In 2022, the consumption rate of illegal cigarettes in Greece reached its lowest level since 2018, according to the results of KPMG’s annual independent report, conducted on behalf of Philip Morris International. The volume of illegal cigarettes decreased by 500 million cigarettes, but still remained at high levels.

Specifically, according to the findings of the report, in Greece in 2022 the percentage of illegal cigarettes is estimated at 20.7% of total cigarette consumption, the lowest point in the last 5 years. In total, 2.9 billion illegal cigarettes were consumed. The lost revenue for public funds is estimated at 519 million euros for 2022 alone.

At EU level, 35.8 billion illegal cigarettes were consumed, causing a loss of revenue of around €11.3 billion – 8.5% more than in 2021. More specifically, according to the KPMG report, in 2022, the illegal cigarette market in EU increased by 0.7% compared to 2021, mainly due to increased consumption in France and Belgium. France maintains the first position in the consumption of illegal cigarettes in the EU and accounts for 47% of the total consumption of illegal cigarettes in the EU.

Commenting on the findings of the report, Iakovos Kargarotos, vice-president of “Papastratos”, noted: “The fact that in 2022 there was a significant reduction in the consumption of illegal cigarettes in Greece is encouraging. Papastratos, for more than 10 years, has been leading the fight against illegal cigarettes, supporting the work of the prosecuting authorities. And it seems that this collective effort is bearing fruit. However, there should be no complacency, but even more cooperation. We must all work together, State, society, businesses to continue the effort to combat this phenomenon, which affects public health, the safety of citizens and the country’s economy. Harm reduction policies allow smokers to be better informed about the existence of scientifically proven less harmful alternatives to the more harmful cigarette, legal or illegal. The illegal cigarette trade undermines these policies by luring smokers with cheap, unregulated cigarettes and encouraging them to continue smoking instead of switching to less harmful alternatives. The World Health Organization’s refusal to recognize that smokeless products are a better choice for smokers than illegal cigarettes exacerbates the problem. We hope this position will change at the upcoming Conference of Parties in November.”

As part of the new report, Gregoire Verdeaux, senior vice president of External Affairs at Philip Morris International, said: “The cost of the effects of illicit cigarette consumption on adult smokers and public health is too high to ignore. The KPMG report clearly shows that the expansion of the illicit cigarette market poses a threat to the sustainability and transformation of the industry on a pan-European scale. Effective policy-making, fiscal predictability, dissuasive sanctions and their effective enforcement are needed to tackle the phenomenon, enabling many EU Member States to reduce the consumption of illegal cigarettes.