 2019 sustainability materiality report, PMI set out how it accounts for internal developments and stays abreast of external trends. The company found that it could make the biggest difference by reducing the health impact of its products and addressing climate change. While the fist finding was expected given the health toll of smoking, the second was somewhat surprising considering that PMI’s operations have a relatively small environmental footprint.
Bostwick also stressed PMI’s openness to stakeholders’ scrutiny and engagement.
Ronald Ngwira, managing director of Pyxus Agriculture Malawi (PAM), detailed his company’s efforts to help meet global ESG targets. Working closely with the likes of Imperial Brands and PMI, PAM has reduced water usage by 60 percent. He said that building sustainability into the farmer base has been critical. From 2004–2010, Pyxus provided farmers with seedlings to help reverse deforestation caused in part by tobacco curing but with limited success. To make greater headway, the company decided to create its own tree plantations. Since 1991, Pyxus has planted more than 250 million trees worldwide, and in Malawi, PAM plants approximately 8 million trees each year.
Ngwira said that Pyxus’ sustainability initiatives also cover actions to eliminate child labor and forced labor, with the company investing in education and product traceability, for example.
Pyxus is leveraging its strong agricultural expertise to advance progress on key issues. In Malawi, the company has not only become one of the country’s largest sustainable timber producers, but it has also invested in alternative crops, such as groundnuts, thus helping farmers diversify their income streams.
Karen Hall, director of sustainability at Universal Leaf Tobacco Co., spoke about the challenge of growing tobacco as climate and social expectations change and are becoming more complex. In the face of global change, Universal Leaf is currently reviewing the resilience of its origins, setting ambitious but achievable goals, creating data-driven action to meet those goals efficiently and effectively, and preparing to adjust strategies as new information becomes available, she said.
Liem Khe Fung, innovation director at cigarette paper manufacturer BMJ, pointed out that 99.9 percent of paper production relies on water and detailed his company’s plans to minimize water consumption without compromising product quality at a time when water is becoming scarce.
Nathan Eaton
Following the panel discussion, Nathan Eaton, executive director at NGIS, spoke about the potential of data and technology—particularly geospatial capabilities—to help address ESG challenges and commitments.
While significant advances have been made in the fight against child labor, progress has recently slowed for the first time in 20 years. What’s more, it has been uneven across regions, sectors and age groups. Further progress will require new approaches and insights, according to Eaton
Eaton described a collaboration with BAT to bring disparate data sources together. Showing a Google Map of southern Brazil—a major tobacco producing area—he demonstrated the ability to display variables such as distance to schools, access to safe drinking water and housing conditions—factors that may help identify at-risk communities and drive further progress in the fight against child labor.
Juliette Le Roux Audren
Juliette Le Roux Audren, environmental health safety product stewardship and sustainability manager for EMEA at Amphenol, argued that waste reduction requires a combination of regulation and innovation. Minerals such as tin, gold and cobalt are becoming scarcer, she noted, and the risk of scarcity is often underestimated. By redesigning and re-engineering products, the world can avoid scarcity. This will require companies to pivot from linear production cycles to circular production cycles. Le Roux Audren argued that companies need to navigate between risks and opportunities and that agile product stewardship will help them make more of their talents.
Kevin Peng
Jodie Clarke
Edward Butt
Gianmarco Guiduzzi
The second In Focus panel, moderated by Edward Butt, group head of environment, social and government at BAT, centered on sustainable products and stewardship.
Jodie Clarke, vice president of procurement and corporate security at Altria Client Services, explained that Altria is addressing societal and environmental concerns by engaging with all stakeholders. The company aims to create value not only for shareholders but also for society by driving responsibility through the value chain—for example, by reducing the harm to health associated with tobacco consumption; sourcing and distributing responsibly; striving for supplier diversity; supporting agricultural sustainability; promoting human rights; and ensuring ethics and compliance.
