Jacek Olczak, Chief Executive of Philip Morris International, yesterday delivered remarks at the UnHerd Club in London, calling on governments globally to accelerate the end of cigarettes.
In his remarks to media, politicians, and policymakers, Olczak stated that “cigarettes belong in museums” but that current policies to reduce smoking prevalence are not working fast enough and may be prolonging smoking.
Drawing upon a new hypothetical model based on World Health Organization data, estimates, and methods, as well as other third-party data, Olczak explained that even if smoke-free products were assumed to be only 80% less risky than cigarettes, if people who currently smoke were to switch to them completely, then over their lifetime there’s a potential for a tenfold reduction in smoking-attributable deaths compared with historical tobacco control measures alone.
He highlighted the absurd paradox that smoke-free products are banned in some countries while cigarettes – despite their far greater risk of harm – can still be sold. While this model has limitations and is built on assumptions, he suggested that the public health cost of ignoring the potential of smoke-free products could be immense.
In 2016, PMI committed to moving away from cigarettes. The company has invested more than US$10.5bn since 2008 in developing smoke-free products, which today account for nearly 35% of the company’s total net revenues. Olczak explained that its mission is to reduce smoking by replacing cigarettes with less harmful alternatives and ultimately to make cigarettes obsolete.
However, he stated that PMI’s ability to progress on this mission is being frustrated by a combination of blind opposition from anti-tobacco organisations and governments’ overreliance on the so-called precautionary principle, which some interpret as “better not to do anything until we know everything.”
He called on governments around the world to follow the examples of countries like Sweden and Japan – as well as the UK – and adopt policies that give adult smokers who don’t quit a wide choice of alternatives to continuing smoking. He also challenged anti-tobacco organisations to “update their thinking, stop blocking innovation, and work toward a common goal to achieve a smoke-free future, faster”.
NAM Implications:
- Presumably, PMI (and their rivals), are closer to the issue than governments…
- …are well-positioned to assess the need for smoking alternatives.
- And freeing up routes to consumer would appear to be a logical move.
