Researchers Provide Information for the New Tobacco Product Control Act
Researchers Provide Information for the New Tobacco Product Control ActPress Release: Tobacco Control Research and Knowledge Management Center (TRC) Date: 24 December 2015 Release date: For Immediate Release Researchers have provided information that the New Tobacco Product Control Act will not dictate policy or control tobacco growing or the careers of tobacco farmers. Dr. Siriwan Pitayarangsarit, Director of Tobacco Control Research and Knowledge and Management Center (TRC), Mahidol University, noted that an important feature of the draft New Tobacco Product Control Act is that it does not have any statement relevant to the actions of tobacco farmers, nor does it limit or control tobacco growing areas of tobacco famers since growing tobacco for sale is under legislation of the Excise Department.
The information from the Excise Department and the Ministry of Agriculture indicates that tobacco farmers have several sales channels and 48.5% of tobacco farmers grow other cash crops along with tobacco. In 2010 – 2011, there were 49,166 tobacco farmers producing international tobacco (59,578,962 kilos). The value of tobacco leaves purchased by the Thailand Tobacco Monopoly in 2013 was 1,600 million baht, the value of tobacco leaves exported was approximately 2,250 million baht, and the rest of tobacco leaves was purchased by local shredded tobacco entrepreneurs. The overall value of tobacco leaves was 0.05% of GDP.
The economy of tobacco leaf was approximately 4 – 5 billion baht or 10% of the overall economy of tobacco production and tobacco products (which was estimated at 50,889 million baht in 2009 or 0.53% of GDP). If one were able to stop smoking by children younger than 20 years old, about 570,000 people, the demand for tobacco in Thailand would be reduced by only 5%. Therefore, tobacco farmers would not be impacted by this reduction in demand because there are several sales channels and they would have a long time to adapt themselves to growing other replacement crops which have less effect on health.
To request additional information, please contact:
Dr. Siriwan Pitayarangsarit Tel. 081 483 7807 or: Action on Smoking and Health Foundation (ASH Thailand) Tel. 02 278 1828 / 081 349 7253