Gianmarco Guiduzzi, head of sales and aftersales for Cerulean, detailed how Cerulean is putting sustainability at the heart of its equipment. He urged the industry to avoid working in silos and stressed that success requires the participation of people both upstream and downstream in the production process.
For Guiduzzi, the challenge is how to replace existing raw materials for products such as cigarette filters with environmentally less harmful alternatives. For example, cellulose acetate—a critical component of cigarette filters—often ends up as litter on land and in water. Finding an alternative material with the same filtering characteristics is a challenge. Guiduzzi also challenged the industry to find an environmentally friendly replacement for polypropylene film in cigarette packs.
One potential problem, according to Guiduzzi, is that each tobacco manufacturer is developing its own solution to these issues, and each will try to protect the associated intellectual property. While it is tempting for the larger multinationals to retain the fruits of their research and development, Guiduzzi said that, in order to create a level playing field and maximize the benefits, these solutions should trickle down to the wider sector.
Guiduzzi also noted the rapidly growing popularity of nicotine pouches, which he said will present their own sustainability opportunities and challenges.
Kevin Peng, advanced technology scientist at ALD Group, presented eco-friendly solutions developed by ALD, which are made from Poly (1,4-butylene succinate) (PBS), which is a biodegradable, semi-crystalline thermoplastic polyester synthesized through polycondensation of succinic acid and 1-4-butanediol, and another thermoplastic polyester, Polylactic Acid (PLA).
Peng claimed ALD’s solution will reduce emissions as well as avoid/reduce waste. The device features a biodegradable shell and a long-life battery, and the lifecycle of the product is integrated into a holistic recycling system.
Kate Rebernak
Kate Rebernak, founder and CEO of FrameworkESG, urged nicotine companies to practice “radical transparency” in their operations, arguing that without such radicalism, revenues will decline, share prices will slide and investors will turn away.
She pointed to the historical trust deficit suffered by the tobacco industry and urged companies to close the “say-do gap” by making sure that their actions match their words. As an illustration of how not to go about this, she cited U.S. companies publicly articulating their support for LGBTQ+ rights while at the same time financially supporting politicians who oppose such rights. She also gave the example of HSBC, which was recently reprimanded by the U.K. Advertising Standards Authority for advertising action against climate change while continuing to invest in fossil fuels.
Rebernak suggested three ways for the tobacco industry to become radically transparent:
Public-private engagement. She emphasized that a company cannot bring about change if it “isn’t in the room.” While acknowledging the hurdle presented by the Framework Convention for Tobacco Control’s Article 5.3, which aims to protect tobacco control policies from the commercial and other vested interests of the tobacco industry, Rebernak said the industry could attempt to overcome this hurdle by being radically transparent on its progress in tobacco harm reduction.
Sharing business models, investments in R&D and marketing. The Foundation for a Smoke-Free World’s Tobacco Transformation Index, for example, calls for greater disclosure on each of the companies’ policy positions.
Consumer behavior. Companies would be more successful at moving smokers away from combustibles to reduced-risk products if they were radically transparent about the risks versus the benefits. Crucially, she insisted, they should stop marketing products to children.
Chris Greer
The In Focus event also included a “fireside chat” on sustainability between Chris Greer, the president and CEO of Tobacco Reporter’s parent company, TMA, and Vincent Li of Hengfeng Paper, which celebrates its 70th anniversary this year. With 21 paper production lines and an annual production capacity of 230,000 tons, Hengfeng is one of China’s leading paper suppliers. For the cigarette industry, the company manufactures cigarette paper, plug wrap tipping base paper and paper for next-generation tobacco products.
Vincent Li
Papermaking has a considerable environmental impact due to the raw materials used (wood and water) and its energy requirements. In 2021, Hengfeng paper declared corporate carbon emissions of 3,139,297,000 tons. Following China’s national strategy to achieve peak carbon dioxide emissions by 2030 and carbon neutrality by 2060, Hengfeng aims to slash its CO2 emissions by more than a third in eight years.
