Smoking ban in cafes puts French off cigarettes
PARIS (Reuters) - Cigarette sales in France dropped to a record low in 2008, research by British American Tobacco (BAT) shows, challenging old cliches of Parisians hooked to their Gitanes in smoke-filled cafes.
BAT cited bans on smoking in bars and public places as well as high prices as factors encouraging the formerly smoking-mad French to stub out their cigarettes for good.
BAT France said 54.4 billion cigarettes were sold last year in France, down 2.3 percent from 2007. In 1998, almost 85 billion cigarettes were sold in France.
A ban on smoking in most public places came into force in early 2007, followed by a ban on smoking in bars and cafes at the start of last year, as part of government efforts to reduce smoking for health reasons.
“The French market has never been at such a low,” BAT said in a statement. “And analysis shows that, when it comes to tobacco, what is lost is never regained.”
This winter, many Paris cafes have equipped their outdoor seating areas — where smoking is still allowed — with heaters so customers can keep puffing away while enjoying a coffee or glass of wine in the cold weather.
The price of cigarettes, which are heavily taxed, has risen steadily in recent years. The average price of a packet was 5.30 euros last year, up from 2.96 euros a decade earlier.
Cigarette sales in France do not tell the whole story, however, as some French smokers prefer to buy packets abroad where they are cheaper.
“It is clear that from the moment that prices go up in France, people will cross the border where they can get cigarettes more cheaply,” said BAT France’s head of institutional relations, Yves Trevilly.
He said almost one in four cigarettes smoked in France last year was bought abroad, mainly in Spain, Luxembourg and Belgium.
(Reporting by Caroline Jacobs, editing by Estelle Shirbon and Nicholas Vinocur)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Related Posts:
Smoking cigarette or any other form of tobacco hampers the health in many ways but, still there are many people who are addicted to this literally bad habit. Smoking is not a disease but, it takes a toll on the life of a person who is a habitual smoker. But, smoking can be seen as
Full Post: Antidepressant Drugs as Stop Smoking Medications
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
LONDON (Reuters) - The display of cigarettes and tobacco in shops will be banned in England under proposals outlined by Health Secretary Alan Johnson on Tuesday. The move aims to cut the number of young people starting smoking and follows similar measures planned or already imposed in other countries including Scotland and Canada. The government estimates that
Full Post: England to ban tobacco displays in shops
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
By Robert Evans GENEVA (Reuters) - Delegates from more than 150 countries met Monday to push for a wide-ranging pact to curb the booming trade in cigarette smuggling. The week-long conference in Geneva is being held under the auspices of the World Health Organization (WHO), which estimates 5 million people die each year from diseases related to
Full Post: International pact sought on cigarette smuggling
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
By Will Dunham WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The number of U.S. adults who smoke has dropped below 20 percent for the first time on record but cigarettes still kill almost half a million people a year, health officials said on Thursday. About 19.8 percent of U.S. adults — 43.4 million people — were smokers in 2007. That was
Full Post: U.S. smoking rate is under 20 percent for first time
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. states have not lived up to their commitment to devote a major portion of their huge legal settlement with the tobacco industry a decade ago on anti-smoking efforts, health advocacy groups said on Tuesday. In the 10 years since the landmark deal, the states have received $79.2 billion of the settlement and
Full Post: Health groups lash U.S. states over tobacco efforts