LATEST ALERTSSlovenia: Today, the minister of health officially presented today via press conference the adopted Strategy for Reducing the Consequences of Tobacco Use - For Slovenia without Tobacco 2022–2030. As we previously reported, the policy paper calls for the urgent regulation of nicotine pouches, raising the minimum age for the purchase of heated tobacco products to 21, extending plain packaging to heated tobacco products, a flavour ban for heated tobacco and limiting the available points of sale of tobacco products, among others.
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12th May 2022 - Europe, United Kingdom |
UK: Javed Khan, who has been tasked by the government to head an independent tobacco review, stated that he will present his recommendations to the government on 25th May 2022 at 3pm.
11th May 2022 - Europe |
EU: Previously unreleased EU documents indicate that the European Commission’s Directorate General for Health and Food Safety (DG Sante) "exaggerated claims about member states’ desire for EU-wide regulation and calls to ban tobacco-free nicotine pouches," according to press reports. It is claimed that while DG Sante defended in a presentation that “most Member States have called for a EU level legislation that regulates these products (including banning nicotine pouches)”, in reality, only a third of all member states responded to its survey.
US - Colorado: House Bill 22-1064 failed to pass the Senate Appropriations Committee, which rejected it yesterday by a 5-2 vote, local media reports. The bill would have banned the sale of flavoured cigarettes, tobacco products, and nicotine products. The senators also explained the bill's failure by saying that the ban would just lead to tobacco and nicotine users buying flavoured products online or out of state, describing youth tobacco use as inevitable but improving.
11th May 2022 - Asia, Philippines |
Philippines: The first set of graphic health warning templates for electronic cigarettes and heated tobacco enters into force today. The templates are valid for a period of two years.
11th May 2022 - Australasia, New Zealand |
New Zealand: From today, all manufacturers and importers of heated tobacco must ensure that their products conform to the new packaging rules, including health warnings and new prohibited features.
10th May 2022 - Asia, Philippines |
Philippines: Candidate Ferdinand Marcos Jr., who is on the cusp of winning the presidential election, has previously opposed tobacco taxes, claiming they would slow down activities for producers, manufacturers and sellers. His sister, senator Imee Marcos, also opposed taxing e-cigs and heated tobacco in 2019. Official vote counting started today and is expected to go on for a few days, despite already showing Marcos with a commanding vote margin.
US - Colorado: House Bill 22-1064 has passed the Senate Committee on Finance after amendments and has been referred to the Senate Committee on Appropriations. This bill would prohibit the distribution of flavoured cigarettes, tobacco products, or nicotine products, and would amend the definition of cigarette, tobacco product, or nicotine product to include products containing synthetic nicotine.
Sweden: The Social Affairs Committee will discuss tomorrow the bill "Stricter rules for new nicotine products" (2021/22: 200), which tries to regulate nicotine pouch ingredients, packaging, labelling, advertising, marketing and sales. Additionally, the proposal aims to strengthen the tobacco product advertising and marketing restrictions. This bill was proposed by the government following a public consultation on the regulation of tobacco, e-cigarettes and tobacco-free nicotine products conducted between February 2020 and March 2021.
Belgium: Last week, the Chamber of Deputies approved a bill to ban smoking – including heated tobacco products – on station platforms, starting 1st January 2023.
US - California: The El Dorado County Office of Education recently hosted a student training day for the Tobacco-Use Prevention Education (TUPE) Program, which included students from El Dorado, Independence, Union Mine, and Black Oak Mine Unified School District, local media reports. The purpose of the TUPE Program is to reduce youth usage of tobacco products through tobacco-specific educational instruction and activities that build knowledge as well as social skills and youth development assets. Melissa Kistler, director of District and Program Support and TUPE liaison emphasised the fact that the “training is unique because it is the first time we have cross collaboration between school districts in this county”.
9th May 2022 - Brazil, South America |
Brazil: In response to industry member requests, the National Public Health Surveillance Agency (ANVISA) has extended the deadline for receiving technical and scientific contributions about e-cigarettes and heated tobacco until 10th June. Previously, the agency published a report suggesting the current prohibition should be maintained, but any firm decisions will come later.
