CityNews – The Chiang Mai Public Health Office has published a statement clarifying new rules on cigarette warning labels, which will take effect later this month.
Chairman Paisarn Thanyawinichkul said that from September 23, all cigarettes sold must have warning labels covering 85 per cent of the packaging.
The new rule was issued by the Ministry of Public Health in 2013, and is among the toughest in the world for cigarette packaging.
The five countries with the biggest warning labels on cigarette packets are Australia (87.5 per cent of packaging space) and Thailand (85 per cent), followed by Nepal, Brunei and Canada (75 per cent).
Publishing bigger warning labels is the best way to warn people of the dangers of smoking, said Dr Paisarn. It also enables the government to get its message across to smokers all over the country without paying.
The Department of Disease Control has ordered officials in all provinces to examine cigarette packaging from September 24.
Manufacturers or importers who break the law can be fined up to 100,000 baht, and distributors who do not show the warning labels can be fined up to 20,000 baht.
Dr Paisarn added that the new warning labels must contain one of 10 message. They are:
1. Don’t smoke at home.
2. Tobacco smoke can kill your children.
3. Smoking can cause laryngeal cancer.
4. Smoking can cause heart disease.
5. Smoking can cause strokes.
6. Smoking can cause mouth cancer.
7. Smoking can cause erectile dysfunction.
8. Smoking can cause dental problems.
9. Smoking can cause lung cancer.
10. Smoking can cause emphysema.