XN000022-1984-11-14 — Page 9

8

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 14, 1984

+

CIGARETTES WERE MOSTLY LOW TO MIDDLE TAR'

****

TESTS ON 99 BRANDS OF CIGARETTES ON SALE IN HONG KONG SHOWED THAT MOST WERE OF +LOW TO MIDDLE TAR,+ OR +MIDDLE TAR,+ A GOVERNMENT SPOKESMAN ANNOUNCED TODAY.

THIS WAS THE THIRD TIME THAT THE GOVERNMENT HAD CARRIED OUT TESTS ON THE TAR AND NICOTINE YIELDS OF CIGARETTES, HE SAID.

+THE PURPOSE OF CARRYING OUT THESE PERIODICAL TESTS AND IN MAKING THEM KNOWN, IS TO PROVIDE ACCURATE INFORMATION TO SMOKERS ON WHAT THEY ARE INHALING, AND ALSO TO PROVIDE THE TOBACCO INDUSTRY WITH OFFICIAL TAR GROUP DESIGNATIONS FOR CIGARETTE BRANDS, HE SAID.

IN THE LATEST SERIES, 30 TESTS HAD BEEN CARRIED OUT OVER A SIX-MONTH PERIOD FROM FEBRUARY THIS YEAR. BASED ON THE FINDINGS, A TABLE REPRESENTING THE AVERAGE TAR AND NICOTINE YIELDS OF 99 BEST-SELLING CIGARETTES WAS COMPILED UNDER FIVE GROUPS RANGING FROM LOW TO HIGH TAR.

OUT OF THE 99 BRANDS OF CIGARETTES, 17 BRANDS WERE IN THE 'LOW TAR' GROUP, 38 BRANDS WERE IN THE LOW TO MIDDLE TAR' GROUP 40 FELL UNDER THE MIDDLE TAR GROUP AND THREE FITTED THE MIDDLE TO HIGH TAR' GROUP. ONLY ONE BRAND WAS LISTED AS 'HIGH TAR'.

A COMPARISON WAS MADE BETWEEN THE MANUFACTURERS' CLAIMS OF THE TAR GROUPS AND FINDINGS OF THE TESTS. IT WAS FOUND THAT FOR 23 OF THE 99 BRANDS LISTED IN THE TABLE, THE LABELLED CLAIMS DID NOT CORRESPOND TO THE RESPECTIVE REPORTED TAR GROUPS. SIX BRANDS WERE FOUND TO BE IN A HIGHER TAR GROUP THAN CLAIMED, WHILE 17 BRANDS WERE IN A LOWER TAR GROUP THAN CLAIMED.

ANALYSES ALSO REVEALED THAT WHILE A FEW BRANDS SHOWED A GRADUAL DECREASE, THE TAR AND NICOTINE CONTENTS OF MOST CIGARETTES WERE STABILISING.

THERE WAS EVIDENCE OF A CONTINUING MOVEMENT OF BRANDS INTO LOWER TAR GROUPS, WITH THE LOW AND LOW TO MIDDLE TAR GROUPS CONTAINING 55.6 PER CENT OF ALL BRANDS LISTED COMPARED TO 49 PER CENT IN MAY 1984. THE PROPORTION OF BRANDS IN THE MIDDLE, MIDDLE TO HIGH AND HIGH TAR GROUPS FELL TO 44.4 PER CENT COMPARED TO 51 PER CENT IN MAY 1984.

IT WAS ALSO OBSERVED THAT MOST NEW BRANDS PUT ON SALE BELONGED TO THE LOW TAR' OR 'LOW TO MIDDLE TAR' GROUPS. AMONG THE 19 NEW BRANDS, SEVEN WERE IN THE 'LOW TAR' GROUP. EIGHT IN THE LOW AND MIDDLE TAR GROUP AND FOUR IN THE MIDDLE TAR' GROUP.

19