Because power generation and acquisition account for the lion’s share of Hengfeng’s global warming potential, it makes sense to focus mitigating measures there. The company plans to replace some of the coal it currently uses to generate power with energy sources that lead to less pollution. Among other initiatives, it intends to electrify parts of the papermaking process and build a 10 MW photovoltaic power station.
Product design, too, offers opportunities to improve sustainability. By designing stiffer plug wrap papers, for example, Hengfeng enables cigarette manufacturers to use less acetate tow in their filters, thus reducing the proportion of a material that does not readily degrade in the environment.
Tobacco harm reduction advocates remain optimistic that Thailand will legalize e-cigarettes, despite vocal opposition from the country’s health minister.
On April 26, Public Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said he opposes legalization of vapor products in the country, citing concern about underage consumption and the plight of tobacco farmers.
Asa Saligupta, director of ENDS Cigarette Smoke Thailand (ECST), suggested Charnvirakul was playing politics. “After his abysmal handling of the pandemic, among other things, he could easily lose his seat at Thailand’s upcoming general election. He’s simply panicking but has completely underestimated the wide support for legalizing and regulating vaping,” said Saligupta.
With draft legislation to legalize e-cigarettes currently before a sub-committee, the ECST director remains confident that the vaping bill will be passed by Thailand’s parliament this year.
“The Thai government can and will regulate safer nicotine products regardless of what one minister says,” said Saligupta. “Let’s not forget that Digital Economy and Society Minister Chaiwut Thanakamanusorn, government officials and public health experts have all been key to finally confronting Thailand’s failed tobacco control policies,” he says.
According to Saligupta, Thailand’s harsh ban and penalties on vape imports and sales have failed.
“Smoking continues to kill about 50,000 Thai people each and every year. Too many smokers have been stuck with cigarettes or are forced onto the black market for vapes where there’s no control over the purchase age or product safety standards. An effective public health minister would not accept this dire situation, let alone support it,” he says.
ECST believes it’s no surprise the minister made his anti-vaping statement to ThaiHealth board members. Its senior adviser, Prakit Vathesatogkit, recently received the Dr Lee Jong-wook Memorial Prize by the World Health Organization for his work against tobacco. He has also been a high-profile voice against legalizing vaping.
“ThaiHealth along with some local conservative health voices continue to publicly scaremonger, conveniently ignoring the growing tobacco harm reduction success globally,” said Saligupta. “By joining the minority, Thailand’s Public Health Minister is now among an increasingly isolated crowd who continue to follow the WHO’s discredited anti-vape agenda,” he says.
According to Saligupta, nearly 70 countries have now adopted regulatory frameworks on safer nicotine products despite the WHO position, leading to dramatic declines in their overall smoking rates. The Philippines and Malaysia are also set to legalize vaping.
“Thankfully the Thai government remains on the right side of the debate,” he said. “Regulating will give consumers better protection, encourage more smokes to quit deadly cigarettes, and ensure we have much better control over youth vaping with a strict purchase age,” he says.
The vapor industry has welcomed Egypt’s decision to allow the import and commercialization of e-cigarette product.
“The lifting of the ban highlights the Egyptian authorities’ progressive approach to e-cigarettes and sets the stage for the creation of a regulated market rich with business opportunities, through serving the demand for easily accessible, quality products by legal age (adult) consumers across the country,” wrote RELX International, a leading player in the segment, in a statement dated April 24.
With its recent decision, Egypt joins global and regional markets, such as Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, which have legalized and commercialized the consumption of e-cigarettes. As regulators around the world become more accepting of e-cigarettes, the market is expected to continue its steady growth in the coming years.
As of March 2022 global e-cigarette market revenues were $22.95 billion, and the market is expected to expand annually at a compound annual growth rate of 4.19 percent until 2027, according to Statista.
