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Tobacco farmers fear export drop over WTO's Oz decision
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A tobacco plantation is pictured in the foothills of Mt. Merbabu in Senden village, Selo district, Boyolali regency. (JP/Albertus Magnus Kus Hendratmo)
T
obacco farmers in Indonesia are worried the country’s tobacco exports will drop if the World Trade Organization (WTO) finds in favor of Australia in its plain packaging policy for cigarettes.
The Indonesian Tobacco Farmers Association (APTI) told The Jakarta Post that although Australia was not the main trader for Indonesian tobacco, other countries may apply similar policies if it managed to reduce the number of smokers in the land down under.
“The policy’s provision will decrease our tobacco exports as antitobacco movements had emerged in other countries even before the WTO settlement,” APTI head Wisnu Brata said on Wednesday.
In December 2012, Australia became the first country to fully require the removal of all company branding from cigarette packs, permitting manufacturers to print only the brand name in a mandated size, font and color. The country believes plain packaging will psychologically discourage youth from smoking.
Indonesia, together with Cuba, Honduras and the Dominican Republic, is challenging Australia’s policy at the WTO. The tobacco-producing countries expect panelists to announce the dispute settlement result in the first quarter of 2017.
Australia’s move has been followed by the UK and France, which from May this year regulated that all cigarette packages manufactured for them must be plain. It will become illegal to sell non-plain packaging from January in France and May 2017 in the UK.
The Central Statistics Agency showed that Indonesia exported about 17,000 metric tons of tobacco in 2014. In 2015, the Industry Ministry said Indonesia needed 300,000 tons of tobacco but production reached only 190,000 tons. (adt/evi)
