Labelling of Tobacco Products Regulations, 2004

L.N.202 of 2004

TOBACCO (SMOKING CONTROL) ACT

(CAP. 315)

Labelling of Tobacco Products Regulations, 2004

IN exercise of the powers conferred by article 9 of the Tobacco

(Smoking Control) Act, the Minister of Health, the Elderly and

Community Care has made the following regulations:-

(1) The title of these regulations is the Labelling of Title and

commencement.

Tobacco Products Regulations, 2004.

(2) These regulations, other than regulation 12, shall come

into force on the 1 st May, 2004. Regulation 12 shall come into force

on the date of publication of these regulations.

Interpretation.

Regulation 4(3)

List of Additional Health Warnings

1. Smokers die younger

Min ipejjep imut ]g[ir

2. Smoking clogs the arteries and causes heart attacks and strokes

It-tipjip isodd l-arterji u j;ib l-attakki tal-qalb u l-puplesiji

3. Smoking causes fatal lung cancer

It-tipjip jag[mel kançer fil-pulmun

4. Smoking when pregnant harms your baby

Jekk tpejjep waqt it-tqala tag[mel [sara lit-tarbija tieg[ek

5. Protect children> don’t make them breathe your smoke

Ipprotegi lit-tfal > ig;elhomx jibilg[u id-du[[an tas-sigaretti tieg[ek

6. Your doctor or your pharmacist can help you stop smoking

It-tabib jew l-ispizjar jg[inuk biex tieqaf tpejjep

7. Smoking in hig[ly addictive, don’t start.

It-tipjip huwa vizzju, tibdiex tpejjep

8. Stopping smoking reduces the risk of fatal heart and lung diseases

Jekk tieqaf tpejjep tnaqqas ir-riskju ta’ attakki tal-qalb u mard tal-pulmun

9. Smoking can cause a slow and painful death

It-tipjip jista’ jwassal g[al agunija fit-tul u [afna ugig[

10. Get help to stop smoking - 21231247

Itlob l-g[ajnuna biex tieqaf tpejjep - 21231247

11. Smoking may reduce the blood flow and causes impotence

It-tipjip inaqqas ic-çirkulazzjoni tad-demm u jista’ jwassal g[al l-impotenza

12. Smoking causes ageing of the skin

It-tipjip ikemmixlek il-;ilda

B

In these regulations

“ingredient” means any substance or any constituent

except for tobacco leaf and other natural or unprocessed tobacco

plant parts used in the manufacture or preparation of a tobacco

product and still present in the finished product, even if in altered

form, including paper, filter, inks and adhesives;

“ISO 4387” means the latest edition of the International

Standard entitled Cigarettes Determination of total and dry

particulate matter using a routine analytical cigarette-smoking

machine-Glass fibre filter-smoking trap method ISO 4387: 1987

(E) first edition published by the International Organisation for

Standardisation on 15 th April, 1987;

“most visible surface”, in relation to a rectangular

cigarette packet, means that surface of the packet which is, or

is equal in area to, the largest surface and-

(a)

either faces a person opening that packet,

(b) or where no such surface faces a person

opening the packet, carries most prominently the name,

trade-mark or other distinguishing mark of the brand of

cigarettes,

and in relation to other cigarette packets, the phrase means

the most conspicuous surface;

“nicotine” means nicotinic alkaloids;

“packet”, in relation to a tobacco product, means any box,

package, container or other receptacle which contains the

product, and in which the product is, or is intended to be,

presented for retail, excluding any additional outer wrapping

(whether or not transparent) which may be discarded on opening,

and where any such receptacle is or is to be contained in another

such receptacle (excluding such outer wrapping), includes each

such receptacle;

“Superintendent” means the Superintendent of Public

Health;

“tar” means the raw anhydrous nicotine-free condensate

of smoke.

