RI health officials launch anti-tobacco campaign

Rhode Island health officials have launched an anti-tobacco campaign featuring the voice of a tobacco industry lobbyist who died of throat cancer in 1996.

The Department of Health says the campaign targets young people and includes television and radio spots, a Facebook page and outdoor advertisements.

Health officials say the radio and television spots feature the voice of the late lobbyist Victor Crawford, who is heard saying that he lied about how the tobacco industry targeted the young with its marketing. The ad also includes an apology from Crawford.

The print ads feature the faces of young people branded with product barcodes that include the word "Replacement." The print ad slogan is "Don't be a replacement, be an original."

NACS to Host Webinar on FDA Tobacco Compliance

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is issuing costly fines to retailers for tobacco non-compliance — join NACS and We Card to learn more about your rights and responsibilities.

In the past eight months, FDA, through its Center for Tobacco Products, has completed more than 35,000 inspections and is now issuing civil money penalties for single and multiple violations found in just one inspection.

Join NACS and We Card for a webinar on March 14 at 3:00 pm EST to learn more about how to navigate the FDA’s Civil Monetary Penalty Process and better understand retailer responsibilities and compliance requirements when responding to tobacco violations.

FDA is aggressively pursuing tobacco compliance checks, making it critical for retailers to educate and train their staff on the proper sale of tobacco products. Monetary penalties for tobacco non-compliance can result in fines from $250 to $10,000, and even no sale orders.

Sacking call after tobacco-sponsored event

New Zealand's ambassador to the United States, Mike Moore, is facing calls for his sacking after hosting an event sponsored by a tobacco giant.

Mana Party leader Hone Harawira yesterday hit out at Mr Moore, a former prime minister, for his decision to front the Governors and Ambassadors World Trade Reception on February 24.

Multibillion-dollar tobacco company Philip Morris was one of the event's key sponsors, along with Chevron, PhRMA and Target.

Having Mr Moore host the event undermined world-leading legislation aimed at making New Zealand smoke free by 2025, Mr Harawira said.

He called for Mr Moore to be fired from his post.

"Moore's attendance at this party is a slap in the face for all those who have worked hard to stop the tobacco companies killing thousands of New Zealanders every year, and an insult to those families who have lost loved ones to the country's most addictive drug."

About 5000 New Zealanders die each year as a result of smoking, government statistics show.

Mr Harawira said Prime Minister John Key should order foreign diplomats to cease any involvement with tobacco companies.

Australian embassy staff reportedly withdrew from the reception just hours before it started in protest at Philip Morris' involvement.

Farmers turning tobacco growers

Loans disbursed by tobacco companies and higher profits from tobacco farming are making more and more farmers turn to this sector, ignoring the health hazards of working in fields where these plants are cultivated.

"Even though I am suffering from various physical disorders including chest pain and breathing problems, I have to go to the tobacco field to work," Ghonapara village resident, 32-year old Mariam Begum told bdnews24.com.

She said that working at the tobacco fields earns her only around Tk 100 a day, but she has no other option, as farming of other crops is fast fading.

Haridas Roy, who is a labour for a tobacco mill in Tupamari, suffers similar ailments. "Even though my eyesight is getting weaker day by day and I am suffering from breathing problems, chest pain and insomnia, I have to continue working only to survive."

"Despite its harmful effects, the farmers are turning to tobacco cultivation as it earns them greater profits," Nilphamari's civil surgeon Dr Abdul Majid Sarker reasoned.

"Eventually the number of smokers and tobacco chewers in the area is also rising," the doctor said pointing to the accompanying ills and ailments.

THE ECONOMIC VICE

Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE) deputy director A B M Mostafizur attributes the rising trend of tobacco cultivation in the northern district to the failure of the government to ensure proper prices for other crops.

"The farmers' interest has increased as they are not getting proper prices for other crops. Besides, the tobacco companies are providing support…in the form of advance loans."

The resultant boom is amazing. According to official statistics, farmers are cultivating tobacco over 5,000 hectares this year, a 1000-hectare rise from the previous year.

Farmers said that tobacco was sown just after the harvest of the Aman crops. With an initial investment of around Tk 15,000 per acre, cultivation of tobacco leads to a net profit of around Tk 30,000-35,000 per acre when the crops are cashed.

