Canada s Experience: Prohibition of Additives in Cigarettes World - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Canadas Experience: Prohibition of Additives in Cigarettes

World Cancer Congress, Montréal August 2012

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An Act to Amend the Tobacco Act

• Increased restrictions on advertising
• Required minimum packaging for little

cigars and blunt wraps in packages of at least 20 units as already required for cigarettes

• Prohibited the use of certain additives,

including flavours, in cigarettes, little cigars and blunt wraps

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Examples of little cigar packaging

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Tobacco Industry Interventions in Parliamentary Committees

• The Act would:

! violate Trade Agreements (NAFTA, WTO) as unnecessarily

restrictive on trade

! effectively ban American-blend cigarettes that use non-

characterising additives to mask bitterness of burley tobacco leaf

! result in close of Canadian manufacturing plants and loss

• f jobs (eg. RBH in Quebec)

! fuel contraband market.

• Government should use less restrictive models as

seen in other countries.

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WTO Technical Barriers to Trade

• Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT) Committee

meetings provide a forum for Members to ask questions and express concerns.

• Amendment raised at 5 meetings: November

2009, March 2010, June 2010, November 2010 and March 2011.

• 29 Members expressed concerns, some of

whom have little to no tobacco trade with Canada.