Cigarette packets/ design

[Ladder23]

Just curious if it's just the UK which have the awful off putting images showing on cigarette packets, or whether this follows suit throughout?

I'm a non smoker, never smoked or paid attention before but it's been something I've been curious about for a few days

 

[hexagon789]

Just curious if it's just the UK which have the awful off putting images showing on cigarette packets, or whether this follows suit throughout?

I'm a non smoker, never smoked or paid attention before but it's been something I've been curious about for a few days

Other countries have similar plain packaging rules; Australia was the first country to adopt such packaging.

 

[AlterEgo]

All the answers you could want here https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plain_tobacco_packaging

 

[Ladder23]

Other countries have similar plain packaging rules; Australia was the first country to adopt such packaging.

Thanks, I was surprised I actually thought Australia was still showing the original designs

All the answers you could want here https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plain_tobacco_packaging

Thanks

 

[davehsug]

The plain package design makes it difficult for shop staff. I was given the wrong brand once on a 100 pack, and had an almighty fight with the store manager, who refused to exchange them, Company policy apparently, but the pack was clearly unopened. I always made a point od checking I'd been given the correct pack afterwards.

 

[Ladder23]

The plain package design makes it difficult for shop staff. I was given the wrong brand once on a 100 pack, and had an almighty fight with the store manager, who refused to exchange them, Company policy apparently, but the pack was clearly unopened. I always made a point od checking I'd been given the correct pack afterwards.

I can actually imagine it's a right pain for staff and no doubt there is often mistakes made.

Another note, I think the slight interest for me was being a big motorsport enthusiast, cigarette/ tobacco advertising was always a big deal as it was everywhere, with Rizla, Lucky strike, Camel and so on.

 

[Kite159]

I can actually imagine it's a right pain for staff and no doubt there is often mistakes made.

Another note, I think the slight interest for me was being a big motorsport enthusiast, cigarette/ tobacco advertising was always a big deal as it was everywhere, with Rizla, Lucky strike, Camel and so on.

It's also a lot easier for those professional criminals to sell fake cigarettes due to the plain packaging being easy to fake.

 

[E27007]

Other countries have similar plain packaging rules; Australia was the first country to adopt such packaging.

The plain packaging regulations really gets under the skin of the tobacco giants, non-plain packaging being designed to glamourise the product.
Tobacco giant Philip Morris of the USA sued the Australian Govt over the matter (and lost). Morris claimed the matter breached a trade agreement between their countries and for a loss of profit.
The legal case shows how far big business will go to protect their profits, challenging an act of parliament set by a democratic parliament

.Philip Morris Sues Australia

 

[tomuk]

I can actually imagine it's a right pain for staff and no doubt there is often mistakes made.

Another note, I think the slight interest for me was being a big motorsport enthusiast, cigarette/ tobacco advertising was always a big deal as it was everywhere, with Rizla, Lucky strike, Camel and so on.

Phillip Morris ie Marlboro still sponsor Ferrari the last visible sponsorship being the Mission Winnow nonsense which was removed from thee cars last year.

 

[Butts]

Other countries have similar plain packaging rules; Australia was the first country to adopt such packaging.

Whatever happened to the spirit of crocodile dundee ....

You can only take 25 Duty Free Cigarettes into the country as well.

With regard to plain packaging even the EU can't seem to present a united front. In Spain and Italy (to name but 2) your Benson & Hedges Gold still come emblazoned with the familiar colour and design but Ireland it's the dowdy green.

Buying tobacco products at a UK Airport is somewhat akin to entering a sealed off crack den. However in Switzerland they are on sale next to the toblerones.

It's not easy being a smoker these day's due to the unpredictability of what facilities will be available to you in different Countries. Even within the same country they can vary massively as well.

For example in the UK some Airports have smoking areas airside and some don't. Even when you are lucky enough to find a facility they are often clogged up with vapers imitating the age of steam.

 

[najaB]

It's not easy being a smoker these days due to the unpredictability of what facilities will be available to you in different Countries. Even within the same country they can vary massively as well.

In a word: good. If you want to damage your health then fine, but I see no reason to make it easy for you.

 

[JonathanH]

It's not easy being a smoker these day's due to the unpredictability of what facilities will be available to you in different Countries.

Even when you are lucky enough to find a facility they are often clogged up with vapers imitating the age of steam.

Indeed vaping seems to have become far too easy. I'm surprised people go to a facility to vape, as it increasingly seems to be just something they do wherever they are.

Some plain packaging of vaping products would be a good idea, as it seems to be regarded as harmless by a large number of people.

 

[Jimini]

For example in the UK some Airports have smoking areas airside and some don't. Even when you are lucky enough to find a facility they are often clogged up with vapers imitating the age of steam.

What airports over here still have airside smoking areas, out of interest?

 

[PG]

What airports over here still have airside smoking areas, out of interest?

