{"id":14033,"date":"2025-08-16T11:33:00","date_gmt":"2025-08-16T09:33:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.mylasertabac.com\/contraband-cigarettes-in-france-false-progress-for-a-real-problem\/"},"modified":"2025-08-16T21:26:25","modified_gmt":"2025-08-16T19:26:25","slug":"contraband-cigarettes-in-france-false-progress-for-a-real-problem","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.mylasertabac.com\/en\/contraband-cigarettes-in-france-false-progress-for-a-real-problem\/","title":{"rendered":"Contraband cigarettes in France: false progress for a real problem"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Whenever you hear talk of a decline in official tobacco consumption, ask yourself this question: “Are we really smoking less? Or are we buying cheaper elsewhere?”<\/strong>Behind the declining figures often lies a grim reality: contraband cigarettes thrive, while the state rejoices prematurely, and manufacturers continue to pocket their share – everywhere, all the time.<\/p>\n\n

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49.4% of cigarettes consumed: not in tobacconists<\/h2>\n\n

A recent study by KPMG, commissioned by Philip Morris, is clear cut: 24.7 billion illegal cigarettes<\/strong> were consumed in France in 2024. This represents 49.4% of total consumption<\/strong>, or almost one in two<\/strong> cigarettes not purchased legally from a tobacconist. <\/p>\n\n

This sharply rising phenomenon (+60% between 2020 and 2024) confirms the failure of a strategy based solely on tax pressure.<\/p>\n\n

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The stakes are many – and far from minor<\/h2>\n\n
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Taxation = a platform for the illegal<\/h3>\n\n

It doesn’t matter whether you buy a pack in France, Spain or Luxembourg: the profit margin remains the same for manufacturers<\/strong>. It’s the State – via taxes – that loses out<\/strong> when tobacco is bought outside the legal network. As a result, billions of euros escape the public purse<\/strong>. <\/p>\n\n

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Public health at risk<\/h3>\n\n

This parallel tobacco – often counterfeit – is delivered without any health guarantees. The ingredients, provenance and processes involved are completely unregulated.In addition to failing to comply with standards, this represents a direct risk, aggravating smoking<\/strong> by keeping the product accessible despite price increases. <\/p>\n\n

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Gap between rhetoric and reality<\/h3>\n\n

The state proudly claims a drop in legal sales. Yet smoking prevalence remains stagnant<\/strong>. Smokers haven’t disappeared: they’ve just changed purchasing channels. <\/p>\n\n

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Who really benefits from this system?<\/h2>\n\n
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  1. Criminal organizations<\/strong>: they control trafficking, counterfeiting and parallel distribution networks.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  2. Tobacco manufacturers<\/strong>: their margins remain fixed, whether you buy in France or elsewhere.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  3. The State<\/strong>: loses between 3.8 and 9 billion euros<\/strong> a year, depending on estimates (KPMG, Ernst & Young).<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n
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    Ineffective control, weak signals… yet demanding<\/h2>\n\n

    Operation Colbert II<\/strong>, carried out at the end of March, resulted in the confiscation of 27 tonnes of illegal tobacco<\/strong>, notably concealed in a truckload of salads – demonstrating the growing sophistication of criminal networks. 108 arrests were made, and 52 administrative closures requested Le Monde.fr<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n

    These seizures are a reminder that the problem goes beyond regulation: it becomes a matter of safety and public health.<\/p>\n\n

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    How can we move forward?<\/h2>\n\n
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    Reduce the legal price, not the product<\/h3>\n\n

    Rather than increasing the tax burden, the government could consider a modulated tax<\/strong> system to encourage people to switch to less harmful products or cessation devices.<\/p>\n\n

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    Encouraging cessation through alternatives<\/h3>\n\n

    Countries such as Italy and Sweden, where vaping<\/a> and other substitutes are encouraged, are achieving better results. France, by remaining solely punitive, feeds the black market. <\/p>\n\n

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    Empowering industry<\/h3>\n\n

    Systems such as Codentify<\/strong>, designed to trace and verify the authenticity of packages, do exist. They require independent supervision, as recommended by the WHO, rather than management by the manufacturers themselves. <\/p>\n\n

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    The real hero is you: breaking out of this toxic circle<\/h2>\n\n

    You’ve got the power. You can take personal action. And if you can’t do it alone, there’s a humane and effective way. <\/p>\n\n

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