Philip Morris Thinks You Shouldn’t Smoke: Calls 2019 ‘The Year Of Unsmoke’

Philip Morris International (PM) has made an urgent call for 2019, naming it “The Year of Unsmoke.” The company is targeting smokers and nonsmokers with its campaign, asking for them to quit or not to start at all.

As Philip Morris looks to transform its image as a cigarette manufacturer, it has focused its efforts of smoke-free tobacco products such as the IQOS. It is also looking to drive change by informing smokers that there are better alternatives than cigarettes available.

“It should be crystal clear: If you don’t smoke, don’t start. If you smoke, quit. If you don’t quit, change. That’s unsmoking,” Jacek Olczak, Philip Morris International chief operating officer said in a statement.

“It is a fact that burning generates the vast majority of harmful chemicals found in cigarette smoke. Eliminating the combustion dramatically reduces the levels of harmful chemicals. There is a growing consensus among scientists and public health experts that products that do not burn and are backed by science are a much better choice than cigarettes.”

According to the company, it has created a mission where it is looking to achieve a smoke-free future that offers “less harmful choices to those who would otherwise continue smoking.”

Philip Morris said it has invested over $6 billion in the research, development, manufacturing, and commercialization of smoke-free products. It maintains that these smoke-free products are a better choice than continuing to smoke.

The company hopes through its unsmoked campaign that it can speed up the “change in public health” about smoking.

Shares of Philip Morris were down 0.85 percent at market close on Wednesday.