PMI Invested over $12.5 Billion in Smoke-free Technology

According to a report from El País on April 16th, it is widely known that smoking has significant impacts on health. Therefore, the best choice is to never start smoking or to quit as soon as possible. However, according to data from the World Health Organization (WHO), there are still over a billion smokers worldwide, and this number is not expected to significantly decrease in the near to medium term.

Around the world, various methods and strategies have been implemented to help people quit smoking and encourage them to break this habit. These strategies and policies primarily focus on prevention and cessation, aiming to prevent people from starting smoking, especially young individuals, or helping current smokers kick the habit.

In recent years, scientists have developed a smokeless alternative through technology, indicating that it is a better choice than continuing to smoke. These alternatives do not involve combustion, are smokeless, and generally contain the addictive substance nicotine. Evidence shows that compared to traditional cigarettes, this method significantly reduces health risks. When smoking cigarettes, tobacco is burned at high temperatures, producing smoke that contains over 6000 chemical substances, including around a hundred that are proven or potentially harmful. Therefore, eliminating the combustion process is the main goal in developing smoking alternatives.

Such alternatives include e-cigarettes (commonly referred to as e-liquid or vape), which do not contain tobacco and only have nicotine solution, as well as heat-not-burn tobacco devices that, although they contain tobacco, only heat it up instead of burning it, resulting in significantly reduced harmful chemicals released compared to burning tobacco.

In addition, Philip Morris International (PMI) has been dedicated to seeking non-combustible alternative products. They continue to invest in technology and collaborate with partners to drive the global goal of achieving a smoke-free future. Since 2008, PMI has invested approximately $12.5 billion in research and development of new technologies, establishing a scientific evidence base, product manufacturing, marketing, and continued innovation.

Therefore, it is possible to help eliminate the impact of smoking on public health. However, this is not something that can be achieved overnight or by one party alone, but it requires cooperation from other relevant parties such as public authorities, the medical community, and the scientific community. Only in this way will there be real changes that have an impact on public health. At the same time, accurate information based on scientific evidence must be provided to adult smokers so that they can make informed decisions.

The PMI company stated that "with the appropriate regulatory environment, societal dialogue, and public support, many countries are expected to achieve smoke-free status within 10 to 15 years".