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21st May 2024
Environment & Sustainability
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Global business and regulatory news covering the alternative tobacco industry
Daily regulatory updates of the tobacco alternative sector. It includes weekly podcasts and monthly compilations
9th July 2024
- France: The Regional Health Agency (ARS) of the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, which includes Lyon, France’s third-largest city, has unveiled a new regional action plan that aims to reduce tobacco use. This initiative specifically targets young people and aligns with the National Tobacco Control Programme (PNLT). The plan supports the goal of achieving the first tobacco-free generation by 2032. It sets out three axes for action: preventing entry into smoking, supporting smokers – especially vulnerable ones – to quit smoking, and preserving the environment from tobacco-related pollution.
9th July 2024
- EU: The regulation on ecodesign for sustainable products has recently been published. With the new regulation, we expect the emergence of a digital product passport (a tool that can significantly enhance the end-to-end traceability of a product, complementing the information provided in labels) for devices and other ecodesign requirements and requirements for the measure of energy consumption or performance of devices. The regulation will take effect on 18th July and apply 24 months after it enters into force.
3rd July 2024
- EU: The European Commission (EC) will present its proposal for the revision of the Council recommendation on smoke-free environments on 17th September, during the European Parliament plenary, according to the EC's tentative agenda. The revised recommendation is set to include public usage restrictions for novel tobacco and nicotine products. When asked about the delay in presenting the revised recommendation during a Health Council meeting, health and food commissioner Stella Kyriakides reportedly said that work was ongoing and that it had been “a particularly challenging task”. This is, however, not the first time that the revision has appeared in the EC's tentative agenda, as it first featured for the 31st January 2024 meeting, but was not presented in the end.
17th June 2024
- China: On 24th May, the China Biodiversity Conservation and Green Development Foundation held a seminar in Beijing to discuss the impact of tobacco and environmental taxes on tobacco control, press reports. The seminar brought together experts from the Environmental Planning Institute of the Ministry of Ecology and Environment and the National Health Development Research Center (NHDRC) of the National Health Commission to discuss how to optimise these taxes to reduce tobacco consumption and strengthen control efforts. Discussions included insights from the “Tobacco Consumption Tax Reform and Comprehensive Industry Chain Research Report” released on 30th October 2023, which highlighted that China’s tobacco tax is below World Health Organization (WHO) recommendations and does not fully account for the environmental impact of the tobacco industry.
27th May 2024
- EU: Today, the Council adopted a proposal for a regulation on ecodesign for sustainable products. With the proposal, we expect the emergence of a digital product passport (a tool that can significantly enhance the end-to-end traceability of a product, complementing the information provided in labels) for devices and other ecodesign requirements, and requirements for measuring energy consumption or performance of devices. Once signed, the regulation will be published in the Official Journal and will enter into force on the 20th day following its publication. It will apply 24 months after the entry into force.
24th May 2024
- EU: Today, the Council adopted a proposal for a directive on corporate sustainability due diligence. The proposal aims to ensure certain large EU and non-EU companies conduct due diligence on the potential impact of operations and supply chains on the environment as well as address environmental and social risks, enabling employees and stakeholders to raise any concerns. After being signed by the president of the European Parliament and the president of the Council, the directive will be published in the Official Journal and will enter into force on the 20th day following its publication. EU member states will have two years to implement the directive.
13th May 2024
- Denmark: The Ministry of the Environment is analysing whether legislation can be introduced to extend producer responsibility for nicotine pouch manufacturers, press reports. This means that companies would be responsible for cleaning up their products that end up as litter in nature and public spaces. According to the minister, “there is no difference between cigarette butts and nicotine pouches that end up in natural settings. This is waste that should not be lying around in nature.”
6th May 2024
- Global: At the recent meeting of the Fourth Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC-4) to develop an international treaty on ending plastic pollution, held in Ottawa, countries made progress in identifying the types of plastics that should be prohibited globally, media reports. Among the items that topped the list were cigarette filters. At the meeting, Peru, Panama, and Switzerland urged for a ban on cigarette filters, a call which was also supported by the World Health Organization. It was stated that recycling cigarette filters is not a viable solution, and it is essential to focus on human rights and demand a healthy environment. The list of plastics to be banned will be finalised at INC-5, starting 25th November 2024, in Busan, South Korea.
26th April 2024
- EU: On Tuesday (23rd April), the European Parliament adopted a proposal for a regulation on ecodesign for sustainable products. With the proposal, we expect the emergence of a digital product passport for devices – a tool that can significantly enhance a product’s end-to-end traceability, complementing the information provided in labels – and other ecodesign requirements, such as requirements for the measure of energy consumption or performance of devices. Once the European Council formally approves it, the proposal can enter into force.
25th April 2024
- EU: Yesterday (24th April), the European Parliament adopted a proposal for a directive on corporate sustainability due diligence. The proposal aims to have certain big companies both within and outside of the EU conduct due diligence on the potential environmental impact of operations and supply chains as well as address environmental and social risks, enabling employees and industry members to raise any concerns. The proposal is expected to be approved by the Council and then to be published in the EU Official Journal.
24th April 2024
- EU: Yesterday (23rd April), the European Parliament adopted the proposal for a directive on common rules promoting the repair of goods. The proposal seeks to introduce consumer incentives to repair products rather than replace them, promoting a circular economy. We believe this would force manufacturers or sellers to have repair facilities in order to repair devices, beyond the legal guarantee period, so as to allow their use for a longer period of time. Moreover, it should enable the replacement of defective vaping/heating devices with refurbished or second-hand ones, rather than a new one. The proposal should be approved next by the Council to be published in the EU Official Journal.
26th March 2024
- Denmark: The Ministry of Environment has notified a decree extending producer responsibility for single-use plastic products, including filters for tobacco products. The decree establishes a registration system for producers of single-use plastic products, the obligation to report the quantity of products and the payment of a quarterly fee to the Danish Environmental Protection Agency to cover costs of municipal and state clean-up, transport and treatment of littered waste. The fee will be published on the Environmental Protection Agency's website. The standstill period ends on 25th June 2024.
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