I believe that Leeds-Bradford and Liverpool both have a smoking area available after passing through security.

 

[Techniquest]

In a word: good. If you want to damage your health then fine, but I see no reason to make it easy for you.

Absolutely I won't go into it more than that, other than to say it's not that far off 4 years since I quit the awful habit and it's still one of *the* best things I ever did. Just a shame I didn't do it years before!

As for the plain packaging thing, it drives me nuts in my workplace. We make sure we read what the packaging says to the customer, and show them the packet, to ensure they get what they want. I absolutely hate being on that part of the shop, given that role means enabling addicts to keep going with their bad habits. To a lesser extent, I hate doing lottery products too, enabling addicts to keep buying more scratchcards etc.

I saw some of the pictures they put on the packets recently, fair to say it put me off my break time feed!

 

[Butts]

What airports over here still have airside smoking areas, out of interest?

Aberdeen, Manchester, East Midlands, Cardiff, Newcastle to name some more.

Absolutely I won't go into it more than that, other than to say it's not that far off 4 years since I quit the awful habit and it's still one of *the* best things I ever did. Just a shame I didn't do it years before!

As for the plain packaging thing, it drives me nuts in my workplace. We make sure we read what the packaging says to the customer, and show them the packet, to ensure they get what they want. I absolutely hate being on that part of the shop, given that role means enabling addicts to keep going with their bad habits. To a lesser extent, I hate doing lottery products too, enabling addicts to keep buying more scratchcards etc.

I saw some of the pictures they put on the packets recently, fair to say it put me off my break time feed!

Do you have to serve Alcohol ?

In a word: good. If you want to damage your health then fine, but I see no reason to make it easy for you.

As long as it's an area that doesn't impinge on non-smokers what's it to you ?

Indeed vaping seems to have become far too easy. I'm surprised people go to a facility to vape, as it increasingly seems to be just something they do wherever they are.

Some plain packaging of vaping products would be a good idea, as it seems to be regarded as harmless by a large number of people.

Indeed, vapers should be banned from smoking areas.

 

[najaB]

As long as it's an area that doesn't impinge on non-smokers what's it to you ?

As far as airport smoking areas are concerned, are only non-smokers going to have to go into the area (e.g. cleaners)? Are the smokers going to change their clothes before/after going in there so that the non-smoking passengers they end up sitting beside on the plane don't end up stinking of smoke? (As a smoker you probably don't notice it, but as a non-smoker I certainly do!)

 

[Techniquest]

As far as airport smoking areas are concerned, are only non-smokers going to have to go into the area (e.g. cleaners)? Are the smokers going to change their clothes before/after going in there so that the non-smoking passengers they end up sitting beside on the plane don't end up stinking of smoke? (As a smoker you probably don't notice it, but as a non-smoker I certainly do!)

Absolutely! I never noticed the impact I had on others when I partook of the habit years ago, but wow it's so obvious these days to a non-smoker. How I didn't see it at the time I don't know.

When I'm at work, it's really not pleasant walking to the entrance past all the smokers, who take over quite the area outside. Working right next to them afterwards is certainly not nice either! Thankfully things have been clamped down a little, with much less 'crafty fag' breaks these days, having the smokers' area much further away from the doors would be a good next step. Not permitting it at all on work premises would be even better, but that's not going to happen while half of management puff away!

Don't start me on vaping, I could be here until Christmas talking about that too. Trust me, the rest of my posts on this thread have been very held back!

@Butts Yes I do have to permit alcohol sales, and I really don't like doing that either. Going tee-total around 3.5 years ago was one of the best things I ever did, for the record going vegan was another 'best thing' as was discovering the joy of an active lifestyle.

Hence why when I eventually find another job it won't be in catering or anywhere else that serves alcohol or cigarettes/vapes. Don't ask me about my opinions on tattoos!

 

[Chrysalis]

Indeed vaping seems to have become far too easy. I'm surprised people go to a facility to vape, as it increasingly seems to be just something they do wherever they are.

Some plain packaging of vaping products would be a good idea, as it seems to be regarded as harmless by a large number of people.

I agree re. vaping packaging. Vaping is much better for you than smoking (far less toxic chemicals compared to tobacco) but it is still very bad for you. One of the big dangers with vaping is that the companies that produce vaping products appear to aim their products towards younger people i.e. teens, with their colourful packaging and artificially sweet smelling scents/flavours. Another problem is that it seems fairly easy to end up vaping all the time, as the vapour is less offensive than cigarette smoke. I'm not 100% convinced it's better to vape most of your time compared to smoking a cigarette a day.

On another note, I think it's amazing that more countries are introducing plain cigarette packaging. I believe this should not only extend to vaping products, but also to alcoholic products. I think more countries should also introduce very strict rules of where you can smoke in built up areas: In Tokyo for example you can only smoke in dedicated "corners" and they are actually quite few and far between considering the size of the city.

