Tobacco Asia

18 tobaccoasia FRONT PAGE NEWS 卷首新闻 JTI's cigarette factory in Malvar, Batangas exports more than 50% of its output, primarily to 16 nations in the Asia Pacific area. Over 4,000 people nationwide make up the marketing team, which supports the factory and its 800 employ- ees. Meanwhile, Freda noted that JTI's focus now is on the alarming pace of growth of illegal cigarettes in the country, which reportedly reached 16–18% of the market. Smuggled cigarettes could make up as much as 60% of the market in some parts of Mindanao. The latest bill designating illicit tobacco smuggling as economic sabotage is strongly supported by JTI, which controls 37.5% of the local cigarette market. JTI claims it is a step in the right direction because the "size of the prize of smugglers is huge." ITG Brands Liable for Florida Settlement A Delaware judge ruled that ITG Brands is liable for tobacco settlement payments to the state of Florida when it acquired four brands – Kool, Winston, Salem, and Maverick – from Reynolds American in 2015, reports AP. Reynolds sold the brands to ITG to gain federal approval of its acquisition of Lorillard Inc. R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co., a Reynolds American affiliate, was paying Florida as part of an earlier settlement agreement for reimbursement of smoking-related healthcare costs before the acquisition closed. Reynolds stopped paying for the four brands it no longer owned after the acquisition closed. ITG was bound by the asset purchase agreement to use reasonable best efforts to join the Florida settle- ment and pay Florida annually for sales of the brands it bought from Reynolds. ITG has not yet paid any money or joined the settlement agreement with Florida. Florida filed a lawsuit against Reynolds and ITG and won, with the judge ordering Reynolds to continue making payments on ITG's brands unless and until ITG joined the Florida settlement agreement. In the latest ruling, vice chancellor Lori Will ruled ITG must compensate Reynolds for losses due, adding that the "unambigu- ous terms" of the asset purchase agreement support Reynold's arguments that ITG agreed to assume the liability imposed by the Florida judgment and must indemnify Reynolds. PMI Seeks to Overturn IQOS Ban Philip Morris International (PMI) asked the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit to overturn an import ban on its IQOS devices, arguing the US Interna- tional Trade Commission (ITC) should have consulted more with the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) before deciding on the ban. FDA determined that IQOS was better for public health than conven- tional cigarettes because it emits fewer toxins. Gregory Garre, an attorney representing PMI, asserted that ITC's public request for comment on its order did not amount to "consulting" with the FDA as required by federal law. According to a Reuters report, judges on the appeals court panel were skeptical of PMI's argument. The case is a part of a global patent litigation between British American Tobacco Plc, the parent company of R.J. Reynolds, and Altria Group Inc., which Philip Morris International spun off from in 2008. Reynolds sued PMI at ITC in 2020. Its related patent case against PMI in Virginia is on hold. BAT Increases Investments in Cannabis British American Tobacco (BAT) made another investment in cannabis by acquiring a non-controlling minority stake in one of Germany's leading cannabis companies, Sanity Group GmbH. Last year BAT invested about US$175 million to take a 19.9% stake in licensed cannabis producer Organigram Holdings, and put in another US$5.1 million in Organigram this year. Last year the company also invested in Trait Biosciences, which provides technology that makes CBD water-soluble. Berlin-based Sanity secured US$37.6 million in the BAT-led Series B funding round, Europe's largest cannabis investment round to date. The round brings the total raised by the company to more than US$100 million. Bloomberg reports that nearly half of the amount will go toward strengthening Sanity's medical business, while the com- pany will spend the rest on preparing for the potential legalization of recreational marijuana in Germany. "This funding is an important milestone for us and a strong signal towards the future of cannabis in Germany and Europe," said Finn Age Hänsel, Sanity founder and c.e.o. "I am grateful for the belief shown by both new and existing investors. Our goal is to leverage the full potential of the cannabis plant and to explore and harness the different cannabinoids – with the new capital, we will be able to accelerate our medical and consumer business units whilst preparing accord- ingly for cannabis legalization in Germany." Kingsley Wheaton, BAT's chief growth officer, said, "Investing in Sanity Group is another example of BAT's ongoing work to explore numerous areas beyond nicotine, positioning BAT for future portfolio growth across a range of categories and geographies. We continue to transform our business, through better understanding of our current and future consumers, as part of our A Better Tomorrow purpose." Sanity Group was founded in 2018 and has around 120 employees in the medical, consumer health and science sectors now. The company aims to improve quality of life through using cannabinoids. The focus is on pharma- ceuticals, medical products, and con- sumer goods. Sanity Group's existing investors include music producer Will.I.Am (Black Eyed Peas), Hollywood actress Alyssa Milano, manager Scooter Braun, Swiss VC Redalpine, rapper Snoop Dog's Casa Verde Capital, HV Capital, Calyx, TQ Ventures, Atlantic Food Labs, Cherry Ventures, Bitburger Ventures, SevenVentures, GMPVC, Navy Capital and SOJE Capital.

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