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A lot has been publicized about the disadvantages of cigarettes. But that's what doctors say, and if you ask people who smoke cigarettes, you'll get a big discount. A long-lived man in his 90s told the author that one of the secrets of his longevity is not to quit smoking. He countered the doctor's advice with good reason by his own immutable being.

Cigarettes are not opium cigarettes, and their rings are definitely not as obvious as opium cigarettes. There are even many smokers who have smoked for many years without feeling any obvious discomfort or harm. Moreover, people have such exaggerated views on doctors. The fuss has long been used to it. What's more, most cigarette factories are major profit and tax producers in various places. It is precisely these many unsolvable circumstances that determine that today's smoking ban is just a ban with great flexibility and plasticity.

If there is a spear in the world, there should be a shield. Society is full of contradictions. There are many things that should be controlled and banned, ranging from deeply disgusting corruption and various unhealthy practices to extremely uncivilized spitting. I hope these are like the ban on smoking. When it is banned, it will be strictly prohibited.

When the global anti-smoking movement is surging, our country is no exception, with one wave rising after another. This is because the ten-year smoking cessation strategy implementation plan formulated by the Ministry of Health and the Patriotic Health Campaign Committee has expired, and the negotiations on the "Framework Convention on Tobacco Control" initiated by the World Health Organization are approaching, making the wave of smoking bans higher and higher.

We recognize that smoking is harmful to health, and this is exactly what the tobacco industry is doing. However, it should be pointed out that the history of tobacco cultivation and smoking is much longer than the history of the tobacco industry. The emergence and existence of the tobacco industry are based on the social needs formed by people's smoking habits.

When society realizes that smoking is harmful to health, the tobacco industry continues to use science and technology to try to reduce the harm of cigarettes. This effort has not only achieved tangible results but continues to do so. People may ask, why does the tobacco industry still exist and continue to develop today when the health hazards of smoking have not yet been solved? That's because, fundamentally, the tobacco industry does more good than harm to society.

Talk about the standard that the tobacco industry does more good than harm to society. Three points must be clarified: First, the advantages of the tobacco industry outweigh the disadvantages for society. Society is an organic whole composed of multiple elements interconnected based on material production activities, and the perspective of examination should be multi-dimensional. Secondly, the criterion that the tobacco industry does more good than harm to society is subject to time and space conditions. In other words, whether the tobacco industry has great benefits or harms will vary depending on the specific country and its stage of development. We advocate that we evaluate my country's tobacco industry based on my country's actual national conditions and oppose generalizations. Third, based on the reality of our country, we should measure whether the advantages of an action outweigh the disadvantages. The most fundamental thing is to see whether it is conducive to the development of social productivity, whether it is conducive to improving comprehensive national strength, and whether it is conducive to improving people's living standards. In our country, the tobacco industry has the role of accelerating capital accumulation, increasing national financial capabilities, and supporting the development of other industries. Why do governments in various countries promote smoking cessation but at the same time, none of them cancel the tobacco industry? Is it because the government is hypocritical? As we all know, if you want to develop, you have to pay a price. Our country's development is now in an urgent period. We must not miss the opportunity and seize the opportunity to develop ourselves. The fundamental thing is to develop the economy. The tobacco industry plays an extraordinary role in accumulating funds and promoting my country's economic construction.

Cigarette development trends and scientific research

At present, the per capita consumption of cigarettes in my country is low, less than 1/2 of that in Western countries. The rural population accounts for 80% of the country's population, and its cigarette sales account for only 60% of the country's total. There is also a large amount of self-rolling and silk cigarette consumption in rural areas. As people's income continues to grow, hybrid cigarettes and filter cigarettes will develop in the product structure and tend to become high-end. Facing the challenges of smoking and health issues, the cigarette industry should transform in three aspects.

1. Gradually adopt internationally accepted methods. For example: adding filters, improving rolling papers, expanding shredded tobacco, tobacco flakes, ventilating and diluting, etc., to reduce the amount of tar in cigarettes and strive to reduce it to less than 15mg/cigarette as soon as possible. This is the most realistic option.

