Tobacco industry fumes at govt smoking target (fwd)

[Robert Weissman <rob@essential.org>]

Tobacco industry fumes at govt smoking target
by Yomiuri Shimbun
Source:  Yomiuri Shimbun., Sunday, 9/5/99

A target set by the Health and Welfare Ministry last month to halve the
number of smokers in the country by 2010 has encountered bitter opposition
from the tobacco industry.

Japan Tobacco Inc. and tobacco farmers associations recently submitted a
petition to the ministry calling for reconsideration of the target. In the
petition, they questioned the legitimacy of the ministry setting a
specific goal to reduce the number of smokers, as cigarette smoking is a
matter of individual taste.

The ministry, however, has shown no signs of compromising on the issue.
"There is no question that tobacco is harmful to people's health. We want
the public to discuss whether the numerical target is appropriate," a
ministry official was quoted as saying.

An interim report recently compiled by a ministry council studying
health-related policies to be implemented in the coming decade pointed out
that the smoking rate among adult men in Japan is extremely high in
comparison with other developed nations, and that the number of young
women who smoke is rising.

According to JT's 1998 report, 55.2 percent of adult men and 13.3 percent
of adult women smoke.

The council has called for cutting the number of smokers by half by 2010.

In many parts of the world, it is common to set national targets to
curtail the number of smokers. For instance, the United States launched a
similar numerical target 20 years ago.

But JT is afraid of the economic impact on the tobacco industry.

An official of the 25,000-member Japan Central Union of Tobacco Farmers
Associations said: "It is extremely regrettable to see the Health and
Welfare Ministry set such a target. Tobacco farmers depend on tobacco for
their livelihood."

An official of the Japan Federation of Tobacco Sales Cooperatives also
said, "The ministry's policy could deal a serious blow to the about
300,000 tobacco retailers nationwide."

The ministry is expected to finalize the numerical target by the end of
this year after a series of local hearings and symposiums.