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Tag: South Korea

  • Kenya Urged to Reverse Tobacco Export Deal

    Kenya Urged to Reverse Tobacco Export Deal

    Photo: prehistorik

    Anti-smoking activists are urging the government of Kenya to reverse a deal to export more tobacco to South Korea, reports The Star.

    During a recent visit to South Korea, Kenyan President William Ruto signed a bilateral trade agreement that will see Kenya increase its exports of tea, coffee and tobacco.

    The Kenya Tobacco Control Alliance (KETCA) has asked the president to reconsider his decision, citing fears that the agreement will persuade farmers to grow tobacco even as health advocates are encouraging them to replace the golden leaf with other cash crops.

    Concerned about the environmental and health effects of tobacco production and consumption, the World Health Organization, the World Food Program and the Food and Agriculture Organization in collaboration with the Kenyan government launched a project to discourage tobacco production in western Kenya in March.

    The project enables the farmers to stop tobacco growing contractual agreements and switch to food crops that will help feed communities.

    According to KETCA national coordinator Thomas Lindi, Kenya’s Tobacco Control Act also commits the government to continually phase out tobacco farming in Kenya.

    “Any treaty or agreement that binds Kenya to promote tobacco farming is against the Tobacco Control Act and is therefore illegal,” he said. “We ask the government to immediately cancel aspects of the Kenya-South Korea agreement that touch on tobacco.”

    Tobacco is a key cash crop for at least 55,000 farmers in Kenya, mostly from the western and southeastern parts of the country. Though the overall contribution to the national economy is relatively small (about 0.03 percent of GDP), tobacco is an important economic activity in the regions where it is farmed.

  • Health Ministry Sued Over Misinformation

    Health Ministry Sued Over Misinformation

    Photo: niyazz

    The Korea Electronic Cigarette Association (KECA) has sued the Ministry of Health and Welfare (MOHW) and the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA), demanding the government correct misinformation about e-cigarettes, reports the Korea Biomedical Review.

    The KECA’s lawsuit alleges that the government caused financial damage to e-cigarette-related small business owners by releasing incorrect information via an Oct. 23, 2019, press release recommending Koreans stop using liquid e-cigarettes.

    The MOHW’s recommendation was issued following an outbreak of lung injuries in the United States that was initially attributed to nicotine vapes but was later determined to be associated with illicit THC products.

    “According to the U.S. [Food and Drug Administration’s] notice banning the sale of liquid-type e-cigarettes, which was the basis of the MOHW’s decision that advised smokers to stop using e-cigarettes, tetrahydrocannabinol, a hemp-derived substance, was the main problem,” the KECA said.

    In 2019, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention stated that there were 530 confirmed severe lung diseases and eight deaths in the U.S. related to the use of liquid-type e-cigarettes.

    “However, at the time of the announcement of the MOHW’s recommendation, there was only one suspected case of lung damage in Korea, and even the suspected case came from a person who smoked tobacco,” the KECA said.

    According to a paper published in the Journal of Korean Medical Science in December 2021, there were no cases of severe pneumonia or lung damage among liquid e-cigarette users, according to the KECA. The group stated that the MOHW’s failure to withdraw its recommendation to stop use of liquid e-cigarettes shows a neglect of its duties.

    A MOHW spokesperson said it will investigate the complaint and respond to the lawsuit in conjunction with other agencies, such as the KDCA and the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety.

  • South Korea to Mandate New Health Warnings

    South Korea to Mandate New Health Warnings

    Image: Tobacco Reporter archive

    Cigarette manufacturers will have to start printing new graphic health warnings in late December, reports The Korea Herald, citing new regulations announced by the Ministry of Health and Welfare.

    The ministry plans to distribute the updated manual for labeling health warnings on cigarette packaging today, as a follow-up to the government’s tobacco industry regulation revision passed in June.

    New graphic health warnings specified in the document include a warning about second-hand smoking showing a rendered image of a newborn child sucking on a baby bottle stuffed with cigarette butts.

    The new rules, which come into effect Dec. 23, impact vapor products, too. E-cigarettes manufacturers will be required to cover more than 50 percent of each pack with health warnings, officials said.

  • Illicit Trade Surges in South Africa

    Illicit Trade Surges in South Africa

    Photo: Tobacco Reporter archive

    A new study by Ipsos shows that illegal cigarette trade has surged in the past year in South Africa.

    Illicit trade exploded during a five-month ban on tobacco sales that was implemented to prevent the spread of Covid-19 during 2020. While the ban was lifted in August 2020, illicit trade continues to be significantly higher than it was before the measure.

    The Ipsos study showed: four out of five stores in the Western Cape (80 percent) now sell cigarettes below the minimum collectible tax (MCT) rate of ZAR22.79 per pack, as do almost 70 percent of outlets in Gauteng, a significant increase compared to previous research; the number of garage forecourts across the country selling illicit cigarettes has quadrupled in the last year—despite the 2020 sales ban having been lifted; a single pack of 20 cigarettes is now on sale for as little as ZAR7 in many retail outlets nationwide.

