The 2022 Tobacco Transformation Index
The Foundation for a Smoke-Free World has published its 2022 Tobacco Transformation Index which monitors the transformation of tobacco companies
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by Dave Cross
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The Foundation for a Smoke-Free World says: “The Tobacco Transformation Index aims to accelerate the reduction of harm caused by tobacco use through a bi-annual ranking of the world’s 15 largest tobacco companies on their relative progress, or lack thereof, toward harm reduction.
“The 2022 Tobacco Transformation Index is the result of a process of company research, scoring, and ranking conducted over the two-year review period from 2019 to 2021. The Index methodology is based on a set of 35 indicators organised under six categories of company actions and performance, from product sales to capital allocation and marketing policies.”
“The 2022 Tobacco Transformation Index demonstrates that the transformation of the tobacco industry toward harm reduction continues to be inconsistent”
The 2022 Tobacco Transformation Index demonstrates that the transformation of the tobacco industry toward harm reduction continues to be inconsistent and at an early stage. For example, Index research indicates that high-risk products (HRPs) accounted for about 95% of Index company retail sales by volume in 2021. Reduced-risk products (RRPs) accounted for just 5%.
Simply put, the tobacco industry is not phasing out HRPs and/or transitioning smokers to RRPs quickly enough to achieve the Foundation’s mission of ending smoking in this generation. Based on the current trajectory of smoking rates, it is estimated that by the end of the 21st century up to one billion people will die of smoking. Therefore, both the transformation of the tobacco industry and the acceleration of that transformation are urgent.
The Foundation for a Smoke-Free World also noted:
- Around half of the Tobacco Transformation Index companies have adopted strategies regarding tobacco harm reduction and, to varying degrees, are performing toward their objectives through product offers, sales, and investments over the review period 2019 to 2021
- The rest encompass multiple companies that are potentially in the process of establishing early momentum as demonstrated by leading indicators associated with investments and/or strategies toward tobacco harm reduction. Time will tell if transformation comes to fruition. Several of these companies remain essentially cigarette producers
Index Program Officer David Janazzo said: “With the delivery of the 2022 Index, attention will now turn to the third Index cycle of research, including both technical work on Index design and evolution, scientific research, and policy research on the country context within which the tobacco industry operates.
“From the Foundation's perspective, the Index research program will include a continuation of funding and a related effort on working with stakeholders to identify and define key areas of research in support of Index evolution.”
References:
- The 2022 Tobacco Transformation Index - www.tobaccotransformationindex.org
Photo Credit:
Photo by Ander Burdain on Unsplash
Dave Cross
Journalist at POTVDave is a freelance writer; with articles on music, motorbikes, football, pop-science, vaping and tobacco harm reduction in Sounds, Melody Maker, UBG, AWoL, Bike, When Saturday Comes, Vape News Magazine, and syndicated across the Johnston Press group. He was published in an anthology of “Greatest Football Writing”, but still believes this was a mistake. Dave contributes sketches to comedy shows and used to co-host a radio sketch show. He’s worked with numerous start-ups to develop content for their websites.
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