France's health ministry announced on Thursday a plan to sell cigarettes on plain packages to curb smoking rates among their young population by 10 percent in the next five years.
The campaign consists of drastic measures in an effort to discourage young adults and teenagers to start the habit of smoking. One of the techniques that the health minister will try is to bring out plain or brandless cigarette packets to the market. They also plan to reduce the frequency of advertisement for electronic cigarettes.
The French government will introduce plain packaging for every cigarette. The brand of the cigarette will be written in small letters following a graphic warning about the dangers of smoking, Reuters reports.
The state will also prohibit smoking in cars where there are children age 12 years and below. Smoking on common areas where children frequently go will also be banned.
Health Minister Marisol Touraine explained that the anti-smoking campaign will be carried out in two years. The ultimate goal of the program is to produce the country's first generation of non-smokers during the 2030s. Current estimates puts at least 30 percent of France's population as smokers.
"In France, 13 million adults smoke every day, and it is getting worse," Touraine said to the Wall Street Journal. "The number of smokers is growing, especially among young people."
France has been a notable place for smokers due to their culture and the presence of brands such as Gauloises.
But, the proposal angered tobacconists and cigarette producers in the country. The group argued that the plain cigarette packaging will only lead to illegal marketing.
"We are crestfallen," said Pascal Montredon, president of the French Tobacconists' Confederation, to the New York Times. "They aren't attacking the problem; they are attacking a network of 27,000 small businesses."
The Australian government initially used the plain packaging tactic in 2012. This particular move caused an increase in the number of people who called help hotlines and expressed their desire to quit the habit.
