Illicit Tobacco in Lithuania: A Cross-Sectional Survey.

Vaida Liutkutė-Gumarov,Laura Miščikienė,Lukas Galkus,Justina Vaitkevičiūtė,Janina Petkevičienė,Mindaugas Štelemėkas,Aušra Mickevičienė

doi:10.3390/ijerph17197291

Abstract

Taxation policies are the most cost-effective measure to reduce overall tobacco consumption. However, cigarettes in Lithuania are among the cheapest in the European Union. The threat of the illicit trade is often used to compromise evidence-based policies, pricing policies particularly. The aim of this study was to determine the extent of illicit cigarette consumption in Lithuania and identify the main characteristics of illicit cigarette smokers. The national cross-sectional survey with direct observation of the latest purchased pack of cigarettes was conducted between August and September 2019. In total, 1050 smokers aged ≥18 were interviewed face-to-face. The illicit share of the total consumption of cigarettes per year was 10.7% with 9.7% of smokers showing or describing illicit cigarette packs compared to 17% reported by industry-funded studies. Older smokers, smokers with lower education and heavy smokers were more likely to regularly purchase illicit cigarettes. The average price of an illicit pack was almost two times lower than licit. Although the illicit trade of tobacco products is a serious policy challenge, the threat of an increase in illicit trade should not delay tobacco taxation improvements.

Highlights

World Health Organization (WHO) defines illicit trade in tobacco products as any practice or conduct relating to the production, shipment, receipt, possession, distribution, sale, or purchase that is prohibited by law and includes any practice or conduct intended to facilitate such activity [1]
The aim of this study was to determine the extent of illicit cigarette consumption in Lithuania using direct methods and identify the main characteristics of illicit cigarettes smokers
The sample size of 1000 and the ratio of men and women (3:1) in the sample were based on the research data of smoking prevalence in Lithuania [22]

Summary

Introduction

World Health Organization (WHO) defines illicit trade in tobacco products as any practice or conduct relating to the production, shipment, receipt, possession, distribution, sale, or purchase that is prohibited by law and includes any practice or conduct intended to facilitate such activity [1]. It is estimated that the global illicit cigarette market accounts for about 11.6%, resulting in approximately. Illicit cigarette trade poses a serious threat to public health because it undermines tobacco control policies and government’s authority; causes substantial loss in tax revenues; increases availability of tobacco products and results in cheaper prices, which can increase consumption; contributes to the funding of international criminal activities; allows tobacco industry (TI) to engage with policy makers and helps them to get media attention; and last, but not least, helps them to be perceived as a legitimate stakeholder in a policy debate [3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10]. Public Health 2020, 17, 7291; doi:10.3390/ijerph17197291 www.mdpi.com/journal/ijerph

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