They added that cigarette companies have disbursed advance loans to more than 3,000 of them amounting roughly to Tk 12.8 million.

"Many companies like Akij Biri Factory [Limited] have loaned farmers Tk 4,000 in advance for per acre of tobacco cultivation. Company officials regularly visit the fields to inspect the production," tobacco farmer Hafizur Rahman, 24, from Tupamari union, said.

"The borrowers are bound in the deal to sell their crop to the lending company. Otherwise, they might face difficulties."

Masud Ali Shah Fakir, 40, said that he took Tk 8,000 as loan from Akij Tobacco Company to cultivate on two acres of land.

Other cigarette and chewing tobacco producing companies like Varosha, Rashida biri, Bengal Tobacco, Abul Tobacco, Akij Biri, Khaled Gul, Tarik Gul, Touhid Gul and Sakib Gul also extend advance loans to promote tobacco farming.

Political leadership needed for tobacco-free NZ

Clear goals and detailed planning are critical to achieve the government's aim of making New Zealand 'smoke-free' by 2025, according to health researchers from the University of Otago, Wellington.

In newly published research, they have defined what is needed for tobacco 'endgame' planning for governments, both in New Zealand and overseas.

"Research indicates that incremental efforts are not enough to reduce smoking to near zero by 2025. This is the case in New Zealand where smoking has declined very slowly in the last two decades, and over 20% of the adult population still smokes," says lead author Dr George Thomson.

The researchers say that the strategic goals need to be explicit, detailed and bold, and should aim to reduce smoking to under 1% in any social or ethnic group.

Their article, published in the international journal Tobacco Control, argues that a number of preconditions may be needed for a realistic tobacco endgame plan.

These include banning political donations by tobacco companies and their allies and agents, as in New South Wales. Some of the conditions needed to end tobacco use already fit the New Zealand situation.

"We have great advantages in having good borders and low corruption, so illegal tobacco is much less of a problem than in other countries," Thomson says.

The article also says that a tobacco-free New Zealand needs clear targets such as: close to zero tobacco use, the ending of the commercial supply of tobacco, and the total denormalisation of tobacco for children.

According to Thomson, setting a clear end date for commercial tobacco sales would be one of the best incentives for quitting.

"Any preventable deaths, let alone the current 5000 a year, should be stopped. Definite endgame plans are needed now to ensure that. We also need to ensure that trade and other treaties, such as the proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement, don't interfere with our actions to end tobacco in Aotearoa," he says

New Zealand still has a relatively high adult smoking rate (20%) compared to under 12% in California and under 17% in Canada. The article suggests that New Zealand may need to reduce smoking below 15% soon, in order to get the momentum needed to achieve the tobacco-free 2025 goal.

"Below this level may result in a public and political 'tipping point' where smoking rapidly becomes unacceptable, and laws to ensure a tobacco-free New Zealand are politically easier. However, political leadership has been vital in many countries in rapidly reducing smoking, and the same is needed in this country."

One of the co-authors, Professor Tony Blakely has shown that eliminating smoking could add an average three years of life for the whole New Zealand population, as well as much better quality of life.

"We must put in place methods for a more predictable and faster end to smoking," says Blakely.

Fruit-flavored tobacco targets Florida kids

A rainbow of fruit-flavored blunts, cigars and cigarillos line the shelves behind the counter at the Eustis Mobil convenience store on U.S. Highway 441.

Tobacco users have their pick: apple, grape, peach and more. But a movement is gaining steam across the state against flavored tobacco. Local officials argue the candylike taste and shiny, colorful wrappers are meant to attract children and get them hooked on tobacco products.
About 100 resolutions — including several in Central Florida — have been adopted across the state, urging businesses to stop selling fruit- and liqueur-flavored tobacco, including cigars, chew and snuff.

"Youth perceive these products as safe because of the candy flavor," said Dr. Bonnie Sorensen, director of the Volusia County Health Department.

Although flavored products look "benign," Sorensen warned they're as addictive as regular cigarettes. As part of the movement against flavored tobacco, she has talked to public officials in several Volusia cities, including Port Orange, which has passed a resolution asking businesses to quit selling it. Kissimmee, St. Cloud and Lake Mary have also passed resolutions.

