Tobacco farming is harmful to the environment and farmworkers, with multinational companies contributing to the problem by exploiting local farmers, new research has revealed. A recent review of research on the environmental health impact of tobacco farming found that it degrades the environment, harms workers, and leads to the loss
WASHINGTON, DC (Aug. 8, 2012) Action on Smoking & Health (ASH) calls on President Obama to immediately submit the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) to the Senate for ratification. The United States signed the FCTC in 2004, but 8 years and 2 administrations later it still languishes in the
WASHINGTON, DC (Aug. 7, 2012) Action on Smoking & Health (ASH) will address global health governance issues impacting the tobacco related epidemic at the National Conference on Tobacco or Health that opens in Kansas City, Wed Aug. 15. The Conference—held every 18 months—brings together researchers, advocates and regulatory officials from
(Aug. 15-17, 2012 / Kansas City, Mo.) ASH will be taking part in this year’s National Conference on Tobacco or Health (NCTOH) as both a presenter and exhibitor. The NCTOH is an important forum for those in the tobacco control community to exchange ideas, learn how to improve tobacco control
For someone who had to get involved in tobacco control as relief from seeing patient after patient suffering and dying as a result of their use of tobacco and who has been involved in tobacco control for over forty years, it is immensely gratifying to see the growing number of
(Courthouse News Service) The tobacco industry still is regulated by an injunction born out of a 13-year-old federal lawsuit that bars tobacco companies from misleading consumers about the risks of smoking, the D.C. Circuit ruled. “In this latest round in the government’s heavyweight bout against the tobacco industry, the defendant
(CBS/AP) A federal judge has denied a Food and Drug Administration (FDA) motion to dismiss a suit filed by two of the nation’s largest cigarette makers that claimed the advisory panel that reviewed tobacco products for the FDA had financial conflicts of interest. FDA: Dissolvable tobacco better for health, but
(Chicago Sun Times) Two tobacco-industry trade groups are suing to block recent changes to Illinois’ cigarette tax, signed into law in June to help plug a $2.7 billion hole in the state’s ailing Medicaid program. The Cigar Association of America and the National Association of Tobacco Outlets, along with north
(Reuters) – A federal appeals court on Friday upheld a ruling banning tobacco company Philip Morris USA, a unit of Altria Group Inc, from making false or deceptive statements about cigarettes. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia upheld a 2009 injunction banning the company, which sells
WHO has posted a discussion paper on the development of its NCD Action Plan 2013-20 https://who.int/nmh/events/2012/ncd_action_plan/en/index.html The document states that The UN Task Team on the Post-2015 Development Agenda recognized in its report that MDGs did not adequately address the increase of NCDs and it also states that Overseas Development
[link: https://www.decanter.com/news/wine-news/530175/fires-in-emporda-kill-four] This Smoke Alarm is quite literal. At least four people have been killed in the Pyrenees as two wildfires blamed on lit cigarettes being tossed from a car burn out of control. The fires have already destroyed tens of thousands of acres and are still spreading, causing widespread
(The Independent) Uganda is out of step with other East African countries such as Tanzania and Kenya which have enacted tobacco control law. Any avid reader of the print media in the past few months will have noticed a sustained campaign against the proposed Tobacco Control Bill 2011, perpetrated by
The Dominican Republic has filed formal papers to sue Australia in the World Trade Organization over its plain packaging of cigarettes. Australia is now being sued in three different courts by multiple countries and multinational corporations. The Australian government is refusing to settle or to back down in its legislation,
(Jakarta Post) A US scientist says various kinds of cancer are linked to smoking, therefore cancer risk assessments need to focus on reducing tobacco consumption. Harold Elliot Varmus, the winner of the 1989 Nobel Prize in Medi-cine, said a person’s genetic predisposition for cancer was small compared to the enormous
The United States did not table its tobacco exception at the latest round of TransPacific Partnership negotiations. The issue apparently did not come up during the closed-door sessions, although it was a central concern of NGOs during the one-hour stakeholder briefing with the chief negotiators. The next round is scheduled
Canada and Mexico are set to join the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement talks. They have agreed to accept any provisions that have been agreed before they join, in spite of the fact that they are not allowed to see the text. In essence, this is like signing a legal contract without
(July 2-10, 2012 / San Diego, Calif. ) The most recent negotiating round of the Trans-Pacific Partnership took place in San Diego, California from July 2-10, 2012. Chris Bostic ASH Deputy Director for Policy will be there presenting to trade negotiators and other key allies on the necessity of a
(NZ Week / June 15, 2012) “US plans to table a specific exception of tobacco contradict the government’s reassurances that a Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement would not restrict New Zealand’s right to introduce plain packaging or other tobacco control laws”, according to University of Auckland Law Professor Jane Kelsey. “If the
Clearly, even though it kills over 5 million people per year, tobacco remains a very lucrative business. Quoting Warren Buffet: “I’ll tell you why I like the cigarette business. It cost a penny to make. Sell it for a dollar. It’s addictive. And there’s a fantastic brand loyalty.” According to
[link: https://articles.latimes.com/2012/jun/06/local/la-me-prop29-20120607] During its Presidential primary election, California voters also had the chance to weigh in on a proposed $1/pack tax on cigarettes to fund cancer research. Polling just a few weeks before the vote showed widespread support in a state that is health-conscious, cash strapped and has one of
On June 1st 2012 the Czech Republic joined the tobacco treaty, the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control. 177 out of 195 eligible Parties have become Parties to this treaty. The U.S. has not yet joined this treaty. President Obama should take action and choose health over tobacco and submit this
(31, May 2012) This year’s theme for World No Tobacco Day is “Tobacco Industry Interference”. The focus is on the need to expose and counter the tobacco industry’s attempts to undermine global tobacco control efforts. For more information please visit the WHO website.
(PHAI Blog) Three key issues were taken up at the 2012 Reynolds American Inc. (RAI) Annual Shareholders Meeting in Winston-Salem, North Carolina on May 3rd. First, the issue drawing the most public attention was the company’s dealings with groups representing farm workers who toil under dangerous conditions and provide the
The world must stay make clear commitments to reduce the tobacco caused epidemic. As Dr Chan, Director General of the WHO says, “what gets measured gets done”. The governments of the world have agreed to achieve a meaningful target during the World Health Assembly (WHA), the governing body of the
On May 8-9 I attended in Brasilia, Brazil, the first working meeting of the Pan American Forum for Action on Noncommunicable Diseases (PAFNCD), an initiative of the Pan American Health Organization/World Health Organization (PAHO/WHO) that confronts the Noncommunicable (NCD) epidemic in the Americas by mobilizing different interest groups to prevent
