Two Georgia-based associations of premium tobacco retailers have warned the Macon City Council that the ordinance it is considering to restrict smoking in most indoor public places would be putting local jobs and small businesses at risk for no reason. Two Georgia-based associations of premium tobacco retailers have warned the Macon City Council that the ordinance it is considering to restrict smoking in most indoor public places would be putt ... Jump to full article >>

SENDAI, Japan—As shops slowly reopen along Japan’s tsunami-hit northeastern coast, many residents still aren’t finding one of the products they crave most: cigarettes. The shortages represent the latest supply-chain breakdown in Japan—and a headache for Japan Tobacco Inc., which for decades has dominated Japan’s tobacco market. The March 11 earthquake and tsunami knocked out two of Japan Tobacco’s six cigarette-makin ... Jump to full article >>

AN Australian retail group has announced they believe the federal government’s plain packaging of tobacco policy could increase the amount of illegally sold tobacco in counterfeit packaging. In a statement released on Friday, the Alliance of Australian Retailers said the policy would not only encourage the illegal tobacco trade but also cause unnecessary confusion for retail staff and create delays in service time. “The AAR believes tha ... Jump to full article >>

DELAND — A jury deliberated for nearly five hours today before finding a tobacco company was only partly responsible for a woman’s lung cancer. The jury of six, one of them a smoker, found Stella Koballa, 77, of Daytona Beach was herself 70 percent responsible for the pain, suffering and other damages she endured after she was diagnosed with lung cancer in 1996. The jury found Koballa suffered $1 million in damages from her addictio ... Jump to full article >>

RICHMOND, Ky. — Officials in a Central Kentucky county have voted to add electronic cigarettes to its smoking ban. Madison County banned smoking in indoor public places like restaurants, bars and workplaces in 2007. The county’s Board of Health voted 8-1 Wednesday night to include electronic cigarettes, also known as e-cigarettes, in the ban. E-cigarettes are battery-operated devices that heat a liquid nicotine solution in a disposable ... Jump to full article >>

Members of the University of Massachusetts Faculty Senate yesterday passed a proposition that aims to ban the use of all tobacco products on campus beginning in 2013. The Senate approved of the proposal in a 14-7 vote, after several students spoke against it and some faculty members spoke in favor of it. The policy – which won’t go into effect until July 1, 2013 – was brought forward to the Senate by the University Health Council. It calls ... Jump to full article >>

Three Edmond men have been named in a 59-count federal indictment that accuses them of illegally profiting from the sale of more than $3 million in untaxed cigarettes and smokeless tobacco products. Three Edmond men have been named in a 59-count federal indictment that accuses them of illegally profiting from the sale of more than $3 million in untaxed cigarettes and smokeless tobacco products. Khawer Saeed Ghill, 40, Ahsan Ullah, 41, and Asmat ... Jump to full article >>

COLUMBUS — The question of whether smokers can light up in bars, restaurants, and other public places has worked its way up to Ohio’s highest court. The Supreme Court Wednesday agreed to hear an appeal of November’s 10th District Court of Appeals ruling that upheld enforcement of the voter-approved ban on indoor public smoking against a challenge brought by a Columbus bar that had racked up $30,000 in fines for repeat violation ... Jump to full article >>

Florida consumers send more than $3.7 billion annually to tobacco giants in Richmond, Va., and Winston-Salem, N.C., and a few other states. These major tobacco companies control more than 80 percent of the market in Florida and the nation. Phillip Morris/Altria and RJ Reynolds manufacture Marlboro, Camel and other top brands at enormous factories employing thousands of workers in states other than Florida. Four of the biggest companies also pay ... Jump to full article >>

CIGARETTE giant British American Tobacco Australia has flagged a massive legal fight against the Gillard government’s plan to bring in plain packaging. BATA says Canberra may have to pay billions of dollars in compensation to cigarette firms if it brings in plain olive green packaging. Health Minister Nicola Roxon will unveil draft legislation this morning requiring tobacco companies to print their brand name in a specific font. She has re ... Jump to full article >>