According to the European Commission, flavored heating tobacco should be banned because it tempts too many young people to smoke.
Menthol-tasting tobacco that’s heated up in a cool-looking heating device instead of being burned like a cigarette: one of the fastest-growing new forms of tobacco consumption is to be banned quickly, according to the European Commission, because it makes too many young people addicted to tobacco. The Brussels authority proposed on Wednesday to tighten up the 2014 directive, which determines which tobacco products may be sold in the EU, in one essential point. Specifically, so-called heated tobacco should no longer contain any characteristic aromas in the future. This ban already applies to cigarettes and roll-your-own tobacco. His reasoning is that these mostly sweet flavors mask the original tart taste of the tobacco, making it easier for children and young people to start smoking. Nine out of ten cases of lung cancer in Europe were caused by smoking or tobacco use, the Commission pointed out, citing the scientific evidence.
In its proposal for the amendment of the directive, the Commission refers to its criteria for “significant changes in circumstances”, which legally force it to be tightened. Firstly, that is an increase in sales volumes in a product category of at least 10% in at least five Member States”. Secondly, this is the case for an “increase in the level of prevalence of use in the consumer group under 25 by at least five percentage points in at least five Member States in the relevant article category”. Third, the product in question must account for more than “2.5 percent of total sales of tobacco products in the Union”. According to the Commission’s study, these conditions exist.
The national governments and the European Parliament now have two months to react to this proposal and organize any majorities against it. You can extend this period by a further two months, explained a commission spokesman at the request of the “press”. If they fail to do so, the ban will automatically come into force 20 days after publication in the EU Official Journal.