KT&G will launch its Lil Hybrid 2.0 system Miix in Japan on Oct. 26 through its partnership with Philip Morris International (PMI), reports The Korea Times.
Unlike in Russia and Ukraine, where KT&G released Lil Solid, the Japan will get a Lil Hybrid 2.0 and a dedicated Miix stick. The first products to be sold will be available in matte black, cobalt blue, prism white and metallic bronze.
Consumers can choose from three stick types: Miix Regular, Miix Ice and Miix Mix.
“We will continue to provide various options to consumers in overseas markets through continuous cooperation with PMI,” said Lim Wang-seop, head of KT&G’s next-generation product business division.
Japan Tobacco (JT) will launch “Ploom Tech+” with a new, more compact device from the Ploom Tech+ series.
The new device will be available at the Club JT online shop along with Ploom shops and select tobacco retail stores located in Tokyo from Nov. 2, 2020, and at convenience stores in Tokyo from Nov. 3, 2020.
Ploom Tech+ with offers better portability and increased convenience. The device also has upgraded features, such as faster charging and a display to indicate the batter and capsule usage levels as well as an instant activation feature.
“We are delighted to announce the launch of ‘Ploom Tech+,’” said Toru Takahashi, vice president of the marketing group product and brand division for reduced-risk products, in a statement. “The portable size enables the device to blend right in to each consumer’s lifestyle without stress, expanding the opportunities for consumers to explore and experience T-vapor.”
Tobacco and vapor product analyst Bonnie Herzog of Goldman Sachs cites the Covid-19 pandemic as the main reason Philip Morris International (PMI) and Altria have slowed down the national launch of IQOS.
In March, Philip Morris USA closed its Atlanta, Georgia, and Richmond, Virginia, IQOS stores temporarily, paused its IQOS inperson marketing efforts and delayed the launch of IQOS in Charlotte, North Carolina, due to Covid-19 concerns. While the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted modified-risk tobacco product (MRTP) status to IQOS in July, sales of IQOS have not been strong during the pandemic.
“It has been more of a slow rollout and that has a lot to do with the fact that the technology that has been approved in the U.S. is older technology of IQOS,” said Herzog. “Philip Morris has applied to get approval of 3.0, but that’s still pending. We’re optimistic, assuming they can get approval from the FDA for that.” Herzog projects that by 2025, IQOS could account for as much as 12.2 percent of Altria’s volumes.”
The global heat-not-burn tobacco market is expected to grow to $33.6 billion from $14.6 billion by 2025, according to a Research and Markets report.
The compound annual growth rate (CAGR) is expected to be 14.87 percent.
“The report deeply explores the recent significant developments by the leading vendors and innovation profiles in the global heat-not-burn tobacco products market, including British American Tobacco PLC, Japan Tobacco Inc., Pax Labs, Philip Morris International and Vapor Tobacco Manufacturing LLC,” according to the Research and Markets website.
The report also takes into consideration the effects of Covid-19.
Next generation tobacco products like heat-not-burn (HNB) offer a less risky alternative to combustible cigarettes. Making these products more available to smokers would translate into public health gains, according to Helen Redmond, adjunct professor at New York University-Silver School of Social Work.
Because the tobacco is not burned, the levels of harmful chemicals produced by HNB products are significantly lower compared to combustible cigarette smoke, according to Redmond. She made the statement before the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) authorized the marketing of IQOS, the tobacco heating system produced by Philip Morris International, as a modified risk tobacco product (MRTP).
It has been known for decades that tar and carcinogens found in tobacco smoke, causes the death and disease associated with smoking and not nicotine. “The use of nicotine is no threat, because nicotine is not the problem. Combustible tobacco is,” Redmond said. “There is a widespread, mistaken notion that nicotine causes cancer and other health problems. That is false. What causes health problems is lighting tobacco on fire. The combustion releases thousands of toxic chemicals.”
The FDA’s MRTP authorization shows that IQOS is a fundamentally different product than combustible cigarettes, and must be regulated differently. The FDA’s decision is consistent with earlier conclusions of other leading regulatory and scientific bodies, including in the United Kingdom, Germany and the Netherlands, which have found that the product emits lower levels of harmful toxicants.
“If HNB products appeal to smokers who, for whatever reason, find that vaping — estimated by Public Health England to be 95 percent safer than smoking — isn’t for them, it’s a huge win for public health,” she added.
She said e-cigarettes and HNB devices proved effective in making smokers switch because they offer the same pleasure, rituals and relaxation associated with smoking. A February 2019 clinical trial by UK’s National Institute for Health Research found that e-cigarette was twice as effective as nicotine replacement treatments such as patches and gum at helping smokers quit.
Redmond cited the case of Japan where nearly a third of smokers have already switched to HNBs. “HNB products have been available in Japan since 2014. The result— cigarette sales in the country have plummeted, outstripping anything abstinence-only messages have achieved” she said.
PMI has conducted extensive research on IQOS, including 18 non-clinical and 10 clinical studies. Based on PMI evidence to date, switching completely to IQOS — while not risk-free — is a better alternative for those who would otherwise continue to smoke.
