In EU is being prepared ban on menthol cigarettes

July 15, 2013

Relevant committee of European Parliament has approved introduction of ban on menthol cigarettes and other flavored cigarettes and also offered to equate electronic cigarettes to medicines.

Voting that took place in the Environment and Healthcare committee on July 10th gives grounds to consider that entire Euro parliament on September 9th will vote pro the ban, considers The Wall Street Journal.

With new rules is also stipulated, particularly, that during the nearest three years in EU countries will be prohibited sale of all flavored cigarettes, including menthol. At the same time in the meanwhile it was decided not to prohibit sale of slims cigarettes, in spite of the fact that according to experts' opinion, their smoke exceeds tobacco consumption in general. Warnings (picture are text) about smoking harm will take not less than 65 % of cigarette pack's surface and will be placed on both sides.

Some EU members have required making cigarettes packs with warnings that would take entire surface, however against this initiative were Czech Republic, Poland, Romania and Bulgaria.

Flavored cigarettes - with menthol, or, for example, with strawberry, coffee, cherry, apple or vanilla flavor or aroma - will fall within ban because they familiarize youth with smoking.

The ban is fraught with new losses for branch leaders even for such giants as Philip Morris International and British American Tobacco.

In the meanwhile German Ex-Federal Chancellor - 94 years old Helmut Schmidt, preparing to ban introduction has bought 38 thousands of menthol cigarettes. According to journalists' calculations reserves will be enough for approximately three years.

Schmidt every day smokes approximately two packs of Reyno Menthols (around 40 cigarettes) and seldom appears in public without lighted up cigarette. Smoking has never delivered particular troubles to Schmidt and popular politician that entered the first ten of "All-time Greatest Germans" rating; nobody has ever prevented him from smoking even in the places prohibited for smoking.

Electronic cigarettes are electronic devices on batteries that transform liquid nicotine into steam; - the European Commission offers to regulate them as well as medicines. It is made with the purpose of appearance of legal reasons for their certification in some countries where their sale is not regulated now. Distribution of electronic cigarettes outside pharmacies will be prohibited.