[Intl-tobacco] Marlboro man races east (to Bulgaria) from tobacco control

[Robert Weissman]

Marlboro man races east from tobacco control
Source: UPI, Monday, 6/26/00
Monday, 26 June 2000 12:40 (ET)

 SOFIA, Bulgaria, June 26 (UPI) -- The Marlboro man's ride into Bulgaria
is among the latest signs that major cigarette makers are racing into
Eastern Europe before the European Union's expansion and international
anti-smoking campaigns lead to stricter tobacco laws.

 Marlboro-producer Philip Morris and other tobacco giants today are taking
advantage of the region's emerging consumerism, apathy toward smoke-free
lifestyles and health regulations that fall short of western standards.

 The World Health Organization says aggressive marketing and advertising
in developing countries is creating a "tobacco iron curtain" that
separates regions such as Eastern Europe from Western Europe and the
United States. An EU plan to ban tobacco advertising next year, for
example, will have no effect on non-EU countries such as Bulgaria,
Slovakia, Ukraine and Romania. Most of these former Soviet satellites have
applied for EU membership, but acceptance is still years away and there is
little if any domestic pressure for smoking laws.

 Smokers in Eastern Europe face fewer restrictions in restaurants, offices
and schools than in the West. According to a World Bank report, Bulgarian
schools do not restrict smoking and Romanian children can legally buy
cigarettes. Tobacco laws are especially lax in Ukraine, where smoking is
allowed even on public transportation.

 In this environment Philip Morris recently launched sales of Marlboro
cigarettes, the world's most popular brand. Cartons appeared on store
shelves overnight in cities across Bulgaria. Strong demand was reported
immediately "irrespective of prices," according to a Sofia newspaper.

 Marlboros have been sold on the Bulgarian black market for years, but the
legal packets are advertised as fresher and more flavorful.  Philip Morris
says it has cornered a dominant share of the tobacco market in several
parts of Eastern Europe. For example the company says it controls 33
percent of the market in Poland, 53 percent in Slovakia and 79 percent in
Czech Republic. Another big player in the region is BAT, which
aggressively advertises its Lucky Strike brand as "real American"  
cigarettes.

Tobacco companies say they're working with Eastern European governments to
protect the public. Philip Morris, for example, says it helped Estonia
create the Baltic country's first tobacco-industry marketing code.
Nevertheless Eastern Europe's demand for cigarettes is one reason why a
WHO report two weeks ago predicted a global increase in smokers to 1.6
billion by 2020 from 1.2 billion today. A World Bank report says by 2020
seven out of every 10 people who die from smoking-related illness will be
in low- to middle-income nations.

 The surge in smoking -- and subsequent health dangers -- prompted the EU,
WHO, World Bank and other international agencies to begin shaping
so-called "tobacco control" policies in the past year. Under review are
large-scale policies such as regional advertising bans, tax increases and
tobacco-growing restrictions.

 The proposed EU ban on advertising would remove cigarette ads from
billboards and magazines. Only point-of-sale ads and so-called
"business-to-business" promotions would be allowed in the 15 EU countries,
most of which already restrict tobacco ads.

 The WHO-funded Collaborating Centre on Tobacco at the Karolisnka
Institute in Stockholm is focusing on training Eastern European health
officials to combat smoking with education and regulation.  Among other
measures, the World Bank is pushing for higher cigarette taxes. It says a
10 percent increase in taxes in 1995 would have spurred 40 million people
to quit and save 10 million lives.

 The call for tobacco control is getting louder, particularly in Europe.
In October, the subject will be debated for two days at a WHO-sponsored
public hearing in Geneva, Switzerland. It's being billed as history's
largest gathering of representatives from the tobacco industry,
anti-smoking groups, health agencies and governments.

 Yet the industry's push into Eastern Europe is not expected to soften.
Industry documents obtained by WHO include this statement from a BAT
executive speaking about the region's potential for sales growth:
"Obviously there is enormous potential in these countries. I would say
that the demand for Western cigarettes is insatiable. It's a fantastic
opportunity for everybody... in any number of countries."