[4][7] Stanford University School of Medicine's extensive research has also exposed PMI's claims to move away from cigarettes and become 'smoke-free' as propaganda.
[11] The Center of Excellence for the Acceleration of Harm Reduction (CoEHAR) at the University of Catania is funded by the Foundation (through an intermediate company named ECLAT SRL) and some of its researchers (such as Riccardo Polosa) published tobacco-related papers without declaring funds received from the Foundation nor conflicts of interest.
It also noted that tobacco companies are failing to invest in harm reduction in low and middle-income countries, with sales of reduced-risk products concentrated in markets with a high disposable income.
[22][23] On 13 September 2017, tobacco company Philip Morris International (PMI) announced its support for the establishment of a new entity – the Foundation for a Smoke-Free World.
[10] WHO maintains its firm position that it will not partner with this organization and strongly recommends that governments and the public health community do the same.
Our concerns remain: Global Action to End Smoking operates using funds from Philip Morris International.
WHO is particularly concerned about potential efforts to target children and young people, creating a new generation of tobacco and nicotine users.