Lake County this month became the latest Central Florida government to join the effort after Health Department officials cited a 2010 survey that found one in five middle- and high-school students reported using flavored tobacco. Of more than 40 convenience stores examined, health officials said all were carrying flavored tobacco products.

In Orange, more than 150 stores were surveyed, and all carried a variety of flavored tobacco, said Mary Petiprin, tobacco-prevention specialist with the county's Health Department. One in six kids from 11 to 17 reported using flavored tobacco, which they get from older teens, Petiprin said. She plans to approach city and county officials about adopting the resolution in a month or two. Osceola Health Department officials are working with county officials on a similar resolution.

Flavored cigars have been around for years. However, dozens of new flavors have been introduced into the market, Sorensen said. Tobacco pellets that resemble Tic Tac mints and nicotine-laced toothpicks also are available, she said. Many of these products have been creeping into local neighborhood convenience stores in the past two to three years, Sorensen said.

Tobacco pellets and snus, a form of smokeless tobacco, are produced by R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. but are not targeted to children, said John Singleton, communications director of the parent company, Reynolds American Inc. He said R.J. Reynolds, the second-largest cigarette maker in the U.S., is working with middle schools nationwide to prevent kids from smoking.

"We're aligned with the purpose of this effort," Singleton said. "We have a different way of going about it, though."

State and local officials should be working on enforcing laws that prohibit minors from smoking and imposing stricter punishment for people who sell or provide kids with tobacco rather than ban flavored tobacco, Singleton said.

Others also question the need for resolutions, which have no teeth. Local officials can't outlaw tobacco in their communities, so they're at the mercy of retailers to snuff out flavored products. TheU.S. Food and Drug Administration, which has the authority to regulate tobacco, banned flavored cigarettes, except for menthol, in 2009. Petiprin the federal government needs to take other flavored-tobacco products as a serious threat to kids.

But Lake County Commissioner Jennifer Hill, who voted against the resolution earlier this month, called it a "slippery slope" for local governments to request retailers not to sell flavored tobacco. She asked whether chocolate wine and cotton-candy vodka would be next on the hit list.

Jeff Baker, owner of the Eustis convenience store, said it'll be tough to persuade businesses that already are prohibited from selling tobacco to minors to voluntarily throw out fruity items, which also legally can only be sold to adults.

"It doesn't make sense," he said, adding that such responsibility lies with the parents.

However, Petiprin said parents often don't realize their kids are using flavored tobacco. The shiny and colorful candylike wrappers can be deceiving, she said.

Roberta Hurtado, 17, of Orlando said she didn't know candy-flavored tobacco existed until she heard about it in the Students Working Against Tobacco program at Pine Castle Christian Academy. Roberta, the group's president, then started to pay more attention to the juicy flavors on her visits to stores.

"It's like Starbursts," Hurtado said of the variety, which included strawberry, cherry and orange. "I can't believe companies are so desperate for users that they would target children. To mess with the health and minds of children, that's dirty."

Anti-smoking, drinking ads miss their mark

ADVERTISING campaigns and tax hikes designed to curb smoking and dangerous drinking haven't made enough headway in Wyndham, according to a Werribee GP after the release of the latest health snapshot.
The Victorian Population Health Survey revealed 22.6per cent of Wyndham men and 24.5per cent of women were smokers.

Wyndham residents also showed above-average rates of alcohol abuse with 17.4per cent of men and 7per cent of women drinking alcohol at high-risk levels.

Westgate GP Network chairman Joe Garra (pictured) said smoking and alcohol consumption were behind scores of health problems among Wyndham residents.

Smoking was the big killer, but a difficult habit to kick.

"I see a lot of smoking-related illnesses in Werribee, as we do everywhere, but the problem is that no medication for giving up smoking is 100per cent successful," he said.

"People know they should give up smoking, they know it's not a good thing that they're doing, but they still find it hard. "

Dr Garra said alcohol consumption led to high rates of liver disease and booze-fuelled domestic violence injuries.

He said drinking patterns among young people in Wyndham were also worrying.

"There's been an increase in spirit drinking. Forty years ago, young people drank beer, but now it's shots and pre-mixed drinks. People are drinking higher, dangerous concentrations of alcohol more quickly."

