Resources category: Countering Industry Interference

A review of fiscal markings, track-and-trace mechanisms, and licensing systems in the ASEAN region.

This analysis focuses on understanding difficulties in managing industry engagement across government ministries and in developing effective whole-of government accountability for tobacco control.

The Union is partnered with experts to highlight real world case studies on how the tobacco industry undermines tobacco control policy implementation and enforcement, with a focus on the retail environment. View the webinar presentations and learn about the strategies adopted to limit the impact of these tactics on the implementation of tobacco control policies. 

This report uses publicly available information on tobacco industry interference in 34 countries and their respective governments’ responses to these interferences to interpret key findings and rank the countries on several interference indicators.

The sixth edition of Tobacco atlas and its companion website provide comprehensive guidance on tobacco control issues and tools used to counter them. Use the Tobacco Atlas to explore key issues and solutions and the companion website to search for country specific information.

"Countering Tobacco Tactics" is a guide to help policymakers and tobacco control advocates identify, monitor, expose, challenge, and counter tobacco industry tactics in order to prevent industry interference in public health and health policy.

The Union’s FCTC Article 5.3 Toolkit provides step-by-step guidance for governments on preventing tobacco industry interference and protecting tobacco control laws and policies.

This article describes how the British Columbia Capital Regional District systematically organized an educational campaign, enacted and enforced a series of bylaws, exposed industry interference to successfully pass and implement a 100% smokefree bylaw in all public places. 

This report, WHO’s fourth in the series, provides a country-level examination of the global tobacco epidemic and identifies countries that have applied selected measures for reducing tobacco use. This report focuses on Enforcing bans on tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship.

This document aims to provide background and contextual information on tobacco industry interference practices and how Contracting Parties to the WHO FCTC can monitor industry interference efforts and better implement FCTC Article 5.3 guidelines.

Tobacco industry interference remains the most significant barrier to the global implementation of Article 5.3 of the WHO FCTC. This guide aims to assist parties in their efforts to implement and protect tobacco control efforts from tobacco industry interference. 

This article reviews published research on tobacco industry activities that interfere with tobacco control policies and encourage tobacco use in LMICs to more thoroughly understand industry practices and strategies in LMICs.

The University of California San Francisco database contains over 14 million archived documents on tobacco industry activities, including advertising, manufacturing, marketing, scientific research, and political activities. In particular, the database provides access to internal industry documents made public during United States v. Philip Morris USA Inc., et al. and other litigation cases.

Tobacco Control Industry Watch provides facts and figures, publications, and media updates for the South East Asian Tobacco Control Alliance (SEATCA). With a focus on Articles 5.3 and 13, guidelines, toolkits, and in-country statuses are also available to further the effective implementation of the WHO FCTC in ASEAN countries. 

Tobacco Unmasked is the information portal of the Centre for Combating Tobacco in Sri Lanka. It provides information and profiles on tobacco companies, their employees, their allies, and other institutions linked with them. The portal also describes industry strategies and arguments against tobacco control efforts.

Tobacco Tactics investigates tobacco industry strategies and tactics for undermining tobacco control efforts and provides rigorously researched reports, profiles, and information on industry players, allies, and activities. 

This article analyzes tobacco industry documents to determine why industry-sponsored youth smoking prevention programs were developed, how they were used to fight tobacco control policy and programming, and their lack of effect on youth smoking prevalence. 

This article analyzes the tobacco industry self-regulation "We Card" program. It exposes "We Card" as ineffective and structured to improve the industry's public image and limit tobacco control policies and their enforcement.

Stopping Tobacco Organizations and Products (STOP) works to understand and expose the tobacco industry’s efforts to derail tobacco control and hook a new generation of users. STOP's Resources Archive arms and supports stakeholders with tools and resources to counter the industry, including the latest analyses, reports, and information on the industry’s tactics. 

This article outlines a model that provides an evidence-based summary of corporate political strategies used by the tobacco industry. The model enables public health practitioners to anticipate these strategies and develop realistic assessments of the industry’s claims.

This website offers detailed information and data on the tactics used by the tobacco industry in Brazil, the legislative measures Brazil is adopting to meet FCTC and WHO directives, and the people and organizations involved with the tobacco industry that lobby against tobacco control measures in Brazil. The website is available in English, Portuguese, and Spanish.

This report uses publicly available information on tobacco industry interference in 33 countries and their respective governments’ responses to these interferences to interpret key findings and rank the countries on several interference indicators.

This report compiles case studies with the aim of exposing the tobacco industry's strategies for blocking tobacco control efforts and disseminates information on the counter efforts of four civil society organizations in Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, and Mexico.

This article explores the tobacco industry's practices in low and middle-income countries (LMICs), given the industry's growing interest, investment, and interference in these regions. It focuses on how exposing the industry's misconduct is necessary for both the implementation of the WHO FCTC and more 'endgame' solutions to the tobacco epidemic.

This article reviews and analyses the diffusion of clean indoor air laws and the economic and public health impacts of their implementation. While research sponsored by the tobacco industry has raised concerns regarding the economic impact of smoke-free laws, scientific evidence indicates that clean indoor air laws are low-cost, safe, and effective.

The Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids Industry Watch project seeks to hold the tobacco industry accountable by providing facts about how tobacco companies operate and working to expose and stop the industry’s harmful activities. The Industry Watch website contains helpful resources, including factsheets, industry profiles, reports and studies, presentations, press releases, and key websites.

The Crooked Nine report outlines the tobacco industry's strategies, techniques, and tactics to undermine tobacco control using case studies from around the world. It is designed to help the tobacco control community predict the industry's actions and counter industry interference. 

The Africa Centre For Tobacco Industry Monitoring And Policy Research (ATIM) is an observatory that offers up-to-date information on activities and developments in the tobacco industry that could have an impact on tobacco control policies. ATIM provides industry monitoring across Africa, as recommended by the Guidelines for implementation of Article 5.3 of the WHO FCTC, evaluates the impact of tobacco control policy, and informs stakeholders within the tobacco control community of ongoing developments.

The African Tobacco Control Alliance (ATCA) is a Pan-African network of more than 120 civil society organizations that monitors and responds to industry interference and provides regional resources. This page provides case studies of African countries and organizations responding to tobacco industry interference.

This article is a case study ion Philip Morris' involvement in the cessation arena and an evaluation of how and why PM supports cessation programs. It illustrates a notable example of industry interference that undermines effective tobacco control.