2. Explore ways to selectively focus on reducing harmful substances in tar. For example, in 1986, Huazhong Institute of Technology and Wuhan Cigarette Factory collaborated on research on using trace elements as additives for shredded tobacco. According to foreign data, the selenium content in tobacco leaves from countries with a low incidence of lung cancer is 0.46ppm, while the content in countries with a high incidence of lung cancer is 0.16ppm. The selenium content in tobacco leaves from Wuhan Cigarette Factory was determined to be 0.22ppm. According to the recommendations of Chinese nutritionists, the selenium intake of Chinese adults should be 70 micrograms/person·day, while the actual average intake is 30 micrograms/person·day. This shows that adding an appropriate amount of selenium is beneficial.

3. Development of new hybrid cigarettes. Use traditional Chinese medicine to explore adding appropriate Chinese medicine or pharmaceutical agents to cigarettes to develop a cigarette that does not affect the smell of cigarettes, has no other toxic and side effects, and can reduce the harmful effects of smoke substances and provide certain relief for certain respiratory system diseases. New products that function. Since this type of cigarettes contains some traditional Chinese medicine ingredients, it is tentatively named new hybrid cigarettes. With the joint efforts of experts and scholars in the medical and health fields and the tobacco industry, some new mixed cigarette products have been put on the market and exported after passing a series of tests and identifications, and have been welcomed by consumers.

New hybrid cigarettes must undergo clinical trial observation by the medical and health department, drug pharmacology and toxicity testing, and pharmaceutical chemical analysis and other review procedures.

my country’s traditional Chinese medicine resources are quite rich. In the Compendium of Materia Medica compiled by Li Shizhen, a medical scientist in the Ming Dynasty, there are 1,892 kinds of medicines and more than 11,000 prescriptions. Different drugs treat different targets, but the treatment of common respiratory, circulatory and cardiovascular diseases among smokers occupies a considerable proportion. There are currently more than 40 cigarette factories in our country producing more than 50 brands of medicated cigarettes, and their efficacy is relatively reliable. For example:

"Ginseng" smoke, ginseng is a specialty of Northeast my country. It has the effects of replenishing vitality, nourishing the spleen and lungs, producing body fluids and quenching thirst, calming the nerves and increasing intelligence. It also has the functions of nourishing and strengthening the body.

"Apocynum" cigarette is made by adding the traditional Chinese medicine Apocynum to shredded tobacco. Apocynum has the effects of calming the liver, clearing heat, lowering blood pressure, etc., and through the action of apocynum, the tar and nicotine content has also been reduced.

"Astragalus" smoke and "Euzhong" smoke. The former can benefit the body, strengthen the surface, diuresis and reduce swelling; the latter can nourish the liver and kidneys and treat dizziness. At present, the domestic pharmaceutical industry has developed and utilized it in large quantities, such as as pharmaceuticals, health teas, wine and beverages, and food additives. Our country's tobacco industry is not to be outdone, and has jointly developed a series of cigarettes with the pharmaceutical industry. There are certain carcinogens in smoke, but Gynostemma pentaphyllum has natural anti-cancer effects. Adding its extract to smoke can prevent or alleviate cancer in the human body.

"Honeysuckle" brand compound drug cigarettes. It is mainly made of Chinese herbal medicine, with other auxiliary herbs or spices added. Other medicinal cigarettes are composed of many kinds of herbs. For example, "Baicao" medicated cigarettes fall into this category. Experts have identified that this cigarette has a certain effect on relieving respiratory diseases.

You can’t ban it, you have to guide it well

The United Nations has spared no effort in promoting the global anti-smoking campaign. But the irony is that many of the ambassadors to the United Nations are "old smokers."

