The neutral packaging of tobacco, everyone loses

The introduction of plain packaging is a detrimental measure not only for consumers, traders and state finances, but also for manufacturers

By Mathieu Maes
Vice-President of the Foundation No to Counterfeiting and Piracy

We regularly get some nice results in the fight against counterfeiting and illegal trade in Belgium. It's still happy. Because even though counterfeit products can be financially more attractive, they are often dangerous for the consumer.

Indeed, there is no guarantee that the illegal goods comply with the European regulation which offers guarantees in terms of composition of the product or concerning the safety of the consumer. In addition, each counterfeit product also means a loss of income, not only for the merchant, but also for the Belgian Treasury.

The Belgian Government therefore has every interest in making the best possible use of all existing measures in the fight against counterfeiting and illegal trade. But it is equally important to avoid as much as possible any measure that might facilitate counterfeiting and the illegal trade.

This last point is worthy of mention. linger. Especially since some want to implement in Belgium the plain packaging for tobacco products which are – it is not a coincidence – one of the most counterfeit product categories.

Although this measure is undeniably inspired by the desire to safeguard public health, it is reasonable to ask whether the expected benefits will be sufficient to counter the direct and indirect disadvantages that are to be expected. It should also be noted that the impact of the introduction of plain packaging on smoking behavior is not yet clear or has not yet been sufficiently demonstrated. In France, for example, the recent introduction of neutral packaging has had no measurable effect on sales

What we can predict with certainty is is that with neutral packaging, the door is opened to counterfeiting and illegal trade. Counterfeiting is much simpler with plain packaging. Instead of having to copy a multitude of different products, it is enough to copy one and the same neutral package. Similarly, smuggling of products with branded packaging is expected to increase as they are still legally available in other European countries.

It is easy to make a lucrative trip from Belgium to countries in Southern Europe or Eastern Europe to fill up with much cheaper cigarettes. We note that the illegal trade in tobacco products has been steadily increasing for many years.

With neutral packaging, we would lose the last bulwark that prevents our country from being overwhelmed by even more counterfeiting. For our customs and police services, which already have a lot to do with the detection and dismantling of illegal tobacco factories, the task would be progressively impossible.

A study by the FPS Public Health in 2011 also showed the enormous health risks of counterfeit products: " No samples of cigarettes found on the black market were compliant. at twice the allowable level of carbon monoxide or tar Other samples contained less nicotine than indicated on the package, which may encourage the smoker to inhale more deeply, causing him to ingest much more carbon monoxide and tar "

Neutral packaging also violates trademark law in Benelux. They exclude the use of trademarks and thus constitute an expropriation of intellectual property rights. In any case, the measure appears to be contrary to various international conventions.

For example, the WTO Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) states that the use of a trademark may not be complicated in a way that undermines the ability to distinguish products from different companies. A recent study by independent financial consultancy firm Brand Finance has shown that the introduction of plain packaging would represent a loss of nearly $ 200 billion for eight major companies in the beverage and food industry.

In summary, the introduction of plain packaging is a detrimental measure not only for consumers, traders and state finances, but also for manufacturers.

We therefore call for no measures to be introduced unthinking, which would lead to less consumer protection, create economic uncertainty and further complicate the work of our customs services.