“The decision by Egyptian authorities reflects its commitment to support legal businesses in the country while cracking down on the illicit trade of those products, in line with what we are seeing in an increasing number of markets around the globe,” said Robert Naouss, REXL International’s external affairs director for the Middle East, Northern Africa and Europe
“The business and investment environment in the country will significantly benefit from this decision, as will adult consumers who can now conveniently, and legally, purchase better alternatives to combustible cigarettes. We look forward to working with our partners to grow and protect their income via our portfolio of quality products”
By lifting the ban on e-cigarette products, Egyptian authorities have opened the door to a plethora of business and investment options, according to RELX International. “Authorized e-cigarette products are traditionally retailed by small- and medium-sized businesses, so the move will bolster existing businesses that sell such products, and will attract entrepreneurs wishing to set up new retail points across the country. It will likewise draw investment into the country from e-cigarette brands who wish to set up shop in the country and address the market,” the company wrote in its statement.
“Adult consumers stand to benefit from the move, as they now have legal access to e-cigarettes whether they wish to switch to a better alternative to traditional cigarettes. Several health authorities and regulators including the U.K.’s NHS and the Ministry of Health of New Zealand have positively clarified their position on vaping as a way for people to move away from smoking combustible cigarettes.
“In addition, the decision will contribute to the country’s economic recovery post-pandemic via the collection of tax revenues from legally imported products. Simultaneously, it will allow Egyptian authorities to clamp down on tax evasion issues associated with illegal market players. In a similar vein, the move and balanced regulation of the market offers authorities and e-cigarette vendors a path to stem the spread of inferior and dangerous black-market products that do not meet the standards and regulations outlined by Egyptian and international authorities. In doing so, adult consumers can rest assured the products they do find on sale are indeed a reliable alternative to traditional cigarettes.”
Smoker rights groups on April 21 protested outside the legislature in Taipei against a proposal to ban e-cigarettes and heated tobacco products (HTPs), reports The Taipei Times.
The government must respect the rights of smokers, they said, adding that it should offer people choices, instead of instituting a ban.
The protest was in response to the legislature’s Social Welfare and Environmental Hygiene Committee considering changes to the Tobacco Hazards Prevention Act that would ban e-cigarettes and limit HTPs. Amendments to the Narcotics Hazard Prevention Act to restrict e-cigarettes are also be considered by the Judiciary and Organic Laws and Statutes Committee.
One protester said that vaping devices, HTPs and flavored cigarettes should be regulated like regular cigarettes, with taxes and age restrictions for purchase.
“HTPs and e-cigarettes should be classified as tobacco products, just like the cigarettes sold at convenience stores,” the protester was quoted as saying by The Taipei Times. “We agree that the government should impose restrictions and rules, not permit sale to minors, no advertising, no online purchase and have health warnings.”
Daniel P. McGee has joined Keller and Heckman’s expanding tobacco and vapor practice as counsel.
Prior to joining Keller and Heckman, McGee worked as in-house counsel for several multinational tobacco, vapor and CBD companies, where he honed his skills advising on compliance and regulatory issues related to tobacco, vapor, nicotine, hemp, CBD and related products.
McGee has experience counseling companies on a broad range of complex tobacco and U.S. Food and Drug Administration regulatory matters and developing strategies to help companies bring new products to market.
“Daniel’s expertise and industry perspective will be invaluable to Keller and Heckman clients who are carefully navigating the challenges and pitfalls of a highly regulated and rapidly evolving legal landscape,” said Azim Chowdhury, a Partner in the firm’s tobacco and vapor and food and drug practices.
“In addition to expanding our tobacco and e-vapor capabilities, we are especially looking forward to utilizing Daniel’s expertise in state law compliance, particularly for clients expanding into the hemp and CBD categories.”
“The addition of Daniel to our practice demonstrates Keller and Heckman’s commitment to helping our clients understand and comply with continuously evolving regulations in this growing field,” said Richard Mann, chair of Keller and Heckman’s management committee.