Georgia: Before 1st September 2022, the parliament is planning to amend the Law on Tobacco Control. It intends to introduce health warnings on packs and notification requirements for tobacco products, media reports. As nicotine-containing e-cigarette products and heated tobacco products fall under the definition of tobacco products in Georgia, we believe that such requirements would be applicable to them.
Hong Kong: Hong Kong police have arrested two people for violating the ban on selling alternative smoking products. Officers seized 94 boxes of suspected nicotine-containing e-cigarette cartridges and 74 “smoking devices” during the operation in Mong Kok, press reports. They were the first arrests under the ban, which came into effect on Saturday.
5th May 2022 - Europe |
EU: The European Commission has told TobaccoIntelligence the next step towards adoption of the Delegated EU Directive on exemptions for heated tobacco products, and amending Articles 7 and 11 of Directive 2014/40/EU, will be its translation into all official EU languages and its adoption by the Commission. The Commission will then notify it simultaneously to the European Parliament and the Council, which will have two months to scrutinise it – a period that may be extended by another two months at the initiative of the Parliament or the Council. After that it will be published in the Official Journal of the European Union and come into force 20 days later. The transposition period is expected to last at least six months.
US - Colorado: House Bill 22-1064 was approved by the state House yesterday and sent to the Senate for consideration, local media reports. The bill would prohibit the distribution of flavoured cigarettes, tobacco or nicotine products, including those containing synthetic nicotine. Since its introduction, the bill has been changed to exempt hookahs, premium cigars and pipe tobacco.
4th May 2022 - North America, United States |
US - federal: Food and Drug Administration (FDA) commissioner Robert Califf, and Michele Mital, acting director of the FDA Center for Tobacco Products (CTP), have explained in an online media call how two proposed rules on menthol and flavours are expected to work. The FDA intends the product standard to cover all types, sizes, nicotine strengths and formulations of cigarettes, cigarette tobacco and roll-your-own tobacco as well as heated tobacco products. The agency is seeking data and evidence for potential exemptions, either for certain types of product or on a case-by-case basis, for products that may have different public health impacts, such as heat-not-burn (HnB) products or low-nicotine cigarettes.
US - Hawaii: House Bill 1570 passed its final reading yesterday on a 36-15 vote. The bill to ban the sale of all flavoured tobacco products, including e-cigarettes, combustible menthol cigarettes and flavoured cigars, has now been passed by both chambers of the Legislature and requires only the signature of governor David Ige to become law.
Hong Kong: Hong Kong Customs reports a major operation to combat illicit heated tobacco and e-cigarettes, with products with an estimated market value of $15m seized in the past month. The Smoking (Public Health) (Amendment) Ordinance 2021 came into effect on Saturday, 30th April, banning production, import, sales and promotion of heat-not-burn (HnB) and vaping products, subject to a fine of up to $50,000 and up to six months’ jail.
US - Hawaii: Many bills are currently sitting in the legislative process that would ban flavoured tobacco products. Among them, House Bill 1570 has passed both the House and the Senate, but the House seems to disagree with some amendments and so it may still take a while. The ban of flavoured tobacco products is a current political debate: representatives supporting the bill state they are only banning flavours and not vaping, whereas shop owners state that flavours are 99.9% of the business.
2nd May 2022 - Asia, Philippines |
Philippines: The Department of Health (DOH) reiterated its call for president Rodrigo Duterte to veto the proposed Vaporized Nicotine Products Regulations Act, press report. According to the authority, the approval of the bill is contrary to the president's position to protect the public from the effects of smoking and goes against the already existing laws. The bill was approved by the Senate and House of Representatives in January and is now waiting for the president’s signature.
29th April 2022 - North America, United States |
US - Federal: The first report on the status of the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) premarket tobacco product applications (PMTAs) is expected today (29th April) following an order from a federal judge. More information can be found in a news briefing on our sister site, ECigIntelligence.
