Swiss-American based cigarette and tobacco giant Philip Morris International has said that it will stop selling Marlboro cigarettes in Britain within a decade. The company also urged the government of the U United Kingdom to ban the sale of tobacco based products. The announcement came after the significant reduce in the number of smokers in the United Kingdom. Cigarettes have been sold in plain packaging since 2016. This was a push from the UK government to reduce the prevalence of smoking.
On the other hand a number of investors have already taken off tobacco from their portfolios. More number of financial institutions have taken a pledge to implement tobacco-free policies. Jacek Olczak the CEO of Philip Morris International while talking to a leading daily said that the government of UK should consider cigarettes like gasoline powered vehicles. The sale of gasoline powered vehicles is due to be banned from 2030. The company had released a statement which mentioned that it sees a world without cigarettes.
Moira Gilchrist, the vice president of strategic and scientific communications said that the ban should be implemented soon as it would be the best decision. Gilchrist added that with the right measures it can stop selling cigarettes in a span of ten years. The World Health Organization has said that smoking that includes inhaling smoke and passive smoking, kills more than 8 million people every year. Philip Morris International had hired several scientists and technicians and also invested 8 billion to develop a low-risk product alternative to cigarettes.
However, Gilchrist said that quitting it completely is the best option but for those who do not, technology has empowered the companies like Philip Morris to come up with better alternatives. Earlier in July, the company announced that it has agreed to sign a deal to buy Vectura that makes asthma inhalers. Philip Morris said that the deal would be a part of its Beyond Nicotine strategy.
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