Health warnings, plain packaging: strong global growth

International regulation of cigarette and other tobacco product packaging continues to make very positive progress, according to the latest report from the Canadian Cancer Society. Whether it is the inclusion of health warnings on packaging, illustrations, or plain packaging, more and more countries are moving towards stricter regulation of this advertising vector.[1].

The Canadian Cancer Society has released a new report on the status of tobacco packaging regulation in 206 countries and territories worldwide. The last report was released in 2018, and this edition highlights an improvement in the international situation, reflecting the fact that governments around the world are increasingly addressing the health issue of tobacco packaging.

More frequent and more readable health warnings

Twenty years after Canada adopted this measure, of the 206 countries and territories observed, 134 now require the display of health messages on tobacco packages, 17 more than in the last report in 2018. This means that 65% of the world's countries and territories are now affected by this public health measure, and 70% of the international population. The surface area allocated to health warnings has also shown real progress in recent years. Of the 134 countries requiring the display of these messages, 122 require that they cover more than 50% of the surface area of the package (front and back), compared to 107 in 2018 and only 24 in 2008.

Differentiated graphic warnings according to countries

In some countries, regulations on health warnings have progressed significantly. In this regard, Timor-Leste and Turkey are the jurisdictions with the most stringent regulations, since 92.5% of the pack must be covered with graphic warnings. Since 2018, several countries have significantly strengthened their regulations: this is the case in Turkey, which required a coverage of 65% of the pack three years previously, but also in the Maldives, which increased from 30% to 90% of the pack surface. The European Union requires its member states to cover 65% of the main surfaces of tobacco packaging with health warnings. To date, the report shows that 27 countries and territories have more stringent regulations than in Europe, including several African countries, such as Chad.

More and more countries have adopted plain packaging, or are considering doing so.

At the time of the last report in 2018, only nine countries had adopted plain packaging, while 16 were considering implementing it. Today, while only Australia, France and the United Kingdom have actually implemented it, 24 countries and territories have to date adopted the measure that should soon come into force, while 14 are working on it, compared to 9 and 16 respectively three years ago. As the Canadian Cancer Society report points out, plain packaging on tobacco products reduces the use of packaging as an advertising showcase, reduces the attractiveness of tobacco products, increases the effectiveness of health warnings, and helps reduce tobacco consumption. For all these reasons, the adoption of plain packaging is recommended by the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control.

FT

[1] Canadian Cancer Society, Cigarette package health warnings, 10/2021, (accessed 09/11/2021)