The United Nations’ erroneous example of saying one thing but doing another is difficult to win the trust of the people. However, if you work at the United Nations, it is not easy to quit smoking because almost everyone around you smokes. Smoking can be seen everywhere in the corridors, outside the door of the Security Council, and even inside the Security Council venue. There were even ambassadorial figures who finished smoking and couldn't find a place to throw the cigarette butts, so they simply threw them into a flowerpot, patted their butts and left. Lavrov, Russia’s ambassador to the United Nations, is a well-known “smoker” in the United Nations building. Not only do Russian representatives love to smoke, but the Iraqi Ambassador to the United Nations and the Chairman of the United Nations Special Committee also smoke. It may not be that simple to ask them to lead by example and quit smoking.

Of course, smoking makes people feel excited, calm, relieves fatigue, and aids thinking. A great man once said that what we inhale is smoke and what we spit out are thoughts.

Human behavior has rules, habits become natural, and it changes from conscious to unconscious. It is a scientific conclusion that smoking is harmful to health, but because the disease caused by smoking is not so absolute and obvious, and smoking has certain fun and effects, the country has no choice but to impose a ban despite repeated bans. Smokers don't care about spending money at all. They will continue to smoke as usual no matter how difficult it is, let alone it is not difficult now.

Speaking of which, when do people want to smoke? There is a joke that smoking is a strange thing. You want to smoke when you are tired, and you still want to smoke when you are free; you smoke when you are happy, and you still smoke when you are unhappy; you want to smoke when you have something to do, and you want to smoke when you have nothing to do. Smoking can relieve sorrow and boredom. It can refresh one's mind and cheer up. Regardless of whether there is any scientific reason for this, cigarettes do make people feel that they have a two-way regulating function. People like it and don’t want to throw it away, and that’s one of the reasons.

Everyone knows that smoking is harmful to health, but non-smokers generally do not understand the "temptation" of cigarettes, so it is difficult to understand why more than 300 million of the 1.2 billion Chinese smoke cigarettes. People, according to the author's experience, one of the "temptations" of cigarettes is to relieve fatigue. It is common to wait for people, buses, cars, or boats, especially when you are on a business trip. A cigarette can relieve the fatigue during a long journey; the second is to clear your mind. When you have trouble thinking and are running out of inspiration when writing an article, lighting a cigarette can clear your mind and open up your thoughts; the third is to balance your emotions. When you are depressed, a cigarette can be a comfort to your soul and help you get rid of your unhappiness. It can be safely said that most smokers smoke due to mental and physical fatigue and numerous psychological conflicts. A good friend of the author is the attending doctor in the hospital. He has been smoking for more than 40 years. When asked why he couldn't quit, he said frankly: "I live in a nest full of bacteria all day long (in the hospital). , we can only fight poison with poison. If we quit smoking, we will be in trouble."

The author admits the "temptation" of cigarettes, but at the same time, he is also willing to admit frankly that smoking is a bad hobby. In the long run, smoking may cause cardiovascular disease and lung cancer; in the immediate term, it pollutes the air and damages the environment. Fresh and pure air is a major guarantee for human survival. In recent years, the number of smokers in Western developed countries has been decreasing day by day. This is because as material and cultural life has developed, people understand the value of life and pay more attention to protecting the environment. China is still a developing country, and its economy and culture are still relatively backward. When the economy develops, To a certain extent, the number of smokers will definitely decrease significantly. At present, the government's ban on smoking in public places is one of the means to cultivate people's civilized behavior.

However, it is not an easy task to truly ban smoking in public places. A common fact is that many places are covered with signs prohibiting smoking, but many smokers still go their own way. The author once saw on the 83/84 train from Dalian to Beijing that the service work there was in order, the waiters were busy and happy, the floor was polished brightly, and the beds were folded neatly. In all the carriages, not a single passenger was found smoking in the carriage. Passengers said: "This train is a red flag train. From the conductor to the waiters, they are very sincere to the passengers. If we continue to smoke, we can't help them!" It can be seen that the ban on smoking in public places should be comprehensively rectified, not only to remove dirty In spite of the chaotic environment, we must also standardize the way service staff treat guests, punish them harshly, and keep up with moral education. We must let everyone understand that not smoking in public places is a sign of respect for others, a duty to society, a manifestation of one's moral cultivation, and a civilized behavior.

