PMI top figure vouches for heated tobacco products to quit smoking

Heated tobacco products are better for smokers who are struggling to quit unaided, says an industry figure from Philip Morris International (PMI),  reiterating that PMI is not encouraging anyone to pick up any new vices.

Speaking at a recent press briefing, PMI Vice President- Market Activation & Support Tommaso Di Giovanni added that talks are in progress in many countries with plans to reduce smoking via innovative non-combustible products.

“Governments and civil societies should update their knowledge and understanding about smoking with current data and information about the product under review. There are a lot of improvement and development brought about by science and technology regarding to tobacco smoking. The information about tobacco products 10 years ago is outdated,” he said.

Approximately 30 per cent of PMI’s revenue now comes from non-combustible products. The company reportedly plans to reach their target of having 50 per cent of their sales from smoke-free products by 2025 through organic revenue growth, rather than mergers and acquisitions, as told by PMI’s current CEO Jacek Olczak in a recent interview during the Reuters Next conference.

“We have a globally leading portfolio of both traditional and smoke-free tobacco products, an outstanding management team and are an agile, efficient and fast-learning organisation. We are perfectly equipped to continue to be successful in our vision to replace cigarettes with better alternatives, to the benefit of consumers, shareholders and society at large,” reported quoted him as saying earlier this year.