“I am honored to work with Keller and Heckman’s experienced team of tobacco and e-vapor attorneys and to share the corporate perspective with my new colleagues,” said McGee. “After spending the bulk of my legal career as in-house counsel to the tobacco industry, I made a strategic decision to focus on the industry as a whole and join a law firm that is a leader in tobacco regulatory compliance and public policy initiatives.”
McGee received his J.D. degree from the University of Oregon School of Law and his B.A. degree from Boston College, where he graduated with honors.
Malaysia’s longtime ban on the sale of vaping products is set to end, according to the Malaysian Organization of Vape Entities (MOVE).
Taking effect on Aug. 3, the regulation of vaping devices precedes the imminent legalization of vape sales. It follows years of campaigning by MOVE and other tobacco harm reduction supporters.
The Malaysian government has now moved to gazette the Trade Descriptions (Certification and Marking) of Electronic Cigarette Devices Order 2022 under the Trade Descriptions Act 2011. Manufacturers and importers will need to ensure all devices are certified and labeled to show consumers that safety standards have been met and the products are safe to use. All e-liquids will need to be registered.
“This is historic news after a long-fought battle. It paves the way for a legalized market and safer products. Regulating vaping products, restricting sales to adults and applying significant penalties to any breaches will help many more Malaysian smokers to quit deadly cigarettes,” said Samsul Kamal Ariffin, president of MOVE.
Ariffin said that in recent months there have been frustrating parliamentary delays in progressing the Tobacco and Smoking Control Bill—not helped by the pending general election. However, with the safety standards now gazetted, it sets in train the legalization of vape sales.
Regulating, not banning, vaping will not only save smokers lives, [but] it will generate much-needed tax revenue for our country.
“Regulating, not banning, vaping will not only save smokers lives, [but] it will generate much-needed tax revenue for our country, which is desperately needed post-pandemic,” said Ariffin. “This is not only good news for smokers and their loved ones, but every Malaysian will benefit from the extra revenue gained from vape manufacturing, importing and sales. Up until now, it has been a black market with unapproved products not contributing tax and with no safety assurances.”
“The government has done well in preparing the legislation and regulation of products deemed 95 percent less harmful than combustible tobacco. It fully understands that making safer nicotine products legally accessible is the only way to seriously reduce Malaysia’s unnecessarily high smoking rates,” said Ariffin.
The Coalition of Asia Pacific Tobacco Harm Reduction Advocates (CAPHRA), too, expects Malaysia’s smoking rates to decline after the legalization of vapor products. “Malaysia will join 67 other progressive countries worldwide which have adopted regulatory frameworks on safer nicotine products. Importantly, all of them have subsequently registered a dramatic decline in smoking,” said Nancy Loucas, executive coordinator of CAPHRA.
“We’re particularly proud of our member organization MOVE and Samsul’s tireless advocacy over many years. The third of August is worthy of a big celebration and will be well noted across the Asia-Pacific region. Vaping bans fail badly—as Australia is discovering the hard way,” said Loucas.
VApril 2022, the annual awareness campaign from the U.K. Vaping Industry Association (UKVIA) that educates smokers on vaping, opened with a vaping masterclass session with experts from the vaping industry, stop-smoking services and healthcare.
For the first time, this year, the UKVIA is running a promotional campaign on social media, including an animated five-step guide to transitioning successfully from smoking to vaping; a video featuring the life-changing experience of a former smoker turned vaper; and a video of Anita Sharma addressing common concerns of smokers who are considering switching to vaping to help them quit their smoking habits.
The month will also see publication of research on the level and quality of advice that is being provided to adult smokers when considering a switch to vaping.
“We know from Public Health England that vaping is at least 95 percent less harmful than smoking, and the last 18 months has seen a massive groundswell of support from the medical and political worlds underlining how vital vaping is toward helping people to quit smoking and the overall health of the nation,” said John Dunne, director general of the UKVIA, in a statement.
“We are steadfast and determined in our mission and resolve to give smokers a real choice, underpinned by VApril 2022 and the huge support we receive from vape retail stores and other businesses across the U.K. as well as vape associations across the world.”
