Tobacco.org

EDITORIAL: One cheer for Government's tobacco stance 

Tobacco plus government has in recent years only added up to one thing for retailers: trouble.

However, in the context of a generally oppressive and inequitable legislative regime, the government's recently published tobacco control strategy document was, so to speak, a breath of fresh air. . . .

It was encouraging that tackling the illicit trade was given such a high priority in the policy announcement, and that immediate investment will be made in more overseas officers. Crucially, the statement also acknowledged the major role that black market tobacco plays in 'recruiting' young smokers. It's cheap, it's plentiful and nobody selling it checks ID, so well done UK Govt for finally spotting that one. . . .

Yet they are still pushing on with display restrictions and fiddly new implementation guidelines surrounding price lists and restocking, and still considering plain packaging (an interesting one for the lawyers, that). So despite it being the best news for tobacco retailers for some time, it's still only one cheer rather than three.

Jump to full article »

Japan Tobacco Oct-Dec Net Pft Y40.9B Vs Y62.0B Year Earlier  

Japan Tobacco Inc. (2914.TO) said Tuesday its net profit for the fiscal third quarter declined 34% on year, blaming foreign exchange factors and a slump in domestic demand.

The world's third-largest tobacco company by sales volume after Philip Morris International Inc. and British American Tobacco PLC, had a net profit Y40.86 billion in the October-December quarter, compared with a Y61.97 billion profit in the same period a year earlier.

The company, commonly known as JT, suffered a 14% decline in revenue to Y1.598 trillion from Y1.849 trillion, while operating profit amounted to Y88.82 billion, down 29%. JT cited foreign exchange factors as dragging down tobacco sales overseas.

Jump to full article »

Rep. Paul Ray’s Proposal to Ban Electronic Cigarette Sales to Adults in Utah: A Deadly Mistake 

A bill proposing a statewide ban of electronic cigarettes in the state of Utah recently passed the Health and Human Services Committee and now moves to the House for a vote, but according to experts, statements by the bill’s sponsor, Rep. Paul Ray, demonstrate a profound misunderstanding of the science behind electronic cigarettes and of nicotine’s effects on the body.

Jump to full article »

• 2nd UPDATE: Lorillard To Enter Moist Smokeless Tobacco Category  

Newport cigarette maker Lorillard Inc. (LO) announced Monday it will soon enter the market for moist smokeless tobacco products, but said that an earlier joint venture with Swedish Match AB (SWMA.SK) to develop a new product in the U.S. had been mutually terminated.

Moist smokeless tobacco is a type of tobacco product that is popular in the U.S. and widely sold by companies like Altria Group Inc. (MO) through brands like Copenhagen and Skoal. Sales of these smokeless tobacco products have risen in the U.S. even as cigarette sales have dropped.

Lorillard didn't provide details of the new moist smokeless tobacco product it will sell in the U.S. but said that an existing joint venture with Swedish Match to develop a new "snus" tobacco product for the U.S. had been terminated. Snus is a nearly 200-year-old Swedish product. In 2006 Lorillard entered into a joint venture with Swedish Match North America to develop and study the possibility of marketing a tobacco product for the U.S. market called Triumph Snus.

Jump to full article »

Doin’ it with Diddy at the Super Bowl: Beverly Hills Cigar Club Scorches South Beach with Golconda Churchill Introduction 

Super Bowl Weekend - Beverly Hills Cigar Club (BHCC) did it with Diddy, launching its new Golconda Churchill at the Sean "Diddy" Combs' celebrity-filled "I am King" Super Bowl event at the Sean John pop-up boutique on Collins Avenue in South Beach.

"Goldwin Tobacco's Louixs, named for Louix XIV, the luxury-loving ruler of France, along with Golconda, perfectly match Diddy's `I Am King' theme. With these cigars, South Beach was a little hotter tonight."

BHCC sponsored Diddy's and several other Miami events as part of the company's Super Bowl Cigar campaign.

Celebrating at Diddy's event were NFL players Hanley Ramirez (Florida Marlins), Ryan Grant (RB Green Bay Packer), Aaron Maybin (Buffalo Bills), Andre Johnson (Houston Texans), Lamar Woodley (Pittsburgh Steelers), Amobi Okoye (Houston Texans), Arron Mavin (Ravens), Dan Connelly (New England Patriots), Lamarr Woodley (Pittsburgh Steelers), Eric Dickerson (Retired Rams) and Hanley Rame-Riez (Florida Marlins).

Jump to full article »

Dan Gross: Cigars held in fundraising Jaws 

DONOVAN McNabb joined Ron Jaworski at Jaws' South Beach Cigar Party at the Hotel Victor in Miami over Super Bowl weekend. ESPN's Suzy Kolber, Merril Hoge, Mike Tirico and Sal Paolantonio, along with Desmond Howard, Jon Gruden and Mike Ditka were among the boldface names to attend the cigar and Johnny Walker Scotch pairing party to raise money for the United Way Jaws Youth Fund of Camden County and the United Way of Miami-Dade.

Adam Geffner, co-founder of the Philly Cigar Club, also was in attendance as Jaws worked with the club to manage cigar partners.

Jump to full article »

Lorillard, Inc. Reports Fourth Quarter and Annual 2009 Results 

"Given the challenges presented by an unprecedented increase in the federal excise taxes on cigarettes in April 2009, we are pleased to announce our fourth quarter and full year 2009 results were consistent with our long-standing strategic objective of balancing profitability and the improvement of the Newport brand's market share performance," stated Martin Orlowsky, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer. "For 2009, our operating income increased by 8.9% over 2008 and Newport's 2009 domestic retail share reached 10.28%, as measured by the Company's proprietary retail database, up 0.36 points versus 2008. Lorillard again outperformed the domestic tobacco industry as Lorillard's domestic wholesale shipments declined 3.9% in 2009 compared to 2008 versus an industry decrease of 8.6%."