China National Tobacco Corporation has put forward concrete opinions on the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control that are consistent with reality:

First, as a legal product, tobacco must have a reasonable market positioning . It cannot be "blocked" arbitrarily. It is understandable to impose certain restrictions on tobacco advertising, consumption venues, and warnings on outer packaging. However, it is undesirable and inconsistent with the legal principles of cigarettes to be a comprehensive ban on tobacco advertising, or to uniformly regulate the size of cigarette packaging to display health warnings on a global scale.

At present, under the promotion of anti-smoking organizations, there is also a plan to print a warning picture of a certain area of ??diseased lungs and other human diseased organs on the outer packaging of cigarettes. We find it difficult to understand and agree with this, and believe that this approach is harmful to the public health. The intellectual property rights of a legitimate product trademark can also have a negative impact on other controversial products.

Second, regarding the form, scope, and degree of tobacco control, the different situations and choices of each country should be respected, and matters within the scope of national sovereignty should not be interfered with. For example, it is inappropriate for the WHO to set a globally unified tobacco tax rate.

Third, minors must be resolutely prohibited from smoking, but adults’ independent choices must be fully respected and treated equally. It is understandable to ban smoking in some public places, but at the same time, smoking areas should be divided or smoking spaces should be opened up for smokers. This is also a human rights issue.

Fourth, the development of tobacco control work and the formulation of the "Convention" must be conducive to severely cracking down on illegal production and business activities such as cigarette smuggling, counterfeiting and counterfeiting. For example, if we blindly raise tobacco tax rates in order to achieve the goal of banning smoking, it will only bring about two consequences that people do not want to see: first, it will further stimulate illegal activities such as smuggling and counterfeiting to evade taxes; second, it will cause legal business The price of cigarettes has increased significantly, increasing the economic burden on consumers. We sincerely hope that WHO can take more appropriate and powerful measures on this issue.

Fifth, we believe that when people cannot completely quit the smoking habit, it is always better to smoke cigarettes with low tar content and less harmful ingredients; at the same time, legally existing tobacco It is a good thing that the industry can strengthen its self-discipline and do more things that are beneficial to social progress. This is a practice that cannot be forbidden and should be guided.

Smoking ban and news competition

Two years ago, the New Zealand government promulgated a new regulation: any content that may induce "smoking behavior" shall not appear in the media.

The New Zealand government has always adopted resolute and tough control measures against smoking. The relevant laws promulgated by the authorities are the most severe in the world in combating tobacco and are costly. However, the ironclad fact has given the government Pouring cold water on the head, the latest statistics always show a cruel failure. In the past year, the national cigarette sales not only did not decline, but increased by 2.1 percentage points, and the smoking population steadily occupied the accounting for 26% of the country's population.

“Whenever a government tells its people that this thing is not good for them and that a certain social trend must be stopped, the people often have a rebellious mood.” The editor of a magazine Raton said.

But lawmakers are still trying to find new ways to limit cigarette consumption, inevitably clashing with defenders of press freedom. New government regulations stipulate that what officials call "pro-tobacco text" will be banned. Previously, a magazine that published a story about the fortunes of tobacco-producing entrepreneurs received a warning letter from relevant government departments. A monthly lifestyle magazine was also ordered to stop running a cigar column, although the magazine's editor-in-chief repeatedly emphasized that this was no different from other product introduction columns.

Editors are also disgusted by this, and they believe that the government is trampling on their right to free speech. Yet many politicians disagree. Ms Clark, leader of the opposition Labor Party, is a strong anti-smoking supporter. She believes that on this issue, freedom of speech is still supported to the maximum extent. “For tobacco, it is extremely special. Among those who consciously use it, a large number of people will be stifled by it. "The problem is getting bigger and bigger, so it's subject to special legislation that other things like alcohol, guns and cars are not."

