Report: Tobacco Giant 'Manipulated Science' for Profit

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Facts

  • Tobacco giant Philip Morris International (PMI) and its Japanese affiliate, Philip Morris Japan (PMJ), are accused of “manipulating science for profit,” according to researchers at the UK's University of Bath.1
  • Citing 23 documents from 2012 to 2020, the Nicotine and Tobacco Control Research Group claims that the world’s largest tobacco company secretly funded a study on smoking cessation via a third-party organization, behavior that typically suggests strategies to influence scientific studies.2
  • PMJ paid £20K per month for a life sciences consultancy run by a Tokyo University professor to promote the company’s science and products. A company employee had been asked “to keep it a secret,” according to a leaked internal email.3
  • PMI also invested heavily in promoting its heated tobacco product, IQOS, using Japan as a launch market before releasing it in other countries. PMI, according to Stopping Tobacco Organisations and Products (STOP), engaged in a multifaceted marketing strategy to push IQOS to non-smokers.4
  • The company allegedly targeted politicians, doctors, and the 2020 Tokyo Olympics to promote IQOS in a way that went far beyond its stated target demographic, which was limited to adult smokers. Other documents appear to show that PMJ lobbied for IQOS to be allowed in smoke-free areas.3
  • A PMI spokesperson denied the allegations, saying the company engages in legal and appropriate engagement on issues that impact its customers and community.3

Sources: 1Tobaccoreporter, 2Academic, 3Guardian and 4STOP.

Narratives

  • Narrative A, as provided by Truth Initiative. Big tobacco companies like Philip Morris have been engaging in a two-faced strategy for decades as they look to keep profits high amid heavy scrutiny of the industry. Scientific consensus shows that smoking is a harmful habit, yet PMI still engages in the shadowy funding of false scientific research to promote counter-scientific policy initiatives. This unscrupulous behavior demonstrates Big Tobacco’s complete disregard for ethics, and Philip Morris must be held accountable.
  • Narrative B, as provided by PMI. Philip Morris is committed to creating smoke-free products that will help create a world free of cigarettes. For many years, the company has shifted its business strategy and developed new products that will allow sustainable success and health. By investing heavily in science, PMI is funding research and technology that will help adult smokers quit cigarettes and end the most harmful form of nicotine delivery.

Predictions