Australia's Failed Experiment: Five Years After Brand Censorship on Tobacco, Decline in Smoking Rates has Stalled

PR71303

GENEVA, Nov. 30, 2017 /PRNewswire=KYODO JBN/ --

- New Research Finds Most Australians Consider So-Called 'Plain' Packaging

Ineffective, with Eight out of Ten Believing the Government Would Ignore

Evidence if it Contradicted its Preferred Policy

- Australians Concerned Regulation May Spread to Other Categories

CanvasU, commissioned by JTI (Japan Tobacco International), recently conducted

a poll to understand Australians' views on the policy five years after its

implementation. The research found that:

- Almost two-thirds (59%) of Australians believe that plain packaging has been

ineffective.

- The majority of Australians (80%) believe the government wouldn't change or

would be reluctant to change a preferred policy if the evidence was weighted

against it.

     (Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20130528/617491 )

Even the Australian government's own data justifies public scepticism; the most

recent figures from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare show that

"…while smoking rates have been on a long-term downward trend, for the first

time in over two decades, the daily smoking rate did not significantly decline

over the most recent 3 year period (2013 to 2016)"[1]:

"Unsurprisingly, early data from France and the United Kingdom is pointing in

the same direction," states Michiel Reerink, JTI's Global Regulatory Strategy

Vice President. According to a new report published by Europe Economics, since

the Tobacco Products Directive (TPD2) and plain packaging requirements were

implemented in both the UK and France, the combined policies haven't had any

impact on smoking rates or tobacco sales.[2] Recent data published by the

French public authorities confirms that after nine-months, the amount of

tobacco products distributed to retailers remains stable.[3]

Around the world, anti-tobacco activists and some health authorities are

calling for similar experimental policies to be rolled-out on other product

categories such as alcohol, sugary drinks and fast food. In December 2016,

Public Health England published a report calling for plain packaging on

alcohol,[4] a topic which has been raised again this month by medical journal

The Lancet.[5] In Canada, the Ontario Medical Association has mocked up images

of plain packaging on food and drink products.[6]

It is therefore no surprise that CanvasU's research found that:

- At least half of Australians think it is likely plain packaging will be

introduced on alcohol and food & drink with a high sugar content in the future

(or that it is already in place).

In fact, a majority of Australians expect this policy to be just the start of

an escalation in regulation against lifestyle in the future.

"An increasing number of regulators are looking at extreme tobacco-style

regulations on other product categories without considering proper evidence or

research into the consequences. Brand owners should be worried about this

domino-effect as policy-makers won't stop with tobacco," concludes Michiel

Reerink.

Note to editors

Methodology:

CanvasU interviewed 2,097 Australian adults (18+) in a nationally

representative online survey between November 2 and 11, 2017.

About CanvasU:

CanvasU is a 100% Australian owned and independent research agency. Neil Evans,

Executive Director, has worked with clients across Government, Education

institutions, Blue Chip companies and as preferred supplier for leading Market

Research companies within Australia and overseas. CanvasU has extensive

experience conducting both online and telephone research for a variety of

domestic and international clients. CanvasU is a member of the Australian

Market & Social Research Society (AMSRS) and abides by the Society's Code of

Professional Behaviour and regulations.

Full research tables and methodology can be found on jti.com.

About JTI

JTI is a leading international tobacco company with operations in more than 120

countries. It is the global owner of both Winston, the number two cigarette

brand in the world, and Camel outside the USA and has the largest share in

sales for both brands. Other global brands include Mevius, LD and Natural

American Spirit. With its internationally recognized brand Logic, JTI is also a

major player in the e-cigarette market and has, since 2011, been present in the

heated tobacco category with Ploom. Headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, JTI

employs around 27,000 people and was awarded Global Top Employer for three

consecutive years. Its core revenue in the fiscal year ended December 31, 2016,

was USD 10.5 billion. JTI is a member of the Japan Tobacco Group of Companies.

For more information, visit http://www.jti.com.

References

1.

https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/illicit-use-of-drugs/ndshs-2016-key-findings/contents/highlights-from-the-2016-survey

2. The analysis shows that there has been no statistically significant impact

on prevalence in the UK and no statistically significant impact on consumption

in the UK or in France:

http://www.europe-economics.com/publications/15/publications.htm

3. OFDT (Observatoire français des drogues et des toxicomanies). Volumes of

tobacco products (RMC and RYO/MYO) distributed to retailers as reported by

Customs autorities (Direction Générale des Douanes et Droits Indirects). See  

https://www.ofdt.fr/statistiques-et-infographie/tableau-de-bord-tabac/ .

Tobacco products went up slightly (+0.6%) during the first half of 2017 versus

the same period last year). For the period January to September, the same data

showed a decrease by just 1.4% versus to the same period.

4.

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/583047/alcohol_public_health_burden_evidence_review.pdf

5.

http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(17)32868-4/fulltext

6.https://www.oma.org/wp-content/uploads/pop-obesity-warning.pdf

Source: JT International SA