The tar, nicotine and carbon monoxide yields of cigarettes

shall be printed in the following manner on one side of the packet

covering at least 10% of the corresponding surface

(a) as to the tar yield, to be shown as a figure rounded to

the nearest whole number and expressed in milligrams in the

form “x mg tar/qatran”,

(b) as to the nicotine yield, to be shown as a figure

rounded to one decimal place and expressed in milligrams in

the form “y.z mg nicotine/ nikotina”, and

(c) as to carbon monoxide, to be shown as a figure

rounded to the nearest whole number and expressed in

milligrams in the form “x mg carbon monoxide”.

(1) Each unit of tobacco product, shall carry one of the

general warnings in English and Maltese “Smoking seriously harms

you and others around you”, “It-Tipjip jaghmel hsara lilek u lil ta’

madwarek” and “Smoking Kills”, “ It-Tipjip Joqtol”.

(2) Such two general warnings shall be printed on the

most visible surface of the packet and on any outside packaging,

and shall be rotated in such a way as to guarantee its regular

appearance on the packet.

(3) An additional warning, taken from the Schedule to

these regulations, shall be printed on the other most visible surface

of the packet and on any outside packaging, and it shall be rotated

in such manner as to guarantee its regular appearance.

(4) The printing of warnings shall not be required on

additional transparent wrappers used in the retail sale of the product.

(5) There shall also be a reference to be printed, outside

the box for warnings, in the following manner

DANGER - Health Department Warning

Twissija mid-Dipartiment tas-Sahha - PERIKLU

(1) The general warning mentioned in regulation 4 hereof Area to be covered

on cigarette

shall cover not less than 30% of the external area of the packets.

corresponding surface of the unit packet of tobacco on which it is

(2) The additional warning mentioned in regulation 4

hereof shall cover not less than 40% of the external area of the

corresponding surface of the unit packet of tobacco on which it is

Provided that in the case of unit packets of products other

than cigarettes, where the most visible surface exceeds 75 cm 2 , the

warnings shall cover an area of at least 24 cm 2 .

(1)

The warnings and the yield indications shall be

Warning and yield

indications.

(a) printed in black Helvetica bold type, font size 20, on

a white background;

(b) in lower case type, except for the first letter of the

message and where required by grammar usage;

(c) centered in the area in which the text is required to

be printed, parallel to the top edge of the packet; and

(d) surrounded by a black border not less than 3mm and

not more than 4mm in width, provided that such border shall

not interfere in any way with the text of the warning or the

information given.

(2) The text shall be printed in an irremovable and

indelible manner, and shall in no way be hidden, obscured or

interrupted by any written or pictorial matter or by the opening of

the packet

Provided that in the case of tobacco products other than

cigarettes, the texts may be affixed by means of irremovable stickers.

Each unit of tobacco product shall have an identifiable batch

number or it.

(1) No texts, names, trade-marks and figurative or other

signs may be used on the packaging of a tobacco product in order to

suggest that that particular product is less harmful than others.

(2) It shall be an offence to label any tobacco product as

“light” or “mild”.

Manufacturers and importers shall at the end of each year

submit to the Superintendent a list of all ingredients, in descending

order of weight, used in the manufacture of those tobacco products

by brand name and type. This list shall

(a) be accompanied by a statement setting out the reasons

for the inclusion of such ingredients in those tobacco products;

(b)

indicate their function and category;

(c) be accompanied by toxicological data available to the

manufacturer or importer regarding those ingredients in burnt

or unburnt form as appropriate, referring in particular to their

effects on health and taking into account any addictive effects.

It shall be the duty of the Superintendent to inform the

public as to the tar, nicotine and carbon monoxide yields of cigarettes.

It shall be an offence to place on the market tobacco for

oral use.

The Labelling of Tobacco Products Regulations, 2003 are

hereby repealed.

B

Smoking can damage the sperm and decreases fertility

It-tipjip jista’ jag[mel [sara lill-isperma u jnaqqas il-fertilita’

Smoke contains benzene, nitrosamines, formaldehyde and

hydrogen cyanide Id-du[[an fih il-benzene, in-nitrosamines

il-formaldehyde u l-hydrogen cyanide.

Mitbug[ fl-Istamperija tal-Gvern — Printed at the Government Printing Press