New Regulations
Packaging and cigarette tipping
are changing
The Government of Canada recently adopted new regulations amending the Tobacco Products Regulations (Plain and Standardized Appearance), which took effect on August 1, 2023.
Under the new regulations, both tobacco product packaging and cigarette tipping will feature visual changes.
What are the changes under
the new regulations?
- All tobacco product packages must carry new health-related messages. The manufacturer must rotate these messages every 24 to 36 months.
- Cigarette packaging will have an extended upper-slide flap where new health-information messages are to appear.
- Individual cigarettes will be required to have a health warning on the tipping paper. The ink used to display health warnings on the tipping paper is made up of colouring agents that comply with regulations.
New health warnings
Legislation timeline
Before
After
February
2024
February 1, 2024
Manufacturer and distributor compliance for first wave of health-related messages on all tobacco products and packaging.
Before
After
August
2024
August 1, 2024
Retail compliance deadline for the sale to adult tobacco consumers of individual King Size cigarettes with health warnings on the tipping paper.
Before
After
May
2025
May 1, 2025
Retail compliance deadline for the sale to adult tobacco consumers of individual Regular Size cigarettes and tubes with health warnings on the tipping.
Before
After
November
2026
November 1, 2026
Retail compliance deadline for the sale to adult tobacco consumers of cigarette packages with an extended upper slide-flap where health-information messages are to appear.
Products and their packaging with the applicable changes may likely be sold before the effective compliance date provided above.
Our
position
At Imperial Tobacco Canada, we believe that tobacco regulations are necessary, and we support regulations that are evidence-based and deliver on the intended policy goals.
Since early 2020, all legal tobacco products in Canada have been sold in the same “slide and shell” package using the same brown colour and fonts. In addition, 75 % of the front and back of the pack features a pictorial health warning.
All legal tobacco packs in Canada have been sold with a health warning since 1989 and with a pictorial warning since 2000.
The new regulations are intended to raise public awareness about tobacco-related health risks. However, any smoker who purchases a legal pack of cigarettes today knows the health risks associated with smoking – and therefore, we question the value of these new regulations.
The Federal Government has stated that it wants to reduce smoking incidence to less than 5 % by 2035. Adding more regulation is not the solution.
FAQ
Why did the package change?
A: The Federal Government has adopted new regulations which will gradually phase in new health messages to appear on both cigarette packaging and individual cigarette tipping paper, as well as on a new extended upper slide-flap on cigarette packaging.
Why has the tipping been changed?
A: Following the Federal Government’s recent adoption of the new regulations amending the Tobacco Products Regulations (Plain and Standardized Appearance), individual King Size and Regular Size cigarettes and tubes will be required to carry a health warning on the tipping paper. The printing process to display the federally mandated health warnings on the tipping paper uses ink that comply with regulations.