Association of the cigarette industry

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Association of the Cigarette Industry V.
(VdC)
logo
purpose Advocacy
Chair: Wouda Kuipers
Establishment date: 1948
Dissolution date: 2007
Number of members: 7th
Seat : Berlin
Website: www.vdc-berlin.de

The Association of the Cigarette Industry e. V. (VdC) was the association of cigarette manufacturers in Germany, based in Berlin . Its member companies determined practically the entire German cigarette market. The lobby association announced its dissolution on June 29, 2007 after Germany's market leader Philip Morris (around 37% market share) had surprisingly left the company a few weeks earlier .

Five of the seven former members of the VdC founded the German Cigarette Association (DZV) on March 14, 2008, based in Berlin, which is supposed to continue lobbying the German tobacco industry in Berlin and Brussels.

Member companies

The seven members represented almost 100 percent of the cigarettes sold in Germany.

resolution

In May 2007, Germany's market leader Philip Morris terminated his membership in the VdC on the grounds that they wanted to work harder for health policy-oriented regulation of the tobacco industry and an almost complete ban on tobacco advertising. Too little is being done in the VdC to counter the harmful effects of tobacco consumption. The association took note of the withdrawal and initially stated that in view of the fact that even without Philip Morris it would form the clear majority of the cigarette industry in Germany, it would remain "the point of contact for politics, authorities and the public".

On June 29, 2007, the association finally announced its dissolution.

criticism

Despite only having seven members, the VdC was one of the most influential associations in Germany. He had excellent relationships with all ministries and subordinate federal authorities that were important to him.

His influence went so far that legislative changes were "pre-formulated" which were then passed by the federal government and the Bundestag. So was z. For example, on September 20, 2006, a change in the law was passed that would mean the end of so-called eco-filter cigarillos from January 1, 2008. Although the cigarette manufacturers also produce such cigarillos, their main interest is the sale of factory cigarettes.

At the beginning of October 2006 it became known that the attitude of the German government to passive smoking was not worked out by the authorities but was pre-formulated by the VdC. The authorities copied the text including spelling errors. The VdC has since confirmed that these “thoughts” were provided by him.

In addition, the VdC is said to have successfully combated the growing awareness of the dangers of passive smoking through extensive lobbying and marketing activities as early as the 1970s. According to relevant publications, the association ensured, by influencing scientists and their publications, that study results on the harmfulness of passive smoking were suppressed.

Between 1977 and 1991, the VdC directly sponsored 110 research projects with a total volume of more than 15 million DM. The beneficiaries were prominent personalities in medical research such as Franz Adlkofer , Karl Überla , Jürgen von Troschke , Fritz Kemper , Helmut Schievelbein and Johannes Siegrist who often had direct access to politics.

Traditional opposition

Mildred Scheel and her German Cancer Aid were among the most stubborn opponents of the tobacco and cigarette industry as early as 1974 . The then wife of Federal President Walter Scheel was the first prominent woman in the Federal Republic of Germany to campaign against smoking. She justified her competence and courage with the independence of her non-profit organization from donations from business and industry, which she categorically refused to sponsor. The German Cancer Aid has always financed its aid and research projects from donations from citizens in order to maintain its neutrality.

Partner associations

The association is registered in the lobby list of the German Bundestag.

swell

  1. ↑ FinanzNachrichten.de: "VdC powerful even without Philip Morris"
  2. ^ A b Annette Bornhäuser et al., "German Tobacco Industry's Successful Efforts to Maintain Scientific and Political Respectability to Prevent Regulation of Secondhand Smoke", Center for Tobacco Research and Education, University of California (2006) ( Memento of the original, June 21 2006 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (PDF) @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.tabakkontrolle.de
  3. ↑ Press release of May 15, 2007 ( Memento of September 28, 2007 in the Internet Archive )
  4. ^ Thilo Grüning, Anna B. Gilmore, Martin McKee : Tobacco Industry Influence on Science and Scientists in Germany. In: American Journal of Public Health. Vol. 96, no. 1, January 2006, pp. 20-32, doi: 10.2105 / AJPH.2004.061507 .
  5. ↑ Annette Bornhäuser, Jennifer McCarthy, Stantan A. Glantz How the tobacco industry in Germany prevented legislation on protection against passive smoking by maintaining scientific and political respectability

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