A tobacco company is fighting plain packaging with claims the changes would decrease cigarette prices, and increase the trade in counterfeit and black market cigarettes.
Today British American Tobacco New Zealand (BATNZ) launched a campaign against a proposal to introduce plain packaging which includes print, online, television and radio advertisements, costing hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Plain packaging has recently been approved in Australia by the Australian High Court, and now the New Zealand Government has released a consultation document on plain packaging.
BATNZ general manager Steve Rush says the company believes that changing the packaging would not decrease smoking in New Zealand.
He says plain packaging would make it easier for the black market to copy the boxes to make counterfeit products, which in turn would bring down cigarette prices.
“The plainer the packet the easier it is to copy," says Mr Rush.
“As illegal trade grows, cigarettes will become more affordable for all New Zealanders.”
Mr Rush says removing the right for tobacco companies to put their branding on cigarettes could also push down prices.
“If we can’t compete with brands, we’ll be forced to compete for price.”
He also worries that plain packaging restrictions would affect trade relationships with other countries.
“If we do not respect international brand rights of other countries, how can we expect them to respect ours?”
BATNZ also claims that restricting packaging for cigarettes could open the way for plain packaging in other industries such as alcohol.
But Action on Smoking and Health director Ben Youdan says BATNZ is just concerned about profits.
“All BATNZ are worried about are their shareholders and the bottom line.”
He says there is evidence to suggest that plain packaging would work to decrease smoking, as studies have shown that young people are less attracted and more put off by plain packaging without any tobacco company branding on it.
“They find them less cool and less likely to want to be seen with them.”
In response to BATNZ’s claims, he points out that when tobacco advertising was banned, tobacco companies did not go out of business and citing black market problems is a common tactic in any product regulation debate.
“All their arguments about unintended consequences are based on no evidence, projections and fear mongering.”
Mr Youdan says people need to remember the harmfulness of cigarettes.
“Tobacco is the drug in New Zealand that kills more people than any others, around 5000 people a year, yet we’re still treating it as a normal consumer product that’s allowed to be branded.
“I think this is a logical step which allows tobacco to be treated like the harmful product it is.”
Another tobacco company Philip Morris launched a similar campaign against plain packaging in New Zealand last month, where they asked smokers to voice their opinions on a website.
Legality
In 1990 the advertising of tobacco products was banned in New Zealand and BATNZ general manager Mr Rush says this is the first advertising campaign the company has done in more than 10 years.
So is this advertising legal?
In a statement BATNZ says it “is committed to complying with all tobacco legislation including the laws and regulations around advertising”.
Health Minister Tony Ryall says the Government will be keeping an eye on the actions of BATNZ.
"They can take whatever actions they want, and we'll have a look at what they are promoting to make sure that it doesn't breach any of the various tobacco promotion legislation.”
Rosemary Wallis, a partner at Baldwins Intellectual Property, says she thinks it probably isn't breaching the Smoke-free Environments Act 1990 because it doesn't seem to be specifically advertising a tobacco product.
"The question is whether or not they are advertising a tobacco product."
She says it looks like "it's not advertising a product, it's advertising a point of view".
3 News