Recruiting Smoking's New Suckers Just Got Harder

[Judi Lynn]

The plain-packaging trend may soon spread from rich countries.
By David Fickling
July 1, 2018, 3:00 PM CDT

The world’s ugliest cigarette packets aren’t going away.

Australia’s plain-packaging laws, which mandate that all tobacco in the country be sold in drab brown packs with no logos, writing in uniform fonts and gruesome health-warning photographs, have been upheld by the World Trade Organization six years after the measures came into effect.

The WTO complaint brought by Indonesia, Honduras, the Dominican Republic and Cuba, has relevance beyond the small Australian market. The long-term risks to the tobacco industry are in the burgeoning populations of Africa and Asia.

“Start them young” is one of the secrets of cigarette companies’ longevity. Older people rarely take up smoking: A 2013 study in New Zealand found that between the ages of 15 and 17, about one in seven children take up smoking while one in 14 do the same at 18 or 19. But after the age of 24 it becomes rare for anyone to start. Those who begin younger generally consume more cigarettes and find it harder to quit, too, making them particularly valued customers.

More:
https://www.bloomberg.com/view/articles/2018-07-01/recruiting-smoking-s-new-suckers-just-got-harder

[Aristus]

1. I hope the world's number of new smokers continues to drop.

Every time I visit with a new patient and take a past medical history, I ask if the patient smokes.

If they say 'no', I do a little 'namaste' gesture and tell them: "Bless you. You saved me the lecture." That gets a laugh out of them, and we start off on the right foot.

[appalachiablue]

2. Kick, thanks for posting.