http://www.tobacco.org/newsfeed/country/kenya.rss Latest top tobacco news headlines en-us http://allafrica.com/stories/201201271362.html http://tobacco.org/news/332865.html The Municipal Council of Kisumu has found itself in yet another land row threatening to derail the town housing and investment plan after a tobacco firm moved to court seeking orders to revoke last year's allotment of plots. Mastermind Tobacco Company filed a case at the Kisumu High Court to block development of a five acre plot along Kibos road which the council had subdivided and allotted the public. The tobacco firm through lawyers said the allocation of the plots was in contravention of the law and a disregard of its right to own property. After hearing submissions from the two parties justice Abida Aroni ordered the council not to interfere in any way with the plot. The complainant, Mastermind Tobacco, wanted the court to order revocation of the allotment letters but the court declined saying it will be infringing on the rights of third parties who are not aware of the plot ownership. All-Africa.com Kenya Fri, 27 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT http://www.businessdailyafrica.com/Corporate News/Tobacco farmers turn up the heat against cigarette companies /-/539550/1312102/-/wap3i2z/-/index.html http://tobacco.org/news/332839.html In the past the farmers relied on a self-sufficient system where they planted trees around tobacco farms to provide firewood. This system however failed after the trees were cut much faster than they were allowed to grow thus depleting the necessary fuel. This forced farmers to trek long distances in search of firewood. The Kenya Tobacco Farmers Association, (KTFA) is the national umbrella body that represents tobacco farmers in the country. The association has 35,000 plus members nationally with 18,000 of these in Nyanza province. According to Joseph Wanguru, CEO of KTFA of the Kenya Tobacco Farmers Association, the plight of the farmers would burn less if only tobacco firms treated farmers more fairly. “Tobacco firms care more about the farmers’ produce than the farmers themselves and they handle farmers with a great degree of high-handedness,” he explains. “For example we have repeatedly complained of the increasing prices of inputs and yet they went on ignoring our pleas until our members threatened to withhold their supply.” Mr Wanguru further adds that even the price increment farmers received was not balanced and left out some farmers. . . . In addition to this, Mr Wanguru states that the tobacco firms have become reluctant to pay the farmers for delivered produce. “One particular company, Mastermind has arrears amounting to over Sh100 million and whenever we try to get a meeting with the management to sort out the issue they stonewall us”, he states. Business Daily Africa Kenya Mon, 23 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT http://www.businessdailyafrica.com/Tobacco firms oppose proposal to raise tax rates /-/539552/1316132/-/s3tewy/-/index.html http://tobacco.org/news/332838.html The Institute of Legislative Affairs (ILA) is proposing that the Treasury increase taxes on cigarettes to an effective rate of 70 per cent, the internationally recommended level by the World Health Organisation (WHO). “Taxes account for 55 per cent of the cigarette prices in Kenya, which is much lower than the WHO recommended threshold of 70 per cent,” said the ILA last week, citing countries like Thailand, at a pre-budget hearing organised by the Institute of Economic Affairs. British American Tobacco (BAT) Kenya and Mastermind Tobacco opposed the proposal claiming it would increase cigarette smuggling by tax evaders. “This issue should be looked at in the context of the implications on the entire tobacco industry. Experience in other countries, Canada being one such example, has shown that such initiatives lead to significant increases in consumer pricing leading to the growth of illicit trade,” Business Daily Africa Kenya Sun, 29 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT http://www.businessdailyafrica.com/Taxman targets contraband traders with new duty stamps /-/539546/1304018/-/158yoh/-/index.html http://tobacco.org/news/332836.html The Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) is betting on second-generation revenue stamps to fight a key segment of the contraband goods market estimated to cost the economy billions of shillings. The loss from illegal cigarette and alcoholic drinks is part of a wider national problem involving fake goods estimated to cost the economy Sh70 billion annually besides loss of employment opportunities. KRA on Wednesday said that the long-awaited tender for the supply of the new stamps with enhanced security features would be floated this month. The upgraded stickers are expected to be on cigarettes and wines and spirit containers before the end of the financial year in June. Business Daily Africa Kenya Thu, 12 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT http://www.nation.co.ke/Features/smartcompany/Farmers go wild on tobacco cash/-/1226/1302472/-/7mtq4cz/-/index.html http://tobacco.org/news/331834.html Commercial sex workers are among the people preying on tobacco farmers in South Nyanza following payment of their leaf deliveries. Growers contracted by BAT Kenya and Alliance One Tobacco Kenya are receiving millions of shillings daily, thus attracting