Playing school sports affects youths' smoking

Young people's choices about using drugs and alcohol are influenced by peers—not only close friends, but also sports teammates. A new study of middle schoolers and their social networks has found that teammates' smoking plays a big role in youths' decisions about smoking, but adolescents who take part in a lot of sports smoke less.

The study was conducted at the University of Southern California (USC) and appears in the journal Child Development.

Researchers looked at 1,260 ethnically diverse, urban, middle-class sixth through eighth graders. They asked the students about their own smoking behavior, and they asked them to name friends at school as well as the organized sports they took part in at school. Then, using a social network method they developed, they examined how participation in sports with teammates who smoked affected adolescents' smoking behavior.

They found that youths were more likely to smoke as they were increasingly exposed to teammates who smoked, and that this tendency may be stronger among girls than boys. But they also found that youths who took part in a greater number of sports were less likely to smoke than those who participated in fewer.

"This result suggests that peers on athletic teams influence the smoking behavior of others even though there might be a protective effect overall of increased participation in athletics on smoking," according to Kayo Fujimoto, assistant professor of health promotion and behavioral sciences at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, who led the study when she was at USC.

The study has implications for programs aimed at preventing teens from smoking. "Current guidelines recommend the use of peer leaders selected within the class to implement such programs," Fujimoto points out. "The findings of this study suggest that peer-led interactive programs should be expanded to include sports teams as well."

Japan Tobacco profits likely to rise next FY

President Hiroshi Kimura also told Reuters in an interview the company may issue a limited amount of debt to help fund a buyback of government-owned shares.

JT on Monday lifted its operating profit forecast for the year to March to 365 billion yen ($4.75 billion), a 9.5 percent year-on-year rise, partly as sales picked up following domestic cigarette shipment suspensions on a shortage of materials such as filters and paper after the March 11 earthquake and tsunami.

Profits next year "won't be lower than this year," said Kimura, 58.

"As long the excessively strong yen does not advance further, upside factors such as the rebound from the disasters and momentum overseas will support the outlook," Kimura said, declining to give a figure for the expected increase.

Eleven analysts polled by Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S projected an average annual operating profit of 406 billion yen for the fiscal year that starts in April.

Kimura, himself a two pack-a-day smoker, said JT is aiming to achieve a domestic tobacco market share of more than 60 percent in its next business year, but it would be hard to return to the 64 percent share it had before the disasters struck.

JT, which ranks behind Philip Morris International (PM.N) and British American Tobacco (BATS.L) in sales volume worldwide, had a 59.1 percent share of Japan's tobacco market in December.

The Japanese government, which owns half the tobacco maker, plans next financial year to sell about 1.7 million shares, or about 17 percent of outstanding stock, to help with reconstruction efforts after the quake and tsunami.

The Mild Seven maker has been lobbying the government to cut its stake for years in hopes a gaining a freer hand in making decisions and is interested in buying back some of the shares held by the Ministry of Finance.

Talks of a share buyback have raised investor hopes that the former state monopoly would take action to boost shareholder returns closer to industry norms, lifting its share price.

Shares have risen nearly 25 percent over the last 12 months, versus about a 15 percent fall in the benchmark Nikkei average .N225.

JT, which is looking to increase its earnings per share, will have to see the schedule and the scheme for the government's stake sale before giving specific EPS growth goals, Kimura said.

An EPS of 18,788 yen is projected for its business year which ends in March, according to a poll of 11 analysts by Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

On Wednesday, shares of JT settled 1.9 percent higher, beating a 1.1 percent gain in the Nikkei 225.

Kimura declined to comment on media reports that said JT was a possible bidder for U.S.-based Lorillard (LO.N) and Britain's Imperial Tobacco Group (IMT.L), but said his bigger priority currently was on organic growth.

He added that he was not interested at present in the American market since he believed the risk of litigation for tobacco companies there was still high.

Earlier mega-deals reshaped the global tobacco industry, leaving scant major acquisition opportunities.

JT was part of that realignment by purchasing the international tobacco business of R.J. Reynolds in 1999 and buying Britain's Gallaher for $19 billion, in one of Japan's richest outbound M&A deals on record, in 2007.