    The latest Ipsos study provides compelling evidence that criminals continue to dominate South Africa’s tobacco trade.

    Johnny Moloto, general manager, BAT South Africa

    “This is less than a third of the MCT and down even further from ZAR8, which was the lowest price found in the October 2021 study; and products bearing trademarks licensed to or owned by Zimbabwe-based Gold Leaf Tobacco Corporation and CarniLinx, a member of South Africa’s Fair-Trade Independent Tobacco Association, continue to win this illegal price war,” BAT South Africa (BATSA) wrote in a statement.

    “The latest Ipsos study provides compelling evidence that criminals continue to dominate South Africa’s tobacco trade,” said BATSA General Manager Johnny Moloto. “These criminals are hiding in plain sight, robbing the fiscus of vital revenue when it is needed most. They are destroying legitimate businesses and jobs while national unemployment rates hit record highs.”

    Tobacco Reporter covered South Africa’s struggle with illicit trade in-depth in its March 2022 issue (see “Damage Done“). 

  • South Korea Smoking Rate Hits All-Time Low

    South Korea Smoking Rate Hits All-Time Low

    Photo: Dzmitry

    The smoking rate of South Koreans aged 19 and up fell below 20 percent for the first time in 2020, reports the Yonhap News Agency, citing a new Statistics Korea study.

    The smoking rate of Korean adults declined to a record low of 19.2 percent in 2020, down 1 percentage point from 20.2 percent a year earlier.

    The smoking rate fell 7.7 percentage points from 26.9 percent in 2010.

    The results cover those who have consumed more than five packs of cigarettes over their lifetime and are currently smoking.

    In 2020, the smoking rate among Korean men aged 19 and older reached a record low of 33 percent, down from 34.7 percent a year earlier.

    The corresponding rate for Korean women aged 19 and older came to 5.5 percent, down from 5.9 percent in 2019.

    Experts attributed the decline in smoking to growing public awareness of health and the government’s anti-smoking drive.

    In January 2015, the government raised the price of cigarettes by 80 percent to KRW4,500 ($3.70) per pack from KRW2,500.

  • 22nd Century to Launch VLN in South Korea

    22nd Century to Launch VLN in South Korea

    Photo: 22nd Century Group

    South Korea will be the first international market to commence sales of 22nd Century’s VLN reduced nicotine content cigarettes, the company announced in a press release.

    “South Korea is an ideal international launch market in many ways, with a high smoking rate among developed countries and a government strongly committed to smoking harm reduction. We expect the first sale of VLN reduced nicotine content cigarettes to our South Korean partner to occur by the end of March,” said 22nd Centur4y’s CEO, James A. Mish.

    “Approximately one in three adult men in South Korea are smokers, and an estimated 6 percent of adult women smoke. The government has worked over the past two decades to promote smoking cessation through a variety of means, including heightened tobacco prices, and remains committed to advancing alternative products to help curb smoking activity in the country. We are excited to make VLN reduced nicotine content products available in South Korea to help break the nicotine addiction cycle and support this important effort.”

    The company will continue its launch process in additional markets in Asia and Europe with limited regulatory barriers while also leveraging VLN’s modified-risk tobacco product (MRTP) authorization in the United States toward seeking approval in additional markets with higher regulatory barriers.

    In addition to its first international launch of VLN reduced nicotine content cigarettes in the more than $800 billion global tobacco market, 22nd Century Group is actively moving forward to launch VLN in the $80 billion U.S. market.

    The U.S. FDA authorized 22nd Century’s VLN reduced nicotine content cigarette products on Dec. 23, 2021. The company is currently executing its 90-day post-authorization plan to launch in its first U.S. pilot market.

  • Korea: E-Cigs Gain as Combustibles Stagnate

    Korea: E-Cigs Gain as Combustibles Stagnate

    Photo: Dzmitry

    Sales of cigarettes in South Korea were flat from 2020 to 2021 but demand for electronic cigarettes rose amid the protracted pandemic, reports the Yonhap News Agency, citing data from the finance ministry.

    South Korean smokers purchased 3.59 billion 20-cigarette packs in 2021, similar to the number logged the previous year, according to the Ministry of Economy and Finance.

    Sales of traditional cigarettes fell 2 percent on-year to 3.15 billion packs last year while those of heat-not-burn tobacco products rose 17.1 percent to 440 million packs.

    Compared with 2014, however, cigarette sales declined 17.7 percent last year—a development the government attributed to rising prices and anti-smoking campaigns.

    In January 2015, South Korea increased cigarette prices by 80 percent to KRW4,500 ($3.72). The next year, the government required tobacco companies to print graphic images depicting the harmful effects of smoking on the upper part of cigarette packs.

    As of 2020, the smoking rate among Korean men aged 19 or older dropped to a record low of 34 percent, down 1.7 percentage points from a year earlier, according to the health ministry.