the eye of the night workers. Consequently, some farmers from Migori, Uriri, Rongo, Kuria West and Kuria East districts are painting the region red as they engage in reckless lifestyles. Sex workers from as far away as Nakuru, Kericho and Kisumu are now camping in the area seeking a piece of the cash earned by the growers. Several cases of farmers losing their cash in brothels have been reported. “During planting, women and their children do the most work but during payments, it is the men who pick the money and take off,” said an employee of Alliance One Tobacco Company who asked not to be named since he is not allowed to speak to the Press. Daily Nation Kenya Tue, 10 Jan 2012 05:00:00 GMT http://www.the-star.co.ke/local/western--nyanza/55621-migori-tobacco-farmers-smile-all-the-way-to-the-bank http://tobacco.org/news/331314.html More than 50,000 tobacco farmers in Migori County have a reason to smile after two tobacco buying firms increased their leaf prices. The farmers had in the past threatned to strike over poor prices. According to the new price list released by the two firms on Christmas eve, Alliance One will now pay farmers Sh159 per kilo of the highest grade, while BAT will offer Sh158 for the same grade and quantity. Before the increase, the grade fetched Sh114 at Alliance One while BAT bought the same quantity at Sh113 in Migori, Uriri, Rongo, Kuria West and Kuria East districts. The farmers had demanded an increase of all grades to at least Sh200. Nairobi Star Kenya Sat, 31 Dec 2011 05:00:00 GMT http://www.standardmedia.co.ke/InsidePage.php?id=2000048954 http://tobacco.org/news/331232.html Tobacco farmers in Migori and Kuria districts have threatened to boycott deliveries to a tobacco Company due to delayed payments of their dues amounting to more than Sh100 million. The farmers say they don’t have money to take their children to school next month yet the firm owed them millions for deliveries. Consequently, they have threatened to stop delivery of their produce until the firm works out ways of settling the debt. A manager at the firm said management was making frantic efforts to settle the arrears soon. . . . In Kuria, The Standard established that some farmers were abandoning the crop in favour of cassava and sweet potatoes. Their Migori counterparts are also diversifying to sorghum, cassava and finger millet. In the two districts, Tobacco has been the cash cow for many farmers because of the bonuses it fetches, but that is now set to change because of the dwindling market fortunes in the market. With sustained campaigns against drug abuse, sales of tobacco products have dipped. The Standard Kenya Mon, 26 Dec 2011 05:00:00 GMT http://www.nation.co.ke/business/news/Tobacco+firm+to+pay+Sh80m+to+farmers+next+week/-/1006/1284094/-/d0y34n/-/ http://tobacco.org/news/329957.html Mastermind Tobacco Kenya will settle Sh80 million arrears of their contracted farmers in Nyanza before the markets open next week. Mr Josh Kirimania, the company’s human resource and corporate affairs manager, said they were already working on logistics to dispatch the cash. “I know our farmers in Migori, Kuria West and Kuria East Districts are very angry but we are going to make sure they get paid before we buy their leaf,” he said. The growers have been holding demonstrations to press MTK to pay the leaf delivery arrears but nothing positive has been coming from the firm’s headquarters in Nairobi. “We ask them to be patient for just a few days as we sort out the problem,” said Mr Kirimania. At the same time, tobacco farmers want leaf prices reviewed upwards due to the increased cost of living and farm inputs such as fertilisers. Daily Nation Kenya Mon, 05 Dec 2011 05:00:00 GMT http://presscuttings.ft.com/presscuttings/s/3/articleText/54277222 http://tobacco.org/news/329596.html From pharmaceuticals, to cigarettes, foodstuffs, phones, CDs and DVDs, the trade in counterfeits is increasingly biting into the profits of east African manufacturers and traders. . . . In Kenya, the tobacco industry is the worst affected, with counterfeits representing up to $19m or 5 per cent of product sales. "Part of it has to do with the lack of a harmonised tax regime in the Community, the rise of Dubai and China as export outlets and the conflict in Somalia. It's a regional problem. If there's a peak in imports, we normally see a corresponding spike in illicit trade," says Selena Olende of British American Tobacco in Nairobi. While BAT has lobbied governments to address the problem, its efforts are ironically hampered by the stringent Tobacco Control Act, which, owing to its ban on advertising, limits what the company can do to educate consumers about the presence of counterfeit cigarettes. Financial Times help@ft.com ( Parselelo Kantai With additional reporting by Katrina Manson) Kenya Wed, 30 Nov 2011 05:00:00 GMT http://www.the-star.co.ke/lifestyle/medics-view/30317-why-cigarette-smokers-are-guilty-of-murder-and-suicide http://tobacco.org/news/329225.html Similarly, it has been shown that non-smokers exposed to SHS in the workplace have a 16 to 19% increased risk of developing lung cancer. Kenyan law recognizes this in the Tobacco Act and tries to protect the public from those who insist that they must smoke in indoor workplaces, public transport, restaurants , pubs, and hotels. The problem is making sure that the law is obeyed. Ever been out in the evening and then