Starting Tomorrow, Cigarette Pack Warning Images and Text Change... 'This' That Induces Smoking Cessation

[Asia Economy Reporter Byun Seon-jin] From the 23rd, the warning images and texts on cigarette packs that induce smoking cessation will be changed. The warning images and texts are replaced every two years to prevent smokers from becoming accustomed to them, which reduces the effectiveness of smoking cessation.

The Ministry of Health and Welfare and the Korea Health Promotion Institute announced on the 22nd that the newly revised 4th phase cigarette pack warning images and texts will be applied from the 23rd. The usage period for the 4th phase cigarette pack warning images and texts is from the 23rd until December 22, 2024, following a six-month grace period after the revision of the notification on June 22. The Enforcement Decree of the National Health Promotion Act stipulates that cigarette pack warning images and texts must be regularly notified every 24 months. The current 3rd phase cigarette pack warning images and texts, which have been in effect since December 23, 2020, will end on this day.

The newly changed cigarette pack warning images and texts were finalized through a "national effectiveness evaluation" survey conducted in March to assess the level of awareness, discussions by the Smoking Cessation Policy Expert Committee, and deliberations by the National Health Promotion Policy Deliberation Committee. Among the 12 warning images (10 for combustible cigarettes and 2 for electronic cigarettes), 11 images were replaced except for one liquid-type electronic cigarette image. The Ministry of Health and Welfare explained that “considering the necessity of replacement to enhance effectiveness and prevent familiarity, the expressions regarding health risks were strengthened according to the characteristics of each theme.”

The 10 combustible cigarette images were changed from “numerical presentation” such as ‘Lung cancer risk, up to 26 times!’ to “disease emphasis” such as ‘lung cancer,’ while the 2 electronic cigarette images retained the existing warning text ‘Nicotine addiction, exposure to carcinogens!’ The liquid-type electronic cigarette was retained because the 3rd phase images received high scores in the national effectiveness evaluation and were intuitively easy to understand. The Ministry of Health and Welfare revised and distributed the 4th phase cigarette pack warning image and text labeling guidelines last August to inform the correct labeling methods of the newly changed warning images and texts.

According to Article 11 of the World Health Organization (WHO) Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) guidelines, it is recommended to periodically revise and supplement warning images and texts. Since Korea implemented the 1st phase cigarette pack warning image and text system on December 23, 2016, the adult male smoking rate has steadily decreased. The adult male smoking rate was 40.7% in 2016 but dropped to 34.0% in 2020.

Jin Young-joo, Director of the Health Policy Bureau at the Ministry of Health and Welfare, said, “Through the newly introduced 4th phase cigarette pack warning images and texts, we will be able to deliver information about the harmfulness of tobacco to the public more effectively.” Cho Hyun-jang, President of the Korea Health Promotion Institute, said, “The 4th phase cigarette pack health warnings emphasize the harmfulness of tobacco through clearer expressions. We will actively support ensuring that the labeling methods are complied with in the field.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.