"Smoking to ban smoking" - a new breakthrough in the smoking ban

The grim reality urgently requires us to find a new breakthrough in the smoking ban. The fundamental purpose of the smoking ban is to eliminate the harmful factors in cigarettes and move toward a "civilized world." The fundamental method of banning smoking is not only to restrict consumption, but also to find countermeasures from the "roots" of production and sales. That is to say, we must not only stop the boiling, but also remove the fuel from the cauldron.

In addition to nicotine, the most harmful component of smoking to health is tar. Therefore, since 1985, relevant international organizations have stipulated that all cigarettes must bear the warning "Smoking is harmful to health" as well as the tar content. According to international standards, if the tar content of each cigarette is more than 30 mg, it is "high tar content", and the production of this kind of cigarette is absolutely prohibited; if the tar content of each cigarette is about 20 mg, it is "medium tar content", and most of the flue-cured tobacco produced in my country is This type has "low tar content" if the content of each cigarette is less than 15 mg, which is a necessary condition for safe and healthy cigarettes.

But at the same time, tar is mainly the factor that makes people enjoy and feel comfortable. Tar becomes a cup of "poisonous wine" that tastes delicious but also has certain toxic side effects. The problem is before smokers: if they want to satisfy their addiction, they have to pay the price of poisoning; the problem is also before the producers: if they want to reduce the tar content, the strength of the cigarette may be reduced, which will affect sales.

Continuous improvements in technology provide a best-of-both-worlds solution. However, among the more than 2,000 brands of cigarettes currently produced by my country's tobacco manufacturers, the tar content, including many famous cigarettes, is relatively high. China Tobacco Corporation's "Cigarette Industry Development Outline" has clearly stated that through New technology effectively reduces tar content. Moreover, the production equipment and technological level of many tobacco companies in our country have reached the contemporary international advanced level. Many companies have made breakthroughs in tar-reducing processes and technologies, and the safety of domestic cigarettes has the potential to keep pace with international standards. But why is the current implementation effect still unsatisfactory?

It is impossible for one company to reduce the content of harmful components in cigarettes such as tar alone. It requires a social mechanism that is compatible with it. The formation of this mechanism depends on the leading role of government departments, the main role of production enterprises, the willing cooperation of operators and the mature awakening of consumers.

The anti-smoking campaign, which is in the ascendant, should seek new breakthroughs in establishing such a social mechanism. While prohibiting consumers from smoking, it is necessary to promote the early formation of a social mechanism for the production and marketing of "smokeless cigarettes". It is necessary to deepen the understanding of the smoking ban from all walks of life through vigorous publicity, so that the whole society can reach a consensus on restricting the production and sale of inferior cigarettes with greater toxic and side effects while advocating the production and sales of healthy and safe cigarettes, and form a joint force to work together. Grasp the management, support the good and limit the bad.

The tobacco industry authorities must not only become the authorities in charge of production and marketing, but also play a leading role in the anti-smoking campaign. It is necessary to formulate corresponding policies to support superior industries and limit inferior industries to strengthen the guiding role for enterprises.

Production and sales enterprises should regard the production and sales of low-tar content cigarettes as a conscious action to develop operations and occupy the market. At the same time, we must establish a strong sense of social responsibility and regard the production and sale of safe cigarettes as our social obligation to benefit all people.

It is necessary to take advantage of the situation and teach smokers to recognize the safety properties of cigarettes while promoting the ban on smoking. We need to let them learn to protect themselves, let them understand that with the advancement of science and technology, cigarettes with low tar content are safe and healthy cigarettes, and guide smokers to become mature consumers.

Promote the formation of the social mechanism of "banning smoking with smoking" as a new breakthrough in the anti-smoking movement.

“Smoking to ban smoking” is the fundamental way to move towards a smoke-free world.

Technology will transform the tobacco industry

Confusion comes from reality, and thinking should also come from reality. It is not difficult to find problems. What is difficult is to analyze the problems concretely and comprehensively based on reality with a pragmatic attitude. We should not ignore that human beings cannot exist or develop apart from society; nor should we ignore that human health can only be guaranteed by the development of society and enhanced by the increase of national strength. The transformation of the Chinese nation from the poverty of the people in the past to the prosperity of the people and the country today is not just the result of physical enhancement, but a historical necessity of social change and economic development. This historical necessity contains the drive of the tobacco industry and the contribution of tobacco workers. In the new century, China has faced more severe challenges after joining the WTO. However, the key to how to seize the opportunity and develop yourself is to develop the economy.

