Illustrated warnings and plain packaging around the world

In a September 2018 report, the Canadian Cancer Society presented a ranking of 206 countries/territories based on the size of warnings on cigarette packages and the requirements of some. An opportunity to revisit the usefulness of this process, as well as the effectiveness of plain packaging.

“A picture is worth a thousand words”

Pictorial warnings are a highly cost-effective way to communicate and reduce tobacco use, as mentioned in the Guidelines for the Implementation of Article 11 (Packaging and Labelling) adopted under the WHO (World Health Organization) Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC). Images can sometimes convey a more powerful message than text. It should also be noted that the larger the warnings, the more effective they are: they leave room for better quality images, larger text, or additional information, such as on quitting smoking.

An encouraging trend

The report states that great progress has been made: - many countries have increased the size of pictorial warnings, - more countries require pictorial warnings, - more countries require multiple sets of pictorial warnings. - plain packaging is also on the rise.

While Canada was the first country to use pictorial warnings, 118 countries/territories, home to 58,000 people of the world's population, have now followed suit. In 107 countries, the warnings cover at least 50,000 of the package surface. East Timor is the most demanding, with warnings covering 85,000 of the front of the package and 100,000 of the back.

The advantages of neutral packaging

Plain packaging – also known as “plain packaging,” “standardized packaging,” “standardized plain packaging,” and “generic packaging” – does not permit brand colors, logos, or graphics. The packaging is all the same shape, material, and size. Plain packaging could end the use of the pack as a promotional tool by industry, increase the effectiveness of health warnings, and reduce smoking. International guidelines issued under the FCTC recommended the introduction of plain packaging, and the theme of the World Health Organization’s 2016 World No Tobacco Day on May 31, 2016, was “Get ready for plain packaging.”

Australia was the first to implement plain packaging on 1 December 2012. As of September 2018, 9 countries have implemented plain packaging, with 16 others considering it. Plain packaging is in effect in Australia (2012), France (2016), the United Kingdom (2016), Norway (2017), Ireland (2017), New Zealand (2018), Hungary (2018), Uruguay (2019), Canada (2020) and Slovenia (2020). It is being implemented or is under consideration in Canada, Belgium, Thailand, Georgia, Singapore, Nepal, Sri Lanka, South Africa, Romania, Jersey, Guernsey, Taiwan, Chile, Finland, Turkey and Saudi Arabia.

As Dr Margaret Chan, WHO Director-General, reminded us on World No Tobacco Day on 31 May 2016: “Take away the glossy cardboard packaging that encloses tobacco products, and what is left? Products that kill nearly 6 million people each year. Tobacco packaging is a form of advertising and promotion that is often misleading, and serves to hide from consumers the deadly consequences of smoking. (...) Plain packaging works.”*

©Generation Without Tobacco

Canadian Cancer Society, “Health Warnings on Cigarette Packages – International Report,” September 2018, 6th edition.

[i] "United States: new health warnings on packages" https://www.generationsanstabac.org/actualites/etats-unis-de-nouveaux-avertissements-sanitaires-sur-les-paquets/

[i] "South Korea adopts new health warnings including for new heated tobacco cigarettes" https://www.generationsanstabac.org/actualites/la-coree-du-sud-adopte-de-nouveaux-avertissements-sanitaires-y-compris-pour-les-nouvelles-cigarettes-de-tabac-chauffe/

[i] "In Canada, all packages sold are now neutral" https://www.generationsanstabac.org/actualites/au-canada-tous-les-paquets-vendus-sont-desormais-neutres/

[i] "WTO upholds Australian plain packets' compliance on appeal" https://www.generationsanstabac.org/actualites/omc-confirme-conformite-paquets-neutres-australie/

[i] "The Netherlands forced by industry to postpone the introduction of plain packaging" https://www.generationsanstabac.org/actualites/les-pays-bas-forces-par-lindustrie-de-reporter-lintroduction-du-paquet-neutre/

[i] "Plain tobacco packaging puts smokers off" https://www.generationsanstabac.org/actualites/les-paquets-neutres-du-tabac-rebutent-les-fumeurs/

©DNF - For a Zero Tobacco World |