Hi,
Twenty years after the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC) entered into force, there are new frontiers in this fight.
The heated tobacco products is nearly US$ 50 billion globally and is expected to grow at a steady pace every year in the medium term. Further, addiction in youth is fueled by flavors.
WHO has called for a ban on flavored products, even as there are efforts to expand the markets for these products. Scholars and activists are consistently working on understanding and exposing such tactics underlying this kind of a market expansion strategy.
In our story today, Peter Dibia, a Nigeria-based communications expert with an understanding of tobacco policies discusses some of the features of the heated tobacco products market informed by recent efforts by activists. Dibia is also a part of our annual Geneva Health Files fellowship program.
We hope you find this useful.
Find our work valuable? Consider become a paying subscriber. Tracking global health policy-making in Geneva is tough and expensive. Help us in raising important questions, and in keeping an ear to the ground. helps us meet our costs.
Our gratitude to our subscribers who ensure we are able to pursue public interest journalism.
Best,
Priti
Feel free to write to us: genevahealthfiles@gmail.com
Find us on BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/genevahealthfiles.bsky.social
I. STORY OF THE WEEK
Experts Expose Risks, Industry Tactics Behind Heated Tobacco Products; WHO Calls For Ban on Flavored Puffs
By Peter Dibia & Priti Patnaik
As the global use of Heated Tobacco Products (HTPs) accelerates, a panel of international public health experts convened by STOP, a tobacco industry watchdog, recently presented new evidence debunking claims of harm reduction and cessation linked to these products.
In a briefing, researchers and advocates from the United Kingdom, the Philippines, and Ukraine shed light on the health risks, regulatory gaps, and deceptive lobbying strategies associated with HTPs, particularly those marketed by tobacco giant Philip Morris International (PMI).
The session on “Big Tobacco vs The Evidence: What We Really Know About Heated Tobacco Products,” coincided with the release of a new brief by STOP and a supporting academic paper from the University of Bath’s Tobacco Control Research Group.
According to industry estimates, the global heated tobacco products market size was valued at US$ 49.14 billion in 2024 and is projected to grow at a CAGR of 63.2% from 2025 to 2030. “The major factors driving the market growth include steadily decreasing sales of conventional cigarettes globally and a growth in demand for tobacco products that present lower health risks”, reports say.
