Tobacco companies lose WTO ruling on plain packaging

Australia has won a landmark World Trade Organisation ruling to require cigarettes to be sold in plain packs without any striking logos or fonts, which could bring a new wave of tobacco restrictions around the world.

Australia implemented a measure in 2011 that required tobacco companies to sell their products with standard brown cardboard packaging. The measure received a lot of backlash from tobacco companies claiming it broke WTO intellectual-property rules.

Due to the companies suing the government over the issue, other governments have been wary of implementing the same type of regulations.

The WTO ruled against the tobacco companies because the organization’s agreement contain exemptions that allow countries to implement rules deemed necessary to protect their citizens’ health.

This ruling from the WTO could lead to global implementation of the measure to prevent tobacco companies from attracting youths attention with flashy packaging. This could also extend to products such as alcohol and junk food.

Countries including Belgium, Canada, Colombia, India, Panama, Malaysia, Turkey and Singapore are considering plain-packaging measures. So far, France, Hungary, Ireland, New Zealand, Norway, Slovenia and the U.K. have already passed such rules.

The World Health Organization welcomed the WTO ruling, saying it cleared “another legal hurdle thrown up in the tobacco industry’s efforts to block tobacco control and is likely to accelerate implementation of plain packaging around the globe.”