EU could ban filtered cigarettes

Outlawing vapes is also being considered as an additional measure, the German tabloid has reported.

The EU is considering a ban on filtered cigarettes and e-cigarettes as part of its push to reduce tobacco consumption within the bloc, German tabloid Bild has reported.

Earlier this month, the World Health Organization said that Europe had surpassed Southeast Asia as the region with the highest number of smokers in the world. Some 173 million people on the continent used tobacco in 2024, according to the UN body’s data.

The EU is planning to follow the recommendations by the WHO on “banning filters to reduce the palatability and attractiveness of cigarettes,” the paper said in an article on Wednesday.

A bill by the European Council, which had been reviewed by the paper, suggested that outlawing the manufacture, import and distribution of filtered cigarettes “would make an important contribution to reducing tobacco consumption.”

The move would also reduce the exposure of non-smokers to fumes and help protect the environment, it added.

A ban on e-cigarettes, also known as vapes, is also on the agenda in Brussels as an “additional regulatory option,” according to the draft legislation.

Cigarettes both with and without filters could also be forbidden from being sold in shops, petrol stations and kiosks across the EU, the bill said.

The document also stressed the need to protect the restrictive measures planned by the EU from the influence of the tobacco industry.

The bill will be discussed during the World Health Organization conference in Geneva over November 17-22, Bild said.

If the legislation is introduced, it would be tantamount to a de facto ban on cigarettes in the EU, considering the fact that more than 90% of them are produced with filters, the paper noted.

A spokeswoman for the German Health Ministry told Bild that the unified position of the EU member-states on the issue is still in the “process of coordination.”

Image credit: Immo Wegman