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NEWS

4 OCTOBER 2024 ASIAN TRADER 5

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The EU has called on members

to ban smoking and vaping in

outdoor areas including

playgrounds, swimming pools

and restaurant patios as part of

a crackdown on second-hand

smoke.

In a non-binding recom-

mendation, the European

Commission said extending

“smoke-free environment

policies” would better protect

people’s health, and in

particular that of children.

It urged the bloc’s 27

countries to extend restric-

tions in place for cigarettes to

cover electronic cigarettes and

other emerging

products, such as

heated tobacco

devices, “which

increasingly

reach very young

users”.

“We have a

duty to protect our citizens, in

particular children and young

people, against exposure to

harmful smoke and emis-

sions,” said health commis-

sioner Stella Kyriakides.

Emissions from electronic

cigarettes also typically

contain nicotine and other

toxic substances that are

harmful also to

second-hand

smokers,

according to the

WHO.

Among the

locations where

all smoking

should be banned, the

commission listed bus stops,

zoos, rooftop bars and cafe

terraces.

The EU is aiming to reduce

smoking from around 25 per

cent now to less than ﬁ ve

percent of the population by

2040, with its “Beating Cancer

Plan”.

EU calls for outdoor smoking,

vaping bans

The vanity of vodka – we

can make it work harder

Nick Gillett is

Co-founder and

Managing

Director of

successful

spirits

distributor

Mangrove Global, as well as an

industry expert and

commentator. In his column for

this issue, Nick celebrates the

potential of more vodka variety

in-store

I would bet my life that there’s not a

booze shelf out there – of trade or on

trade – that doesn’t have at least one

variety of vodka upon it. Vodka is the

world’s biggest spirits category in the

world by volume but is it, well, just a

little bit dull? There’s absolutely no

doubt there are some great brands

doing exciting things but, compared

to other categories, you have to look

quite hard to ﬁ nd them. Here’s how to

inject some excitement into your

in-store vodka range…

You probably stock a staple

vodka or two that you know will

always sell. But where’s the excite-

ment in that? Trialling an independ-

ent brand or two, at a more premium

price point, will bring some interest

to the range and perhaps even

encourage an upgrade. There are

some great British producers doing

good work in this space, like East

London Liquor Company, FAIR, and

Portobello Road Distillery. And

some of these brands are bringing

sophisticated flavoured varieties

too, such as Toasted Coffee Bean

vodka from Portobello Road – an-

other good way to expand and

diversify your in-store range.

Beyond that, we’re seeing a huge

uptake in ready-to-drink and

ready-to-serve products (expected

to grow at a volume CAGR of 6% up

until 2027) – covering the full

spectrum from premixed cans

through to premixed cocktails. If your

customers like convenience, RTDs are

worth trying out, and remember to

keep them cool so they’re ready to

sip. Mick Jagger said, “There are no

absolutes in life – only vodka” but that

doesn’t mean we can’t do a little more

with it!

Ads for junk food on TV are to

be banned from airing before

the 9pm watershed as part of

the government’s drive to

improve public health, the

Labour government con-

ﬁ rmed.

Also, online ads for

products that are high in fat,

salt and sugar will be banned

altogether. Andrew Gwynne,

the public health minister,

told the Commons that both

measures will come into force

in October 2025.

Gwynne told MPs in a

written ministerial statement

that Labour was taking action

because of widespread

concern about the number of

children in England who are

overweight.

“We want to tackle the

problem head on and that

includes implementing the

restrictions on junk food

advertising on TV and online

without further delay. We will

introduce a 9pm watershed on

TV advertising, and a total ban

on paid-for online advertising.

“These restrictions will

help protect children from

being exposed to advertising

of less healthy food and drinks,

which evidence shows

inﬂ uences their dietary

preferences from a young age.

The previous Conservative

government pledged to bring

in the TV watershed ban from

January 2023. But a month

before its introduction, Rishi

Sunak decided to delay it until

2025. Boris Johnson, one of Su-

nak’s predecessors, had

planned to implement the

same measure. But he too put

of plans to do so to help

families deal with the

cost-of-living crisis.

A number of items will be

exempt from the new restric-

tions as they are already

subject to separate regula-

tions. This includes baby

formula, processed cere-

al-based foods for infants, diet

replacement products,

medicinal drinks and approved

meal replacement products.

No more pre-watershed burgers after October 2024

Junk food ads to be

banned on daytime TV

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