29th April 2022 - North America, United States |
US - Federal: Yesterday, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced two proposed product standards: one to prohibit menthol as a characterising flavour in cigarettes and one to prohibit all characterising flavours (other than tobacco) in cigars; e-cigarettes are not included in either of the proposed rules. The reason behind proposing these rules is to reduce the appeal of those products to youth. The FDA has emphasised that enforcement against individual consumers for possession of menthol cigarettes or flavoured cigars will not be pursued.
27th April 2022 - Europe, United Kingdom |
UK: Yesterday, 26th April 2022, a Westminster Hall debate on the progress of the government's Smokefree 2030 ambition took place. MP Bob Blackman said that the review of tobacco laws also needs to look at shisha tobacco, chewing tobacco and snus. The independent review led by Javed Khan OBE that will make a set of recommendations to the government is expected to be published next month.
27th April 2022 - North America, United States |
US - Federal: The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has authorised the marketing of four new tobacco products by Njoy LLC, including its Ace closed e-cigarette device and three accompanying tobacco-flavoured e-liquid pods. The FDA also issued marketing denial orders to Njoy for multiple other Ace e-cigarette products. Applications for two menthol-flavoured Ace e-liquid pods remain under FDA review.
26th April 2022 - Europe |
EU: EU officials have told TobaccoIntelligence that at present there are no planned or proposed measures to phase out non-rechargeable portable batteries. However, a possible ban on single-use batteries under the revision of EU rules on batteries and waste – which would affect disposable products – is expected to be examined by 31st December 2027, when the Commission assesses the feasibility of such a measure and submits a recommendation to the European Parliament and Council.
26th April 2022 - Europe, United Kingdom |
UK: In response to a parliamentary question, junior environment minister Jo Churchill said no specific assessment had been made of the number of vape pens that go to landfill. She reiterated that the government plans to consult on reforms to the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Regulations later this year.
California: San Diego City Council voted 7-2 at a special meeting yesterday to approve the SAAFE (Stop Adolescent Addiction to Flavored E-cigarettes) Act, which would prohibit the sale of all flavoured tobacco products in the city, local media reports. The issue will come before the council again in 30 days.
26th April 2022 - Brazil, South America |
Brazil: National Public Health Surveillance Agency (ANVISA) director Cristiane Jourdan has told media there is not yet enough evidence for the efficacy and safety of e-cigarettes or heated tobacco for them to be approved for use. However, she added that studies were at an early stage and that potential additional measures mentioned in the regulatory report published earlier this month, such as an advertising ban, were awaiting a final decision. ANVISA is taking technical and scientific evidence about the products until 11th May.
Malaysia: Health minister Khairy Jamaluddin reportedly said last week that the 15% import duty on nicotine gum products, to be imposed from 1st June, should either reduced or cancelled, describing them as a good smoking cessation tool. This liberal policy towards nicotine gum would be in contrast to the legal framework for heated tobacco products, which are deemed to be as harmful as cigarettes. The government is planning to ban the sale of such products, along with e-cigarettes, to anyone born after 2005.
US - California: On today’s agenda for San Diego City Council was Item 600, the approval of the SAAFE (Stop Adolescent Addiction to Flavored E-cigarettes) Act, which would prohibit the sale of flavoured tobacco products in the city. If passed, the ban will include all flavours but for tobacco from 1st January 2023.
Belgium: Four large tobacco companies have been fined a total of almost €36m after the Belgian Competition Authority finally delivered a decision on a case dating back more than seven years. The four companies were accused of colluding on prices, between 2011 and 2015, avoiding the normal risks of competition. British American Tobacco (BAT) Belgium was fined €5.7m, Etablissements L. Lacroix Fils must pay €7m, while JT International and Philip Morris Benelux were fined €7.2m and €16m respectively.
US - Maine: The Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids has issued a public statement praising Brunswick Town Council after it passed an ordinance on Tuesday prohibiting the sale of flavoured tobacco products, including e-cigarettes, from 1st June. The pressure group is urging the state legislature to enact a state-wide flavour ban by passing bill LD 1550.
