Canada Unveils Aggressive Plan to Lower Tobacco Usage

The government wants less than 5% of Canadians using tobacco by 2035.

March 03, 2017

OTTAWA, Ontario – This week, Canadian Health Minister Jane Philpott revealed the government’s plan to reduce tobacco usage by less than 5% by 2035, the Globe and Mail reports. “This is a pressing public health matter—there’s no question about it,” Philpott said during her keynote address at the National Forum on the Future of Tobacco Control in Canada.

Currently, around 13% of Canadians use tobacco, and smoking rates among young adults and minors haven’t budged since 2013, according to Health Canada. The government predicts that given current methods in place to lower tobacco use, smoking rates will decrease to 9% by 2036.

But to reach the less than 5% goal, drastic measures would be needed. Some under consideration include the possibility of raising the minimum age of tobacco buying to 21 and a more widespread smoking ban. Approval of the Tobacco and Vaping Products Act would prohibit the sale of electronic cigarettes to minors, ban flavors in e-cigs and mandate health warnings be affixed to e-cigarette packaging.

A large piece of the aggressive plan includes plain packaging for tobacco products. The proposal would forbid the use of brand logos or colors, similar to Australia’s plain packaging law. Tobacco firms have launched a campaign against such regulations. The Canadian government also has new rules in the pipeline banning menthol from cigarettes, most cigars and cigarillos, and blunt wraps.

Last month, Finland announced its goal to be tobacco free by 2040. Meanwhile, Slovenia joins other countries with a plain packaging law.

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