In the Netherlands, PMI received an environmental grant in 2021 to renovate a factory

Philip Morris International received a €268,000 grant from the Dutch government in 2021 to make production at one of its factories more sustainable. Although the tobacco company eventually waived the amount, the late discovery of the government support caused a public outcry.

So the Netherlands is wondering about new measures anti-smoking measures and the Dutch government is considering banning cigarette filters and nicotine pouches, the revelation by RTL Z of a public subsidy to Philip Morris International (PMI) in 2021 causes scandal.

A grant to improve the sustainability of the plant

As part of environmental subsidies to reduce CO emissions² According to the industry, PMI's Bergen op Zoom plant met the necessary conditions and was granted EUR 268,000 in public aid.[1]This factory manufactures cigarettes as well as “semi-finished products” for electronic cigarettes.

Having given up on undertaking the work planned under this subsidy in the second half of 2021 and being no longer eligible, PMI has finally returned the sums received. However, the tobacco multinational aims to achieve carbon neutrality for this plant within three years and plans to invest 15.5 million euros of its own funds. This operation is part of the intense environmental communication deployed by PMI to improve its image, as part of corporate social responsibility (CSR).

Strong reactions from the entire political class

The revelation of this information on April 24, 2023 triggered the indignation of all parliamentarians, majority and opposition alike. The idea that public subsidies, especially in the environmental field, could be paid to a tobacco manufacturer seems particularly incongruous. "This case shows why we want stricter rules for these types of companies.", reacted Suzanne Kröger, from the GroenLinks (Green Left) party, "It is absurd to put sustainability money into factories we want to get rid of".

The situation is all the more embarrassing for the government as the heavy environmental toll of the tobacco industry is becoming increasingly well-known and has been the subject of World No Tobacco Day in 2022. In the context of the preparatory meetings for the negotiation of the international treaty on plastics, Vivianne Heijnen, the Dutch Minister of the Environment, has herself taken a position in favour of banning filters in cigarettes.[2], a measure supported by those involved in the fight against smoking. She insisted on the necessarily European nature of such a measure, with the aim of revising the directive on the ban on single-use plastics in 2026. The allocation of public funds to the tobacco industry represents a clear violation of the implementing guidelines of the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) and its Article 5.3.

To learn more about the ban on cigarette filters, read our decryption.

Keywords: Netherlands, subsidy, Philip Morris, environment, filters.

©Tobacco Free Generation

M.F.

[1] The Ministry gave tons of subsidies to cigarette manufacturer Philip Morris, Netherlands Posts English, published on April 24, 2023 (translation by Pauw M, Ministerie gaf tonn subsidizes aan sigarettenfabrikant Philip Morris, RTL Nieuws, published on April 24, 2024), consulted on April 25, 2023.

[2] Ban is best way to stop cigarette filter threat: minister, DutchNews.nl, published April 21, 2023, accessed April 25, 2023.