To deter smokers, Australia to make cigarettes 'ugly & tasteless', see what changes it is mooting

Australian Department of Health has suggested banning all flavored cigarettes and ordering tobacco companies to produce their products in "ugly" and "unattractive" colours. Australia required tobacco companies to stop using excessively "attractive" graphics for cigarette packets around ten years ago. The Australian Ministry of Health is now concentrating on cigarette sticks. Australian Health Minister Mark Butler said the the nation wants to take a step forward from plain packaging. He said though it was a positive and successful change the next goal is to target the cigarettes which are there within the packet.

Butler pointed out that there is an awareness that the tobacco industry has innovated by trying to make individual sticks or individual cigarettes more attractive, more marketable, in the plain packaging. "We want to remove that advantage that the tobacco industry has sought to find for itself," he added. The Health Minister also highlighted that the decisions are made keeping in view the aim to achieve a national daily smoking prevalence of less than 10 per cent by 2025, in just three years, and five per cent or less by 2030.

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What can be the new changes in your ciggy?

1. The Australian government will try to use odd colours for cigarettes.

2. Health Department seeking to print health warnings directly on cigarettes in an effort to reduce their appeal. There will be an update in the warning labels on cigarette packets and tobacco pouches.

3. The shape and size of the cigarettes will be standardized.

4. Additives in the cigarettes will be banned and it will put an end to menthol cigarettes. How will it help then? Menthol smokers smoke more intensely than conventional cigarette smokers because the menthol flavour hides the unpleasant taste of cigarette smoke.

Butler, the minister of health, stated that he wants to be involved in the final designs but is also following leads of country's like Canada. Butler stressed that he wants to see a discussion about colours that make them unattractive, about dissuasive messages on individual sticks, which the Canadian government has just indicated they are going to go forward with.