Another study by Canadian and American researchers looked at how trends in the sale of cigarettes in Japan between 2011 and 2019 correspond to the sales of HTPs that were introduced into the Japanese market in late 2015.
The researchers concluded that the accelerated five-fold decline in cigarette sales in Japan since 2016 was due to the introduction of HTPs.
KT&G started exporting its e-cigarette heating devices to Russia last month in accordance with the company’s agreement with Philip Morris International (PMI). The agreement allows the two parties to collaborate on promoting global marketing campaigns, according to a press release.
During a conference call upon the announcement of its second-quarter results, the company confirmed an analyst question that won12.5 billion ($10.54 million) worth of e-cigarette devices were exported to Russia throughout last month. KT&G signed a pact for strategic collaboration with its rival PMI in January, according to a story in The Kores Times.
“It is true that e-cigarette devices were exported last month. We plan to announce further details on the outcome of the PMI deal in the near future,” the company said during the call. The partnership is calling for KT&G to export its “lil” tobacco heating devices and tobacco sticks worldwide through PMI’s global sales network spanning 180 international markets, without specifying which markets the two companies will focus on.
Some questions have persisted over the progress of the deal so far, as no visible outcome has been achieved over the past six months since the agreement was made. However, as exports have now begun, KT&G’s effort to expand its e-cigarette presence is anticipated to pick up momentum.
The export came after heat-not-burn (HNB) tobacco products’ domestic market penetration rate declined for the second consecutive quarter. The rate stood at 13 percent at the end of last year, but declined to 12.6 percent in the first quarter and 12.4 percent in the second quarter. The company, however, said this does not mean a deadlock in HNB products’ growth, citing the expansion in overseas markets.
“From a future business standpoint, the overall heat-not-burn (HNB) tobacco market is expected to grow,” the company said. “When the new products are introduced, the market is bound to grow. While there would be some minor impact from governments’ policies and market events, there is no doubt about the growth trajectory.”
Sales of heated tobacco products in South Korea will likely edge up this year, even as the overall tobacco market is expected to decline, reports The Korea Herald, citing figures from Euromonitor International.
According to the market intelligence company, the Korean tobacco market reached KRW17.19 trillion ($16 billion) in 2019. Of that figure, KRW1.89 trillion was spent on heat-not-burn cigarettes, making South Korea the second-largest market for such products after Japan.
Euromonitor forecast Korea’s heating tobacco product market to reach KRW2 trillion in 2020.
Sales of e-cigarettes are expected to drop by 80 percent to KRW16.8 billion this year in the wake of new government restrictions on the category.
Flavored tobacco products, meanwhile, are gaining popularity in Korea. Last year, flavored products accounted for about 20 percent of South Korea’s conventional cigarette market, which is higher than in Japan (7 percent) and China (1.7 percent).
Scenes like this are rare in Thailand. This vaper in Koh Samui, Thailand could face fines or even jail. (Timothy S. Donahue)
A consumer advocacy group wants the government of Thailand to consider science as basis for ending e-cigarette ban. The group cites Hong Kong’s use of scientific studies as the basis for ending the ban on smoke-free nicotine, including vapor, heat-not-burn tobacco products (HnB) and snus.
Asa Ace Saligupta, who runs consumer group ENDS Cigarette Smoke Thailand, said the Hong Kong Legislative Council (Legco) decided to suspend the discussions on the proposed ban on vaping products, after some members of Legco’s Bills Committee on Smoking cited scientific studies showing that e-cigarettes, HnB and the likes have much lower levels of toxicants compared to combustible cigarettes, according to a release on pressat.co.uk.
He noted that after nine meetings, including three public hearings, the committee which was established in March 2019 decided to end the discussions on the vaping ban on June 2, 2020. The members of the committee also expressed concern that an outright ban would create more illegal channels and that the products could end up in the hands of underage users.
“The Hong Kong experience sets forward a good example of listening to opinions and engaging all parties involved, including the public sector—something that the policymakers in Thailand have avoided so far,” Saligupta said.
Saligupta said his group will petition the Thai government to also set up a committee to study e-cigarettes and find suitable control channels that will enable adult Thai cigarette smokers to find safer alternatives.
“Instead of using electronic cigarettes as a tool to create fear by creating a discourse on children and youth or Covid-19, we want to call on the Thai government to set up an independent committee to seriously study the science, commercial aspects, and regulatory framework for electronic cigarettes like Hong Kong and many other countries,” he said.
Vaping is a safer alternative to smoking, according to a Hong Kong health advisory group. The Hong Kong Legislative Council (Legco) has suspended all discussions on a proposed ban on vaping products. Legco says the products provide smokers with safer smoke-free alternatives.
Legco’s Bills Committee on Smoking announced it had ceased discussions over the proposed ban on electronic cigarettes, heat-not-burn tobacco products (HTPs) and other electronic nicotine delivery systems on June 2, according to a press release.
The committee ended its work after nine meetings, including three public hearings, since it was established in March 2019 to tackle the bill that aimed to amend the Smoking Ordinance and impose a blanket ban on vaping or the use of e-cigarettes, HTPs and the likes.