As far as our country is concerned, the tobacco industry is conducive to the rational allocation of resources and the rational layout of productivity; it is conducive to the accumulation of national financial resources; it is conducive to the solution of social employment; and it is conducive to the development of local economy. In some provinces of our country, the mainstay of the local economy is the tobacco industry, and 60% to 80% of the fiscal revenue of some counties comes from the tobacco industry. Isn't the reason why our party and state leaders wrote the inscription "Developing the Economy and Enriching the Market" for the tobacco industry precisely because of the huge contribution made by the tobacco industry? Isn’t it precisely because of the hard work of 500,000 tobacco workers?

“It is advisable to keep an eye on the future.” Looking to the future, there are only two possibilities for the development of the tobacco industry. First, when the national economy reaches a higher level, industries such as the tobacco industry, which has high accumulation but whose products are harmful to health, will gradually shrink or even cease to exist. But we cannot obliterate its achievements and contributions today because of this. Even if the tobacco industry withdraws from the stage of history, its disadvantages will disappear, but its advantages will still exist in the form of materialization. This kind of "successful success" Isn't the development of "retreating" and "eliminating the advantages and disadvantages" an excellent commentary on today's choices in the future? There is another development in the tobacco industry, a development that is more likely. That is to rely on the power of science and technology to eliminate the harm of cigarettes and realize the multi-purpose and comprehensive utilization of tobacco. Human beings have the ability to constantly understand and transform the world, and meeting people's needs with harmless cigarettes is by no means a dream. Driven by science and technology, the tobacco industry is ushering in a new year of life, which is by no means a dream.

China Tobacco’s Macro and Micro Countermeasures in Dealing with the WTO

Cheng Yongzhao, Director of the Yunnan Tobacco Economic Information Research Center, recently wrote an article for "China Tobacco Online", focusing on China Tobacco’s response after China’s accession to the WTO. Problems, countermeasures are proposed from both macro and micro aspects. From a macro perspective, we must implement strategic adjustments to the tobacco economic structure, make advantageous enterprises bigger and stronger, implement the famous brand strategy, increase the market concentration of cigarette products, vigorously support advantageous brands, strive to cultivate international famous brands, and improve the competition of the tobacco industry. forceful countermeasures. From a micro perspective, we must focus and work on improving the overall quality of the enterprise and improving market competitiveness. Specifically, we should focus on product quality, low prices, high-quality services, and reduction of consumption. "China Tobacco Online" published Mr. Cheng Yongzhao's special article in two parts for your reference.

China’s accession to the WTO is just around the corner. As an economic industry, there are different opinions on how China Tobacco faces the WTO. The common and concentrated view is that joining the WTO is both an opportunity and a challenge for China Tobacco.

As we all know, joining the WTO requires you to enjoy both rights and obligations. As far as China's tobacco industry is concerned, although the WTO has many agreements related to tobacco, the author believes that the most important are two aspects: first, reducing tariffs, and second, canceling quotas.

Reducing tariffs means that foreign tobacco companies can compete equally with us in the Chinese market. The abolition of quotas means that cigarette products from foreign tobacco companies can easily enter the Chinese market.

Take "Marlboro", "555", "Camel", "Mild Seven Star" and "Jianpai" as examples. Under the current situation of high tariffs and quota restrictions, Chinese cigarette brands can compete with them. There are only a handful of them. After joining the WTO, tariffs have been reduced, and the competitive advantages of the above-mentioned international famous brand cigarettes have become more prominent. Once the quota restrictions are lifted, its market prospects can be imagined.

