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| Issue 69 | 20 June 2007 |
Having trouble viewing this newsletter? Try the online version. FROM THE DIRECTOR'S DESK
Lately there has been the debate on point of sale – out of sight, out of mind. Tobacco industry executives hate this idea as they know that the point of sale display is their last advertising point. You lose that and you lose all respectability. Cigarettes become the same as the dodgy magazine that gets put in a paper bag from 'under the counter'. Which brings me to the issue about the New Zealand brand which was exposed by some good work on Shane Bradbrook's part. To hear it from DFS Galleria you would think that they were just unwitting retailers of this tobacco product. They immediately pulled the brand from the shelves once the publicity broke. In response to the media furore, Managing Director Stephen Timms (in Australia) said that DFS "...in no way intended any disrespect to any consumers or members of the public." But the tobacco company which made the cigarettes in Luxembourg says it is not one of their own brands. They produce on a contract for DSF. "It is them (sic) who decide about the design and the brand. So they are produced here but what they look like is decided in New Zealand." And to add to DFS Galleria's embarrassment, the tobacco returns required under the Smoke-free Environments Act tend to support the tobacco company's words. DFS are shown in their 2006 return as having imported a goodly quantity of the cigarettes. Other returns show a similar pattern. I think Mr. Timms that your slip is showing! There are two things which are clear as a result of this wee skirmish. Firstly, duty free status for cigarettes has got to stop. The industry cannot be trusted! Secondly, I agree with Prof Janet Hoek. Cigarettes must be sold in plain packets where the only stuff printed on them is the graphic health warning. This sort of deception then could not occur. We want to help DFS Galleria keep these cigarettes off the shelf so that they need not offend anyone else. If you or your friends or family are travelling overseas anywhere in the future, pop in to their store and have a look. Let me know if these cigarettes reappear. There is nothing surer to my mind – they will! Have a good fortnight. Mark Peck Director IN THIS ISSUE:
OUTCRY REMOVES CIGARETTES FROM DUTY FREE SHELVES
The cigarettes are made in Luxembourg, which the previous Update noted came bottom in the ranking of European countries which have put in place tobacco control policies. Despite their overseas manufacture, the cigarettes come in black packaging which includes the familiar New Zealand silver fern, and the descriptor 'luxuriously mild cigarettes'. Smokefree Coalition Director Mark Peck said the cigarettes are an outrageous attempt to exploit New Zealand's image. "Travellers through New Zealand airports are being encouraged to take something clean, green and nuclear free home with them to smoke. This association of our nation's positive attributes with poisonous and addictive cigarettes is despicable. "The cigarettes aren't even made here, so exploiting New Zealand's favourable image overseas is the only reason for the branding. Describing them as 'luxuriously mild' further peddles the lie that so called 'mild' cigarettes are somehow better for you." Te Reo Marama Director Shane Kawenata Bradbrook said the silver fern is an internationally recognisable symbol of New Zealand and its inclusion as branding for cigarettes is an insult. "Kiwis are rightfully proud of the fern symbol. It's worn by many of our top sporting teams including the All Blacks and Silver Ferns, but here it's connected to a product that kills hundreds of thousands of people. That's a real contradiction, and we want the cigarettes off the shelves now before our image is polluted any further."
"Getting rid of tax-free cigarettes is an effective way to reduce tobacco consumption," said Mr Bradbrook. "The Government has the ability to remove them under the Convention, and this reprehensible exploitation of New Zealand's image is just one more good reason why they should." Significant media coverage was received and several other organisations put out releases in support of the Smokefree Coalition and Te Reo Marama. Each is linked below. The news website Stuff ran a poll asking the public's opinion on the New Zealand branded cigarettes. The overwhelming majority were opposed with the results as follows (at the time of writing):
A similar debate is underway across the Tasman, where there are calls for cigarettes featuring kangaroo and koala packaging to be removed from shelves in duty free stores. The cigarettes are labelled with marketing slogans like "Another Proud Australian". See http://www.newstalkzb.co.nz/newsdetail1.asp?storyID=119114. DROP IN AGE OF PEOPLE QUITTINGThe age of people quitting smoking in New Zealand is dropping, according to new Quit Group research. The study, published in The New Zealand Medical Journal, looked at trends in the types of smokers calling the Quitline. Researchers Judy Li and Michele Grigg found that between 2001 and 2005 there was a 67 percent increase in the proportion of callers under 25 years of age. Ms Grigg said they found callers have become younger over the five-year period, and there was a noticeable increase in people aged 15 -19 years calling the Quitline. "This finding backs up recently released research showing most young smokers regret taking up smoking." Ms Grigg says another factor is that young people may be affected by mass media quit campaigns, although these are not aimed at a youth audience. The study also highlights an increase in the percentage of pregnant women calling the Quitline. Ms Grigg says the numbers are small but statistically significant. "It is heartening to see a gradual decrease in the number of young women who are smoking and an increased number of pregnant callers to the Quitline." Other trends to emerge from the research include an increase in the proportion of Quitline callers smoking roll-your-own cigarettes and a 54 percent increase in the proportion of Pacific callers. The Quit Group Media Release, 14 June 2007 MANY BACK NEW PLYMOUTH PETITION
