There are well over 500 cigarette factories spread around the globe, each responsible for thousands of premature deaths and massive, avoidable costs to society. These factories collectively produce nearly 6 trillion cigarettes every year, roughly 13% more than a decade ago. In 2010, cigarettes were produced in the majority of countries worldwide, and about a million cigarettes were manufactured every five seconds. That year, 41% of the world s cigarettes were produced in China, followed by Russia (7%), the US (6%), Germany (4%), and Indonesia (3%).

Where are these cigarettes manufactured, wrapped, and boxed for shipment? Cigarette factories are located in every corner of the world, concentrated in Europe and China, and new ones are still being factories are often hidden from sight behind high walls, given vague titles like manufacturing facility or production center, and serviced by unmarked trucks. That is not true in China, however, where smoking is much more socially acceptable than in other countries factories are highly visible and prominently featured in their communities.

With advances in satellite imaging technology, projects such as Stanford University s Cigarette Citadels now make it possible to locate hundreds of these factories online. For instance, Internet users can view one of the world s largest cigarette factories in Bergen op Zoom, near the Hague, Netherlands. This facility, built by Philip Morris in the 1980s, currently manufactures about 96 billion cigarettes annually, with most exported to other European countries and Japan. About 90,000 people could die prematurely every year as a result of consuming cigarettes manufactured in this single facility.

Eu vote on electronic cigarettes ‘makes no sense’ – telegraph

List of nicotine levels in cigarettes by brand

The vote was intended to make tobacco smoking less attractive to young people through mandatory warnings, minimum pack sizes, and rules on flavourings.

However, the revision of the EU ‘Tobacco Products Directive’ would classify most e cigarettes as a medicinal product, despite the fact that in the UK alone 25 percent of all attempts to kick the habit are made using e cigarettes, making them the most popular aid.

The European Commission had proposed that e cigarettes containing 4 milligrammes or more of nicotine must be classed as medicinal products but an EU parliamentary committee went further, voting to classify all e cigarettes as pharmaceuticals, regardless of the nicotine content.

Users of e cigarettes (known as vapers) have protested, arguing that through e cigarettes they were able to kick the tobacco habit.

They say classifying them as medical devices will mean they must undergo a costly and protracted authorisation processes before marketing. Their availability would be restricted to certain pharmacies.

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Producers of e cigarettes said the vote could push many out of business and reduce choice for e cigarette users.

Fraser Cropper, chief executive of e cigarette company Totally Wicked, said “It will result in many smaller and more innovative producers of e cigarettes going out of business. Medicines regulation creates a default prohibition and requirement for approval, leaving deadly tobacco cigarettes as the only easily marketed source of nicotine.”

Martin Callanan, Conservative MEP, proposed an amendment that would see e cigarettes authorised in a similar way to other nicotine products.

He said, “”The world has gone mad when tobacco is less regulated than products designed to end tobacco use. Thousands of people have given up smoking thanks to e cigarettes. For the EU to over regulate them is completely counter productive and hypocritical.

“This vote is not the end of this process and we will be working with vapers to make other MEPs see sense and support e cigarette producers and users.”

Policy toward the new technology widely varies across the EU. Some countries such as Denmark have banned them, while in others such as Britain they are freely available for sale with no restrictions.