I used to smoke, and quit years ago. Like other people in the thread, one of the best things I have done in my life.

 

[jon0844]

Kids are clearly addicted to flavoured vapes as you'll see them taping a 'puff' every few seconds, and it has clearly become such a habit that they don't even seem aware they're doing it. You'll also see discarded disposable vapes everywhere, and I'm amazed that even if we don't care about health, we allow disposable vapes to exist from an e-waste point of view.

It was bad enough when a company decided on making disposable 'one-shot' power banks, but now the market is considerably bigger.

The Government will naturally drag its heels, as there's a LOT of money to be made and while I think changes are inevitable, regulators always seem to be convinced to take their time.

 

[Butts]

As far as airport smoking areas are concerned, are only non-smokers going to have to go into the area (e.g. cleaners)? Are the smokers going to change their clothes before/after going in there so that the non-smoking passengers they end up sitting beside on the plane don't end up stinking of smoke? (As a smoker you probably don't notice it, but as a non-smoker I certainly do!)

That's interesting, does the smell just become obvious on initial exposure to it and dissipate over the course of the journey ?

Has your sensitivity increased since the banning of smoking in areas you may have regularly frequented such as pubs and restaurants ?

 

[jon0844]

I can smell smoke from a very long distance - the smell of weed being even more potent. However, when you could smoke in pubs you certainly got quite immunised to it after a while and only appreciated the smell the day after on clothing.

I think my sensitivity is as high now as it was, but far fewer people smoke these days. Vaping is where it's at, and the fruity smells carry miles also - although it doesn't linger or last for any length of time.

 

[najaB]

That's interesting, does the smell just become obvious on initial exposure to it and dissipate over the course of the journey ?

A bit of both. You tune it out after a while, but then I notice it again on the clothes if they haven't been washed.

Has your sensitivity increased since the banning of smoking in areas you may have regularly frequented such as pubs and restaurants ?

The smoking ban came in too close to my returning to the UK to be able to comment meaningfully.

 

[Butts]

I can smell smoke from a very long distance - the smell of weed being even more potent. However, when you could smoke in pubs you certainly got quite immunised to it after a while and only appreciated the smell the day after on clothing.

I think my sensitivity is as high now as it was, but far fewer people smoke these days. Vaping is where it's at, and the fruity smells carry miles also - although it doesn't linger or last for any length of time.

I think I may have an understanding of this as even I a hardened smoker notice the smell of weed or cigars, but not cigarettes.

 

[londonbridge]

Plain packaging was introduced in the UK in 2017. Six years on and I still check every single packet when I’m serving before I hand it over to the customer. Coupled with the display ban where we have them behind a shutter it’s very easy to pick up the wrong pack, we’re meant to keep them in alphabetical order but colleagues can, and easily do, make mistakes when replenishing the gantry, mixing up reds and blues, or 30g and 50g packs of rolling baccy etc.

What does make me laugh is the box pictures showing the effects of smoking which are designed to be off putting, where some customers will hand the packet back and ask for one with a different picture because they don’t like the particular picture on the pack you’ve given them…..I seem to remember some controversy over one of the pictures which was allegedly used without the consent of the person pictured. I also remember hearing that packets would have to be redesigned after Brexit due to licensing issues with some of the pictures, but I don’t think anything has come of that as yet.

 

[PG]

It was bad enough when a company decided on making disposable 'one-shot' power banks, but now the market is considerably bigger.

Isn't there kind of a precedent for that, going back decades?... namely disposable batteries?

 

[edwin_m]

Isn't there kind of a precedent for that, going back decades?... namely disposable batteries?

There are numerous way to recycle batteries these days, and the newer types tend to have greater environmental and fire risks than the old zinc ones that we happily chucked away back in the day.

 

[Mcr Warrior]

What does make me laugh is the box pictures showing the effects of smoking which are designed to be off putting, where some customers will hand the packet back and ask for one with a different picture because they don’t like the particular picture on the pack you’ve given them….

Reminds me of the gag about the warning messaging on cigarette packaging by the U.S. comedian Bill Hicks, which went roughly as follows...

"Smoking may cause foetal injury or premature birth?!

I found my brand...

Just don't get the ones that say, 'Lung Cancer.' "

 

[najaB]

Isn't there kind of a precedent for that, going back decades?... namely disposable batteries?

Difference there is that single use batteries were exactly that - they could only be used once. What's annoying about disposable vapes is that they almost all have rechargeable batteries in them and could easily be made reusable.

 

[PG]

Difference there is that single use batteries were exactly that - they could only be used once. What's annoying about disposable vapes is that they almost all have rechargeable batteries in them and could easily be made reusable.

Sadly, for the environment, I presume the manufacturers have a vested interest in not fitting a battery compartment flap so that users could at least remove the battery for recycling before disposal?