The next step is to take the petition to the New Plymouth District Council's June policy meeting. Taranaki Cancer Society Health Promoter and Education Advisor Elaine Jamieson says the group behind the petition, Auahi Kore, hit the city streets to get support. "We had a very good response from the public. Even a lot of smokers signed, saying they didn't want their children to smoke and that taking it out of parks and playgrounds would be good." The petition has been running since April and the Cancer Society says it is keen to see spaces become smokefree to provide clean, healthy environments for children as well as to set a good example. Mrs Jamieson says a lot of organisations, community groups and schools supported the call for smokefree areas. South Taranaki District Council was the first in New Zealand to make the region's parks and playgrounds smokefree in 2005. Rather than banning smoking in those spaces the council encourages people not to smoke and anecdotal evidence indicates it is working. South Taranaki District Council property and facilities manager John Sargeant says the policy works well and even smokers endorse it. "We're exceptionally proud that we were the first to bring it in." There are now seven local authorities which have similar smokefree policies and many others are investigating the concept. Taranaki Daily News, 1 June 2007 THROUGH THE SMOKEDon't be a tosser!
From late June, the Australian sustainable resources lobby group, Sustainability Victoria, is launching a 'Bin Your Butts' blitz campaign to combat the expected increase in butt litter outside pubs and clubs following the introduction of the smoking ban in Victoria's licensed premises from 1 July 2007. While many smokers realise that butts are litter, they excuse their littering because butts appear insignificant when compared with other forms. But with an estimated 7.2 billion butts littered in Australia each year, the toxic chemicals being leached into the environment add up. The 'Don't be a Tosser - Bin Your Butts' campaign will offer practical support and resources to local governments and licensed premises, as well as an advertising campaign to encourage smokers to take responsibility for littering. See http://www.sustainability.vic.gov.au/www/html/2364-dont-be-a-tosser---bin-your-butts.asp for more information. In New Zealand the Waitakere City Council is targeting smokers as part of a crackdown on litterbugs. Its new rules came into force on Thursday 14 June and now anyone caught throwing rubbish on to the street will get an instant $400 fine. See http://www.stuff.co.nz/4091501a6016.html. SMOKEFREE SHORTS
New ZealandGiving up smoking best way for smokers to live, says Ministry of Health The comments from the Ministry follow the release of research findings about lung damage in former smokers. Chief Advisor Public Health, Dr Ashley Bloomfield, says chronic lung disease is a serious side effect of smoking and can be debilitating and even fatal. This new study shows that microscopic inflammatory changes seem to persist in smokers with chronic lung disease, but that quitting increases chances of survival. Scoop, 12 June 2007 Smoking or surgery?
It could be a tough choice for some, and Rotorua resident and long-time smoker Karen Couveld says she shouldn't have to choose. "Doesn't the tax on cigarettes cover the cost?" Mrs Couveld said. "This sort of thing can't be forced on to people. We still have rights." The Daily Post, 8 June 2007
Every smoker admitted to Auckland Hospital is being pushed to give up. Under a new policy, every patient will be asked if they smoke, regardless of why they're in hospital. Smokers will be given advice on quitting and, if they agree to give up, referred to a support service. Stuff, 9 June 2007 InternationalCigarette smoke alters DNA in sperm Canadian researchers have demonstrated in mice that smoking can cause changes in the DNA sequence of sperm cells – alterations that could potentially be inherited by offspring. The results of their study are published in the 1 June issue of Cancer Research, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research. Dr Carole Yauk, lead author of the study, said, "We have known that mothers who smoke can harm their fetuses, and here we show evidence that fathers can potentially damage offspring long before they may even meet their future mate." EurekAlert, 1 June 2007 More research that second-hand smoke harms kids Even minor exposure to second-hand smoke can harm the cardiovascular system of children, a new study concludes. Finnish researchers used high-resolution ultrasound to check brachial artery (located in the arm) function of 402 children, age 11, who were divided into three groups based on their blood levels of cotinine, a biomarker for nicotine. Health Day, 5 June 2007 City limits smoking ban considered