Fortunately, China's tobacco commitment in the WTO accession agreement is to reduce tariffs to the provisions of the WTO market access agreement between China and relevant countries by 2004. For example, according to the provisions of the Sino-US WTO Market Access Agreement, China must reduce the tariff on cigarettes imported from the United States from the current 65% implementation rate to 25% in 2004.

Within the WTO, non-tariff barriers such as quotas and licenses are not allowed to exist except under special circumstances. China has always implemented strict planning management and licensing systems for the production, sales, import and export of tobacco products, and various controls are even stricter on foreign tobacco manufacturers in particular.

However, after China joins the WTO, although the total volume plan and license system can still exist, it is impossible to shut out foreign tobacco companies through administrative means and planning indicators. If foreign tobacco companies want to enter the Chinese market, they will Basic WTO rules such as "national treatment" require licenses and equal and fair market competition with domestic tobacco companies. Therefore, China will have to make corresponding adjustments and reforms to its planning and licensing systems, and quota protection can only be maintained for a limited period of time.

An important principle of the WTO is to gradually realize trade liberalization among member countries and optimize resource allocation and achieve economic growth through free trade. To this end, the WTO requires all member countries to promote the continuous opening of their domestic markets by reducing tariffs, eliminating non-tariff barriers, and expanding market access opportunities. Judging from the principles and requirements of the WTO, if tobacco from other members wants to enter our market, it is impossible for us to prevent their products from entering through administrative means or legal arrangements. After China joins the WTO, one of the obligations that the tobacco industry should bear is to clear up the institutional rules that restrict market competition as soon as possible and provide the necessary institutional environment for foreign tobacco companies to enter the Chinese market. In other words, China's tobacco market is opening up gradually.

Therefore, we still have a precious buffer time, which should be called a "transition period" to be precise. This opportunity cannot be missed, time waits for us not. For China Tobacco, what should we focus on during the limited "transition" period?

According to the "Recommendations of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on Formulating the Tenth Five-Year Plan for National Economic and Social Development" and starting from the reality of China's tobacco industry, the author believes that to answer this question, we should look at the macro Consider it at both micro and micro levels.

From a macro perspective, we must implement strategic adjustments to the tobacco economic structure and make advantageous enterprises bigger and stronger; we must implement the famous brand strategy, increase the concentration of the cigarette brand market, support advantaged brands, and strive to Cultivate international famous brands; improve the competitiveness of the tobacco industry.

Judging from the current situation of China's tobacco industry, China is a major producer and seller of two cigarettes, and has formed a relatively large industrial scale and a relatively complete industrial system. The country's tobacco industrial and commercial enterprises have 500,000 employees, 5.7 million tobacco leaf-growing farmers, involving 22 million tobacco-growing farmers, and 310 million tobacco consumers. It is an important industrial sector in the national economy. In particular, tobacco tax profits have been the largest contributor to national fiscal revenue since 1987. In 2000, tax profits reached 105 billion yuan, equivalent to 9% of the country's total fiscal revenue. It has provided huge capital accumulation for national economic construction. At this stage, the status and influence of the tobacco industry still play a decisive role. my country's output of both cigarettes ranks first in the world, but in the world tobacco trade, my country's share is very disproportionate to its status as a major tobacco country in the world. In recent years, my country's tobacco leaf exports have accounted for only about 3% of the world's total, and cigarette exports have accounted for less than 2% of the world's total.

In terms of tobacco cultivation, 1.33 million hectares of tobacco fields are planted across the country. The cultivation is scattered among households. On average, each tobacco farmer cultivates 0.060 hectares of tobacco fields. From selection and breeding to harvesting, curing and grading, tobacco farmers rely on their own hands. The operation, technical level is backward, management is extensive, and it is in a small and scattered small farmer economy, with extremely low productivity level. The level of tobacco production is simply not comparable to that of the United States, Brazil, and Zimbabwe.

