MADRID - Spanish police raided three clandestine tobacco factories early this year, seizing nearly 40 million euros (S$58 million) worth of tobacco leaf and illicit cigarettes. At one, in the northern town of Alfaro, they found 10 Ukrainian workers, five of them war refugees, who'd been put to work with no contracts and scant pay, police said. They worked all...
MADRID - Spanish police raided three clandestine tobacco factories early this year, seizing nearly 40 million euros worth of tobacco leaf and illicit cigarettes.
The trend was revved up by the travel shutdown of the Covid-19 pandemic, which choked supplies from outside the bloc, the European Anti-Fraud Office said. It may have been further accelerated by the war in Ukraine, which for years has been a production hub and transit route for illicit tobacco, OLAF added.
Some campaigners have accused Big Tobacco of overstating the size of the illicit market to help lobby against higher taxes - something the companies deny. Nonetheless, the latest data shows seizures of illicit cigarettes are increasing. "We have a dedicated function within the company to try and protect our assets, protect our brands, and combat illegal trade," said Byrne, a former detective who investigated organised crime in Ireland.Philip Morris International declined to comment for this article.Counterfeiters typically replicate popular cigarette brands, which include Japan Tobacco's Winston, Philip Morris' Marlboro, British America's Dunhill and Imperial Brands' Nobel.
South Africa Latest News, South Africa Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
India makes tobacco warnings mandatory for streaming sitesBENGALURU/NEW DELHI - India unveiled guidelines on Wednesday (May 31) requiring streaming platforms such as Netflix and Amazon Prime Video to display prominent warnings about smoking and other forms of tobacco use while airing shows with such scenes. While film and television certification bodies already moderate public content in India, its laws have few provisions to censor content on popular...
Read more »
Cool teenager Andreeva not fazed by big stage, only when sister playsPARIS : Russian teenager Mirra Andreeva has been as cool as ice, cruising through three qualifying rounds and her first round match against Alison Riske-Amritraj at the French Open on Tuesday without dropping a set.While the 16-year-old has taken to the tour like a fish to water this year, her nerves are
Read more »
Robert Englund is done with Freddy Krueger, but has ideas for reboot and who should play himEnglund last terrorised the big screen as Freddy Krueger in 2003's Freddy vs Jason.
Read more »
Canada to require warning labels on individual cigarettesTobacco use continues to kill 48,000 Canadians each year. Read more at straitstimes.com.
Read more »
Spain's PLD Space plans first rocket launch test on May 31MADRID : Spanish company PLD Space said it plans its first test of a suborbital reusable rocket on Wednesday, as it seeks to put small satellites into space and capture a slice of a potential trillion-dollar market. If successful, the launch from a military aerospace research centre in Huelva, in southern
Read more »
Surprised Spaniards face choice: Ballot box or the beachMADRID - A Spanish talk show host's gesture of disbelief, with eyes rolled and arms thrown high, upon hearing Monday's (May 29) announcement of a snap general election at the height of the summer holiday season has gone viral in Spain. The reaction of Angels Barcelo to the July 23 election date 'represents us all,' Cadena SER radio station said...
Read more »