Hong Kong’s vaping ban was strongly opposed by some members of the committee who cited scientific studies showing that e-cigarettes, HTPs and the likes have much lower levels of toxicants compared to combustible cigarettes.IQOSER, a heated tobacco concern group in Hong Kong, said the end of discussions on the proposed ban on HTPs could hopefully bring lawmakers’ attention to the more important task of addressing the smoking problem. “Smoking incidence remains at more than 10 percent in Hong Kong, which means a tenth of our population is exposed to the health risks brought about by toxicants found in tar, the by-product of tobacco smoke,” said Joe Lo of IQOSER, which is also a member of the Coalition of Asia Pacific Tobacco Harm Reduction Advocates (CAPHRA).
“As we have been saying all along, nicotine is not the problem, but the smoke, which is responsible for thousands of deaths globally each day. Unlike combustible tobacco, e-cigarettes and HTPs do not involve combustion or burning, because they only heat tobacco to a certain degree that is not harmful to humans,” said Lo.
Nancy Loucas, Executive Coordinator of CAPHRA, noted that Hong Kong, like Japan and Korea, has a high number of former smokers who have switched to reduced-harm products, such as heat-not-burn (HnB) devices.“It was pleasing to see that some of the officials involved in the process to decide the fate of the products strongly opposed the ban based on science that proves that [HnB devices] have a lower level of toxicants compared to cigarettes, whilst addressing the concerns of creating black market in illicit trade in the products,” Loucas said.
In Hong Kong, many heated tobacco users were forced back to combustible tobacco because of the inability to access the product in the past year, according to Loucas. “Others, with the means, have risked being caught buying through illicit channels. Legislators such as Peter Shui, Raymond Chan and Cheng Chunt-tai, have repeatedly argued that a ban was neither logical nor feasible. More importantly, all three pointed out that adult smokers should not be deprived of the right to choose tobacco harm reduction,” she said.
Asa Ace Saligupta, who runs consumer group ENDS Cigarette Smoke Thailand, said the country should follow the lead of Hong Kong in putting to rest the discussions on vaping ban. “Lifting the ban on e-cigarettes, HTPs and the likes will provide Thai smokers representing more than 20 percent of our population an opportunity to switch to reduced-risk alternatives. At present, nearly 40 percent of Thai males are at risk of suffering from illnesses caused by the smoking epidemic,” he said.
Photo Credits: Timothy S. Donahue
Stephanie Thuesen, director of stakeholder engagement at The Progressive Public Health Alliance, said any restrictive policy on e-cigarettes and HTPs will exacerbate the smoking problem as this will discourage smokers from switching to reduced-risk alternatives. “Tobacco harm reduction should be viewed as a progressive health policy by all countries to put an end to the smoking problem,” she said.
Kulthida Maneechote of SmokeFree4Life campaign asked tobacco harm reduction advocates and vapers to unite against bans and restrictive policies imposed by countries based on alleged lies fed by the World Health Organization to deprive smokers of less harmful alternatives.
“Let us challenge the fallacies and unscientific guidelines being spread by the World Health Organization on electronic cigarettes especially with the upcoming WHO Framework Convention of Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC) in November this year [the convention has since been cancelled for 2020]. If left unchallenged, e-cigarettes might be banned by governments altogether. This will put many smokers at risk of not being able to choose a better alternative,” she said.
Australia’s Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) on June 10 in an interim decision rejected a request by Philip Morris Australia to adjust nicotine regulations in a manner that would allow the company’s heat-not-burn product (HTP) reach store shelves.
Currently, only combustible tobacco products such as cigarettes and cigars are permitted to be sold in Australia.
Philip Morris (PM) spokesperson Simon Breheny called the decision disappointing. “It puts Australia at odds with many other countries who have decided to regulate heated-tobacco and smoke-free alternatives,” he said.
“The right decision was made,” said Becky Freeman, a researcher from Sydney University’s School of Public Health. “They [HNB products] are not some miracle product that reduces smoking.”
While Breheny noted that PM will not challenge the interim decision, he maintained that a regulatory mechanism is the appropriate way forward. “People who are looking for these alternatives will continue to make the case for why they are important,” he said.
The TGA is scheduled to release its full final decision in August.
IQOSER, a heated tobacco concern group in Hong Kong, said the end of discussions on the proposed ban on HTPs could hopefully bring lawmakers’ attention to the more important task of addressing the smoking problem. “Smoking incidence remains at more than 10 percent in Hong Kong, which means a tenth of our population is exposed to the health risks brought about by toxicants found in tar, the by-product of tobacco smoke,” said Joe Lo of IQOSER, which is also a member of the Coalition of Asia Pacific Tobacco Harm Reduction Advocates (CAPHRA).
“It was pleasing to see that some of the officials involved in the process to decide the fate of the products strongly opposed the ban based on science that proves that [HnB devices] have a lower level of toxicants compared to cigarettes, whilst addressing the concerns of creating black market in illicit trade in the products,” Loucas said.
