British American Tobacco's Predatory Strategy in South Asia

Despite significant progress, smoking remains at epidemic levels in South Asia. According to a report published by The Union and the Bengaluru Institute of Public Health, this situation can be explained in particular by the activity of British American Tobacco (BAT), the manufacturer of Pall Mall, Lucky Strike, Vogue, and Dunhill, which does not hesitate to regularly violate the legislation.[I].

CSR as a tool for influencing public policies

According to the report, BAT is increasing its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) activities. In Bangladesh, BAT's local subsidiary has focused its social responsibility efforts on COVID. The report shows that the tobacco company has widely communicated on donations of equipment, personal protection or disinfectants to hospitals, administrations, and ministries. Corporate social responsibility activities, which can have a virtuous effect when they come from certain sectors, have the consequence, when mobilized by the tobacco industry, of increasing the influence of tobacco companies and reducing the capacity of public authorities to implement effective tobacco control policies. For this reason, the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC), in its articles 5.3 and 13, requires Parties to prohibit any CSR action by the tobacco industry.

Deliberate illegal actions in Asia

According to the report, Surya Nepal Private Limited, a Nepalese subsidiary of BAT, has been a major lobbyist for maintaining the lowest possible tax on tobacco products. Furthermore, the authors of the report point out that Surya Nepal products were found without tax stamps, while the company refused to use the stamps recommended by the Internal Revenue Department to help combat tax evasion. Furthermore, in 2020, 2021 and 2022, Nepal Customs figures show a curious absence of tobacco exports from the company to India, suggesting undeclared export activity, i.e. smuggling.

A global strategy organized from the head office

For the authors of the report, South Asia is not the only region in which such practices are observed. The multiplicity of examples from all corners of the world suggests that these activities respond to a global and deliberate strategy, organized or validated from the company's headquarters. For example, in February 2021, an investigation by the Bureau of Investigative Journalism showed that BAT had launched a billion pound marketing campaign sterling (1.16 billion euros), relying largely on social networks, with the aim of targeting the younger generations. The same year, a report by Stopping Tobacco Organizations and Products (STOP) demonstrated that the cigarette manufacturer had implemented a system of corruption and espionage in ten African countries, in order to slow progress in tobacco control, and to maintain its commercial dominance over its competitors. The investigation into this case claimed that the documents consulted made it possible to establish a high level of involvement on the part of BAT's head office.

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[I] The Union, Institute of Public Health, Bengaluru, Interference by big tobacco and affiliates in tobacco control in south Africa, 09/19/2022, (accessed 09/20/2022)

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