Delegates to the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) approved a protocol to fight illicit trade in an effort to reduce availability of cheap goods and recover billions in lost excise tax, Reuters reported.

Track and trace, a measure requiring manufacturer licensing and marking of tobacco packaging to monitor the flow of tobacco goods, is part of the deal approved in Seoul, Korea, Reuters reported. Delegates from 176 FCTC signatory countries approved the protocol in the opening session of a plenary meeting that will close on 17 Nov.
FCTC is the cornerstone of efforts by the World Health Organisation to reduce tobacco use. “The protocol gives the world an orderly, rules-based instrument for countering and eventually eliminating a very sophisticated international criminal activity," WHO Director General Margaret Chan reportedly told the conference.
Among countries that have not formally approved the FCTC, and therefore are not subject to its provisions, the United States stands out as a centre of tobacco production. Illicit trade estimated at 600 billion cigarettes costs governments the equivalent of more than USD 40 billion (EUR 31.5 billion) annually. (pi)