Key points:

• Branko Sevarlic, CEO of Philip Morris International (PMI) Brazil, emphasizes the need to regulate smoke-free nicotine products, citing potential public health benefits.
• Brazil’s National Health Surveillance Agency (ANVISA) maintains a ban on e-cigarettes and heated tobacco products, despite international regulatory approvals.
• The U.S. FDA has authorized the sale of products like IQOS and Zyn, while Brazil still prohibits next-generation products.

Branko Sevarlic, CEO of Philip Morris International’s Brazil division, has called for the regulation of smoke-free nicotine products, such as e-cigarettes and heated tobacco devices, framing it as a public health issue centered on harm reduction.

In an interview with Folha de S.Paulo, Sevarlic stated, “Regulating devices for smoking is a public health issue,” emphasizing that the primary difference between heated tobacco products and traditional cigarettes is the elimination of combustion, which he claims reduces harmful substances by 95%.

He further argued that the absence of regulated alternatives in Brazil leaves smokers with only the most harmful options.

While PMI-funded research supports the reduced harm claims of heated tobacco products, health authorities remain cautious. The European Respiratory Society’s Tobacco Control Committee has raised objections, noting that heated tobacco products still release harmful chemical substances.

In 2019, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration authorized the sale of IQOS, PMI’s heated tobacco product, considering it appropriate for the protection of public health (APPH). However, ANVISA decided last year to continue prohibiting the sale of pouches, heated tobacco and vaping products in Brazil.

Sevarlic believes that introducing smoke-free products like IQOS and Zyn in Brazil could significantly improve public health outcomes. He highlighted that PMI is working to reduce global cigarette sales and promote a smoke-free future.

“Tobacco users in Brazil are only exposed to the most harmful products,” Sevarlic noted, pointing out that Zyn, a nicotine pouch product, has been approved and encouraged for use by the FDA in the United States. He expressed hope that Brazil could learn from this experience to reconsider its ban on e-cigarettes.