In terms of the cigarette industry, China currently has 184 tobacco industry enterprises, including 146 cigarette enterprises, including 121 planned cigarette factories and 25 local cigarette factories. In 2000, 1,181 brands were produced*** 2568 cigarette products in multiple specifications. The largest cigarette company in the country, Yuxi Hongta Tobacco (Group) Company, has an annual production of more than 2.2 million boxes, while the smallest Pubei Cigarette Factory only produced 2,823 boxes in 2000. The cigarette brand with the largest annual output of all types of cigarettes in the country is "Hongmei", with an output of 1.005 million boxes in 2000. The smallest brand only produces a few boxes. There is no cigarette product in the country that can be called an international famous brand.

As far as enterprises are concerned, the country's annual output of cigarettes in 2000 was more than 33.35 million boxes, of which 4 companies produced more than 1 million boxes, 11 companies produced 500,000 to 1 million boxes, and 300,000 to 500,000 boxes. 23 companies, 21 companies have 200,000 to 300,000 boxes, 24 have 100,000 to 200,000 boxes, 20 have 50,000 to 100,000 boxes, 10,000 to 50,000 boxes There are 32 companies that sell less than 10,000 boxes, and 11 companies have less than 10,000 boxes. In 2000, 24 of the 121 cigarette factories in the plan suffered losses, and 13 of the 25 local cigarette factories suffered losses, with the total loss area reaching 25.3%. There is no trace of Chinese tobacco companies on the list of the world's top 500 industrial companies.

In terms of tobacco business, there are more than 2,000 tobacco companies across the country. Its setting is basically carried out according to administrative divisions. There are more than 4.3 million cigarette retail outlets nationwide.

For a long time, there have been conflicts between the industry's "unified leadership" and the finance's "separate efforts", the industry's "vertical management" and "sitting on the ground", and the tobacco's "monopolization" and "scattered stakeholders". It has not been resolved, resulting in fragmentation and individual administration. National monopoly has evolved into "local monopoly", local blockade, market blockade, and market segmentation contradictions of "local monopoly" in product sales. Four types of "counterfeit, private, illegal, and super" have appeared. Smoking has been banned for many times.

Studying the current situation of China's cigarette industry enterprises, it is obvious that they present several characteristics: "small, scattered, low-quality, poor and chaotic".

The so-called "small" means that there are too many small businesses. In 2000, there were 108 companies with an annual output of less than 300,000 boxes, accounting for 74% of the country's cigarette industry enterprises. They produced 10.983 million boxes of cigarettes, accounting for 10% of the country's cigarette industry. 32.9 of the total annual production. Among them, 63 companies have less than 100,000 boxes, producing 2.448 million boxes of cigarettes, accounting for 7.3% of the country's total output.

The so-called "scattered" means that there are too many small businesses and their production locations are extremely scattered, making it almost impossible to achieve any scale.

The so-called "low" refers to generally backward equipment, low technical level, low management level, low technological content of products, and low productivity level. The contradiction between backward technology and management is extremely prominent.

The so-called "poor" is due to the small scale of cigarette factories, backward equipment, and lack of technological content in their products. Some cigarette products are only marginally profitable, and some are not profitable at all. Many brands have suffered long-term losses and large losses. , the tax amount has been outstanding for a long time, the burden is heavy, and the efficiency is poor. Taking labor productivity as an example, the difference between my country's best level and the international average level is more than double; the tax profit of a single box of cigarettes, my country's advanced level is 4 times different from that of the United States. More than times.

The so-called "chaos" is that more than 2,200 industrial and commercial enterprises in the entire industry are independently accounted economic entities, and the production and marketing relationship is based on administrative relationships, with no immediate interest connections. Due to their own Profit-driven, short-term behavior regardless of the overall situation and violations of monopoly laws and regulations and non-standard operations within the system are serious problems.

The situation abroad, especially the situation in the tobacco industry in the United States, Japan, Britain and other countries, is exactly the opposite to mine. The United States, the number one tobacco economic power, had dozens of tobacco companies in the 1970s. Through competition and survival of the fittest, there are now only five large companies left. There are currently only three major tobacco companies in the UK, and there is only one tobacco company in Japan.

It is worth studying that at the end of the 20th century, the world tobacco industry underwent several major mergers. 1994