The Ministry of Health has ready the first rule of the new anti-tobacco plan: the royal decree that regulates the manufacture, presentation and marketing of tobacco and related products. The text, which has just been released to public information and may receive allegations in the coming weeks, already outlines concrete measures that the General Directorate of Public Health will implement when the regulation comes into force.
Some of them, such as all packs having the same color (generic packaging) or the prohibition of vapers of flavors, had already been announced. The project reveals, however, other important things that had not been realized until now. Nicotine bags, for example, are regulated for the first time (until now they were illegal) and the siege on electronic cigarettes is advancing. Manufacturers will have, once the royal decree is approved by the Council of Ministers, ten months to adapt their products to the new obligations.
A single color for the boxes
The royal decree includes plain packaging for the first time in Spain, although this measure is already applied in 22 countries with good results in reducing consumption. It involves replacing the current packs with others that have the same appearance, with a single color – which will be established by ministerial order – and the brand name in a common font. The objective is that the cigarettes do not have attractive or differential packaging for the consumer.
Vapes and electronic cigarettes
Several of the measures of the standard concern these devices that, according to Health and medical societies, are serving as a gateway to tobacco for the youngest. Therefore, all products with nicotine will have to include the following message: “This product contains nicotine, a very addictive substance. Its consumption is not recommended for non-smokers.”
If they do not contain nicotine, like most vapes, they must still warn: “Consuming this product is harmful to your health,” according to the project, which It can now be consulted on the Ministry’s website.
As had been announced, in addition, flavorings or flavorings that imbue the product with a pleasant flavor are prohibited. The Ministry also intends to put an end to the sale of disposable vapes, as anticipated at the beginning of the year, but the measure is not contained in this royal decree. “It defines exactly what they are to prohibit them later in the reform of the law,” says a Health spokesperson.
Greater control of manufacturers
The Ministry of Health wants to control the manufacturers of new tobacco products more closely. For this purpose, a registry of companies is created “with the purpose of collecting and organizing information about them and facilitating the exercise of administrative actions related to their possible adverse effects.”
In addition, producers will have to provide state health authorities in the first quarter of each year with the following information: sales data, information on the preferences of various consumer groups (including young people and non-smokers), how They sell their products and summaries of their market studies. With this measure, the Ministry intends to expand its knowledge to detect if it is being used “as a gateway to nicotine addiction or traditional tobacco consumption.”
Nicotine and Herb Pouches
Nicotine pouches are single-use microfiber devices that are placed between the lip and gum. They allow nicotine to be absorbed without having to light up a cigarette. These products are already being consumed in Spain – although at a lower level than other countries such as Sweden – and until now they were in a situation of illegality because they were not common. With this new regulation, the Ministry prohibits the marketing of those bags that have more than 0.99 mg of nicotine per sachet, that contain other stimulants (caffeine or taurine) and that include flavorings. The procedure is similar with heated herbs: they are prohibited from having more than 5 mg of nicotine per unit, additives or flavors. In both cases “they must be provided with a child safety device and be tamper-proof.”
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