Ukraine: Under the amendment to the Tobacco Act adopted last month, it is temporarily permitted to import and sell in Ukraine heated tobacco consumables manufactured and marked (including language requirements) in accordance with the requirements of the EU member state where it is made. The measure will last until the cessation or abolition of martial law in Ukraine.
US - New York: Assembly Bill 9879 has been introduced, which would make it illegal for anyone under 21 to possess tobacco or vaping products. The sale of tobacco, vapour products and smoking paraphernalia to under-21s is already prohibited.
20th April 2022 - Europe, United Kingdom |
UK: Health secretary Sajid Javid has told Parliament that the independent review of tobacco control, headed by Javed Khan, should be published in May.
19th April 2022 - North America, United States |
US - federal: As of Thursday, 14th April, new synthetic nicotine products may not enter the market without first obtaining a PMTA. Further, synthetic nicotine versions of tobacco-derived nicotine products whose PMTAs have been denied may not be be marketed.
Finland: The Ministry of Social Affairs and Health has confirmed to TobaccoIntelligence that an amendment to the Tobacco Act was yesterday approved by president Sauli Niinistö. From 1st May 2022 the list of smoke-free environments will be extended and the existing flavour ban will be extended to include DIY additives. Uniform packaging for tobacco products will become mandatory on 1st May 2023.
Portugal: Following the rejection by Parliament of the first State Budget, prime minister António Costa’s new government today presented a new Budget, with a proposed increase in tax on heated tobacco consumables from €0.0837 to €0.0845 per g still intact. Parliament still needs to approve the new budget, which is expected to happen by the end of May.
Italy: The Customs and Monopolies Agency (ADM) has updated the retail prices and excise duties payable on heated tobacco consumables.
12th April 2022 - Europe, United Kingdom |
UK: Westminster City Council and the Metropolitan Police have seized 2,366 snus products in a raid on a souvenir shop in London’s Oxford Street, press reports. Snus cannot be sold legally in the UK.
US - Arkansas: Senate Bill 45 is advancing through the legislative process. It would raise from 19 to 21 the legal age to purchase, sell, exchange, or possess tobacco, nicotine products or any “electronic smoking product”, and ban their online sale. It would also levy a tax on all nicotine-containing electronic smoking products at 75% of their wholesale price.
Russia: Alexander Malkevich, a member of the Civic Chamber of Russia, a federally funded advisory state body, has proposed allowing previously banned TV advertising of alcohol and tobacco products, due to falling advertising revenues, media reports.
Russia: Members of the State Duma have proposed a moratorium on mandatory traceability labelling of goods until 1st January 2028, media reports. If adopted, this would affect the traceability labelling of heated tobacco consumables, which become mandatory on 1st March.
8th April 2022 - North America, United States |
US - Tennessee: Senate Bill 2219 has passed the Senate and is ready for transmission to the House. This bill would authorise local governments to regulate, including the prohibition of, smoking and the use of vapour products in age-restricted venues.
Spain: The Spanish parliament has passed the "waste and contaminated soils" bill. The bill states that tobacco products with filters and filters marketed for use in combination with tobacco products will be considered single-use plastics and will have to be marked as such. The bill also intends to reduce the sale of single-use plastics by 50% in weight by 2026 and 70% by 2030. The act will enter into force once it is published in the state Official Bulletin.
Myanmar: From 10th April standardised packaging will be mandatory for almost all tobacco products. The regulation requires the outer surfaces of product packages to be presented in a standardised dull brown colour, and health warnings need to be printed on 75% of the front and back surfaces. Companies will have a 90-day transitional period. It is still not clear if harm-reduction products will have to comply or not with the new requirements.
8th April 2022 - Europe, United Kingdom |
UK: A plastic packaging tax that applies, among other things, to plastic protective film around a box, has entered into effect. A tax rate of £200 per metric tonne applies to plastic packaging that is manufactured or imported and does not contain at least 30% recycled plastic.
India: A group of MPs from the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) urged the government yesterday to take steps to remove designated smoking areas from hotels, restaurants and airports, press reports. The use of heated tobacco is not prohibited by federal law, but officials sometimes treat its use as if it were smoking.
