Azerbaijan Bans Sale of Cigarettes without Filter

The Ministry of Economy has banned the corporation Azeri to sell cigarettes without filter Pyramid produced by the same company in the Sheki region from July 2016. The Chairman of the Free Consumers Association NGO Eyyub Huseynov said this on January 23.

Investigation of the production of cigarettes without filter began after the call of the Free Consumers Association to the Cabinet.

In the reply the State Service for Antimonopoly Policy and Consumer Protection (SSAPCP) at the Ministry of Economy stated that the December 14, 2016 decision of the Republican Center of Hygiene and Epidemiology (RCHE) of the Ministry of Health eliminated a health certificate for the production of non-filter cigarettes in the corporation Azeri issued on July 16, 2016.

The corporation Azeri also sent a letter to SSAPCP on the execution of the RCHE decision.

“The ban on the production of non-filter cigarettes in the corporation Azeri is a victory for consumers. Now it's up to SSAPCP to withdraw these cigarettes from sale,” said Eyyub Huseynov.    ---08D