EU To Spend Some Tobacco Aid On Health Campaigns

Main Category: Smoking / Quit Smoking
Article Date: 11 Feb 2008 - 1:00 PDT

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The European Union could divert some of the subsidies from tobacco farming to finance health campaigns which highlight the harmful effects of tobacco.

EU tobacco subsidies are due to be scrapped in 2010, the end of a four-year phase out agreed by farm ministers in 2004.

Until then the European Commission wants to channel up to 5 percent of that aid into health campaigns.

Following the 2004 reform, the EU tobacco budget has fallen significantly with the biggest share of the 321 million euro budget going to tobacco farmers in Italy and Greece.

Part of the reform deal was for the EU to create a tobacco fund, using some of the subsidies for tobacco farmers, to finance information campaigns for improving public awareness of the harmful effects of tobacco consumption.

EU Agriculture Commissioner Mariann Fischer Boel said, "Thanks to the reform, tobacco subsidies will be phased out by 2010. But in the meantime, I think it's useful to continue using some of the money to finance campaigns which inform people about the harmful effects of smoking."

If the EU agriculture ministers agree to her proposal, the fund could be worth up to 16.9 million euros each year.

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