The council was presented with the proposal to ban smoking everywhere except inside family homes in May 2007. Lawmakers say they are undeterred by the backlash coming from some residents who question whether government can regulate such a personal choice. KCBS, 12 June 2007 Smoking ads 'do not always work' Anti-smoking advertising can have the opposite effect of what is intended and actually encourage people to keep smoking, an Australian study says. A poll of 3,100 young cinema-goers found ads before films that glamorise smoking made it more likely smokers would continue smoking. But the study by Newcastle University also said it turned non-smokers against smoking. BBC, 11 June 2007 English smokers can't adopt under-fives Smokers will be banned from adopting children under the age of five in an attempt to protect young people from health risks such as asthma and lung cancer. The ban, approved by council chiefs in Portsmouth, Hants, will also mean that children who need a home are not placed with parents more at risk of developing tobacco-related illnesses. The ruling has come under fire from opposition councillors who claim it "demonises" smokers. The Telegraph, 7 June 2007 Tough at the top for BAT smokers British American Tobacco, England's largest cigarette maker, is building a shelter on the roof of its London headquarters so that chief executive Paul Adams can continue lighting up after the smoking ban takes effect next month. The structure will allow executives to stand and smoke while gazing across the river from the top of Globe House, the company's office block near Temple Tube. It may also be used by former chancellor Kenneth Clarke, BAT's cigar-smoking deputy chairman. The Telegraph, 12 June 2007 Critics say cigarettes aimed at young girls
Democrat Lois Capps of California says, "The words 'light' and 'luscious' make you think of a food product, something that tastes good, rather than some deadly product that's going to kill you." ABC News, 10 June 2007 Smoking could be deadlier than Aids by 2015 Deaths caused by tobacco could kill 50 percent more people than HIV/Aids by 2015 – and also be responsible for 10 percent of all deaths worldwide. This shocking forecast was made in the World Health Organization's recently released World Health Statistics 2007 report, which warned that the daily smoking of tobacco is most prevalent among the lowest-income households in developing economies – the poorest of the poor. Cape Argus, 9 June 2007 Tobacco gel beats the ban A tobacco-based gel designed to beat the smoking ban is sparking controversy among health campaigners. NicoFix, which can be bought online and in a handful of shops in Britain, is billed as an alternative to smoking rather than a way of giving up. The Daily Mail, 9 June 2007 Philip Morris to test market Marlboro snus
Snus (rhymes with loose) comes in a small pouch similar to a tea bag that users most often place inside the upper lip. Snus is widely used in Scandinavia, where numerous studies have shown that it offers smokers an alternative way to get the nicotine and taste of cigarettes with less risk of cancer. New York Times, 9 June 2007
QUOTABLE QUOTES"Eye level is buy level, and the regular sight of displays (of cigarettes) is harmful for children and those who are trying to quit. Cigarette displays are marketing and while an exemption was made when cigarette advertising was banned in 1990, seventeen years on, we need to start getting rid of those last vestiges." Belinda Hughes (of The Cancer Society of New Zealand), Wairarapa Times Age, 11 June 2007 "It takes the average worker on the average wage in New Zealand almost one hour to pay for 20 cigarettes. So if you smoke 20 cigarettes per day, you will need to come to work an hour earlier just to make the same wage as your non-smoking colleague! I don't know about you, but I would prefer to sleep in." Janine van Bler, The Guardian (Palmerston North), 31 May 2007 |
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Update is produced by the Smokefree Coalition If you are
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Control Update, |
In just over a week a group of people will meet in Auckland to debate issues around harm reduction and product control. It will be part of the ongoing process we need to engage in to determine a comprehensive tobacco control agenda.
DFS Galleria duty free stores have removed New Zealand-branded cigarettes from their shelves after an outcry from groups including the Smokefree Coalition and Te Reo Marama (the Māori Smokefree Coalition).
Both groups say the World Health Organization's Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, to which New Zealand is a party, calls for the reduction or elimination of duty free tobacco sales.
A petition to see the New Plymouth District's parks, sports grounds and playgrounds become smokefree has gathered more than a thousand signatures.
Where
possible, links are provided below the stories. Please click these to access full stories.
Some New Zealand anti-smoking groups are welcoming a British proposal to force people to quit before having surgery.
Soon the only people smoking inside the city limits of Belmont, California, could be those lighting up in the privacy of their own homes, if the city council approves an ordinance many believe is the strictest anti-smoking law in the United States.
The little black box is sleek and sophisticated. The name,
Camel No. 9, sounds more like a perfume than a cigarette. And then there are the ads. Politicians point to glossy magazine ads with a bright pink border and say the colours are attractive.
Philip Morris USA says it is to test-market four flavours of a smokeless tobacco product known as snus under the Marlboro brand name in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, starting in August.