Jump to full article »

Lorillard 4Q profit falls on higher costs 

Lorillard Inc. said Monday that its fourth-quarter profit fell as the maker of Newport cigarettes faced higher manufacturing costs and other expenses.

Wholesale cigarette shipments slipped about 4 percent for both the quarter and the year. Still, the cigarette maker said its full-year decline was smaller than the 8.6 percent dropoff that was the industry average.

The nation's third-largest cigarette company's earnings dropped 6 percent to $242 million, or $1.52 per share. This narrowly beat the $1.51-per-share estimate of analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters. These estimates usually take out one-time items.

Lorillard, whose other brands include Kent, True and Maverick, reported a profit of $258 million, or $1.53 per share, a year earlier.

Jump to full article »

VIDEO: Downtown Tobacco Shop Closes After Decades  

One of the last places to allow smoking downtown is closing its doors.

Jump to full article »

EDITORIAL: Policing tobacco sales worth the effort  

U.S. health officials say they are concerned about candy-like smokeless tobacco products that are brightly packaged and flavored and, they fear, enticing to youngsters. . . .

We're concerned young people who might be turned off to actually smoking may see these candy-like products as more acceptable, cool or trendy. The packaging is appealing and small, so they can easily be concealed. We're also concerned that if so many people have been able to get cigarettes under the age of 18 it's likely these products will be as easy to get as well.

We support the efforts of the FDA to get more information and we urge parents and others to educate youngsters about these products and their addictive nature.

Jump to full article »

KU to ban sale of tobacco products from its campus  

KU and Kansas State were the only state universities that still sold tobacco products on campus — and they were asked last month to review whether this was appropriate. The ban would apply to cigarettes, cigars, pipe tobacco, snuff, chewing tobacco and other forms of “smokeless” tobacco.

In a statement released Friday, Chancellor Bernadette Gray-Little said tobacco products would no longer be sold as of July 1, 2010.

Jump to full article »

Turks strike in solidarity with tobacco workers 

Thousands of Turkish public employees went on strike and many took to the streets Thursday to show solidarity with tobacco industry workers, locked in a bitter row with the government.

Labour confederations called a nine-hour general strike, but the protest had a limited impact on vital services after some unions shied away and the authorities threatened disciplinary action against those who stopped work.

Public transport was seriously disrupted in Izmir, Turkey's third largest city, the NTV news channel said, and occasional delays were reported on Ankara's subway.

Miners, factory workers, clerks and employees of state-run power and water facilities across the country also joined the strike, media reports said.

Jump to full article »

• Turkey on the Streets for Tekel Workers 

Turkish Confederation of Labour Unions (Türk-İş) President Mustafa Kumlu reckoned the general strike on Thursday (4 February) a success.

Confederations discuss how to proceed

Representatives of the six union confederations that took the joint decision for a general strike will meet today (5 February) at the Public Workers Unions Confederation to discuss how to proceed after yesterday's major protest action. Members of the Civil Servants Unions Confederation (MEMUR-SEN) joined the general strike only to some extent, a considerable part of the members did not participate.

"Successful despite the pressure"

Türk-İş President Kumlu said in an announcement, "The protest action to use our right not to work was a success despite the pressure and the threats of the governorship, the bureaucrats and the employers". Kumlu added that according to information given by representatives from provinces and districts, Tekel workers were supported by tens of thousands of people.

Jump to full article »

Millions of Turks take action to back Tekel workers 

Millions of Turkish workers walked off the job (pictured) and into the streets on Thursday in solidarity with laid-off state tobacco firm employees.

Public services including transport were disrupted across the country and the largest demonstrations were reported in Ankara, where around 20,000 massed, and Izmir, where 15,000 flooded the city centre.

Workers also walked out at the Zonguldak coal mine, railway factories and a fireworks factory.

According to Turkish law, workers are not allowed to hold a general strike or organise solidarity strikes.

Jump to full article »

KANLI : AKP-style democracy  

Was it not interesting? There was either no news and commentary in the Thursday and Friday editions of the allegiant media regarding workers’ one-day warning general strike in solidarity with the demonstration by (former) workers of the privatized alcohol and tobacco monopoly, or Tekel, or the reports and articles were all about what a big failure the “orchestrated anti-government action” was. . . .

For God’s sake, why doesn’t the AKP’s parliamentary majority pass through Parliament a legislation, cut all allowances of the parliamentarians, give up their salaries and instead introduce a new contract for parliamentarians like the 4/C temporary work contracts the government has been trying to compel (former) Tekel workers – and soon some 200,000 workers of state-owned sugar factories and other state concerns to be privatized?

Finance Minister Şimşek had said the 4/C contract offered by the government to workers was a product of the “compassion” of the government. Well, let’s show some national compassion for our parliamentarians and offer them the very similar 4/C contracts.

Similarly, not the members, but the current executives of those two yellow labor union confederations that heeded the persuasive efforts of the government and betrayed other confederations at the last minute by withdrawing from the strike should be accorded with the same 4/C contracts.

Are the prime minister and his collaborators in this “great service to the nation” ready to accept this offer for the sake of saving billions of the nation’s liras?

Jump to full article »