smelled your clothes the following morning. That mix is called third hand smoke. It too contains carcinogens. In an area where people smoke, even if you come after the fact, the furniture, curtains, bed sheets will all have the particles embedded in. We could ask the police to arrest everyone who smokes because we know that someone is being killed. But the police like to see blood, a dramatic crime, preferably with a car chase if the TV sitcoms we watch are to be believed. So the job falls to all of us who are sensible and have a moral fibre. We should not allow people to kill others for their own selfish needs. As a first step, make sure that your workplace has prominent signs that say 'this is no smoking building". Putting a corner somewhere for smokers to collectively build a big plume of tobacco smoke that heads in your direction is not helping anyone and negates the point of creating a healthy environment. Nairobi Star Kenya Mon, 04 Jul 2011 04:00:00 GMT http://www.the-star.co.ke/business/local/50223-tobacco-industry-in-fresh-bid-to-ammend-punitive-act http://tobacco.org/news/329224.html The tobacco industry has started a new campaign to repeal sections of the 2007 Tobacco Control Act it says are unconstitutional. In a letter to Ambassador Francis Muthaura and Prime Minister Raila Odinga, cigarette manufacturers claim some sections of the Act are hostile, incoherent and biased against them. The Prime Minister's office has consequently asked the Ministry of Public Health to prepare a policy on tobacco regulation and see if any sections can be amended. "The industry continues to face numerous operational challenges and unintended consequences of a law that contains unconstitutional provisions and require review," the industry said. The letter was signed jointly by BAT, Mastermind, Alliance One and Kenya Tobacco Farmers Association. They said the law is "harsh" since it was drafted by the civil society. But one of the institutions involved in drafting the 2007 Act said this was the latest attempt by the industry to stop full implementation of the Act. Nairobi Star Kenya Mon, 21 Nov 2011 05:00:00 GMT http://www.nation.co.ke/oped/Editorial/Prevention%20cheaper%20in%20the%20long%20run/-/440804/919510/-/rqvp10/-/ http://tobacco.org/news/329136.html The government must urgently enact policies that discourage excessive use of salts, sugars, alcohol, and tobacco while rolling out an Aids like awareness campaign on healthy living. Chronic diseases are difficult and expensive to treat and any prevented case will be a saving in medical bills, pain, mortality and loss of production. But health remains primarily the concern of an individual, family and community and decisions and actions taken at these levels will determine whether, as a country we score in the all-important life indicators. Daily Nation Kenya Thu, 17 Nov 2011 05:00:00 GMT http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-14886484 http://tobacco.org/news/326308.html * Dozens of people were killed after an explosion and fire at a slum near an industrial area of the Kenyan capital, Nairobi. * The fire was said to have taken place when a cigarette butt was dropped into an open sewer containing oil from a leaking pipeline. The Kenyan Pipeline Company released a statement apologising for the spill. * The area was said to have been crowded as residents gathered to collect the leaking fuel. Some people were killed as their tinned-roof shacks caught fire. BBC Online Kenya Mon, 12 Sep 2011 04:00:00 GMT http://slatest.slate.com/posts/2011/09/12/kenya_pipeline_fire_fuel_leak_sparks_deadly_explosions_in_nairob.html http://tobacco.org/news/326307.html A leaking oil pipeline. An overcrowded slum. A lit cigarette. Those were the combustible ingredients in a sadly predictable tragedy that killed at least 120 people in Nairobi, Kenya, with the count of charred bodies still rising Monday afternoon. Authorities are still piecing together just what happened, but it seems that dozens of villagers were racing to scoop up the free oil when someone discarded a cigarette into the sewage dyke where it was flowing steadily. Slate Kenya Mon, 12 Sep 2011 04:00:00 GMT http://au.ibtimes.com/articles/212596/20110913/tobacco.htm http://tobacco.org/news/326161.html fresh warning against a bill requiring plain packaging of cigarettes in Australia. The country targets to amend the trademarks law to support the bill pushing for plain packaging for cigarettes. Camel and More cigarettes manufacturer JTI said Australia risks facing intellectual property disputes before the World Trade Organization (WTO) while the British American Tobacco Australia (BATA) threatened to sue the government if the legislature passes the bill. . . . In Monday's Senate committee inquiry into the federal government's proposed law, KAM said Kenya's tobacco industry is a main source of revenue and foreign exchange, so a diplomatic fallout with Australia is possible. . . . Business Europe warned that the bill is inconsistent with international treaties on intellectual property negotiated through the WTO and threatens to undermine the protection of intellectual property around the world. Industry groups from Quebec, the Ukraine, Chile, Brazil, Peru and East Africa have also criticized the controversial bill being supported by political parties and health experts. International Business Times Australia Europe Kenya Tue, 13 Sep 2011 04:00:00 GMT