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The marketing of the reduced risk tobacco product without combustion, developed by the firm, will start in October. A few months after the visa to enter the national market for this type of “modified risk” tobacco products, Philip Morris went on the offensive.
Heated tobacco will make its effective entry into Moroccan tobacco shops from next October. Informed sources, “Philip Morris Morocco to launch heated tobacco technology in October in the Moroccan market.”
It should be remembered that after launching the marketing of Iqos Heets (tobacco sticks) in the duty-free areas of various Moroccan airports in December 2020, the firm obtained, last April, the entry visa on the national market for this type of “modified risk” tobacco products. Indeed, the Heets have been approved by the commission in charge of the prices of tobacco products on the Moroccan market, through a decision of the Ministry of the Economy, Finance and the Reform of the Administration, published in the Official Bulletin on April 2. Today, it is a new phase of implementation looming for the development and marketing of heated tobacco products from Philip Morris in Morocco.
According to our sources, the Heets will be launched initially, in Casablanca, before being extended nationwide. In detail, the Iqos device will be marketed in dedicated points of sale while Heets consumables will be available in tobacco shops. Note that the Iqos is the electronic device used to heat the tobacco contained in Heets.
A first in Morocco
This is the first time that a heated tobacco product will be launched on the Moroccan market. According to the multinational’s official website, Iqos represents a new technology that allows tobacco to be heated without burning it. It generates up to 95% less harmful substances than cigarette smoke. A process that eliminates combustion and, therefore, smoke which contains the main harmful components responsible for cancer-causing diseases related to smoking. Considered by the multinational to be the future of the tobacco industry, this heated tobacco product has been recognized by the FDA as a “modified risk” product. In addition, this is a segment for which substantial budgets have been mobilized by Philip Morris International (PMI) in recent years in order to develop the famous Iqos.
If its introduction is a first for the Moroccan market, Iqos is already known around the world. This reduced risk product compared to a cigarette and without combustion is already marketed by Philip Morris International in more than 67 international markets. Thus, according to the company’s public communications, nearly 14.7 million former smokers have quit smoking altogether and started using the product exclusively. Indeed, Iqos presents itself as a serious alternative to cigarettes. It heats tobacco up to 350° degrees, without burning it, against 850 to 900° degrees for a smoked cigarette, thus reducing the harmful components generated compared to cigarette smoke
Accessible prices
In terms of accessibility and price of the product which will be marketed by Philip Morris Morocco in the coming weeks on the national market, it should be noted that the price of Heets is already set, by decision published in the Official Bulletin, at MAD 35. For Iqos, it should be noted that its price could vary from 600 to MAD 1600, depending on the model and the technological generation to which it belongs. This is part of a global policy of the group that the prices of Heets, in any market in the world where they are sold, are aligned with those of conventional cigarettes. Devices, on the other hand, are positioned in the price brackets of entry-level smartphones. The goal is to democratize access to this device to support the fight led by the global tobacco producer for a “smoke-free future”.
Ultimately, Philip Morris International plans to replace conventional cigarettes with smokeless products for the benefit of adults who would otherwise continue to smoke. With multidisciplinary product development capabilities, state-of-the-art facilities and scientific foundation, PMI aims to ensure that its smoke-free products meet the preferences of adult consumers and meet stringent regulatory requirements.
