"Innovation is the basis of our development", so he began Marco Hannappel, managing director of Philip Morris Italia, during the presentation yesterday morning in Milan of Iqos 3 Duo, the latest novelty from Iqos, the device that heats tobacco without burning it. “We continue to invest in science and technology to develop products that meet the needs of adult smokers who would otherwise continue to smoke cigarettes,” he continued.
Technological advancement at Philip Morris has engaged a team of more than 400 scientists, engineers and experts for more than 15 years and has leveraged $6 billion in investment in scientific research, development and commercialization of the smoke-free product portfolio.
Five years after the world premiere of the first Iqos on the market, the company has shown the press the new generation of smoke-free devices. IQOS 3 DUO offers up to two consecutive uses with no need to recharge in between and a faster device charge time compared to previous achievements.
There are 8 million adult smokers in the world who have already converted to the approach towards a smoke-free future, and of these over half a million are Italian. Second the estimates of Philip Morris, on average between 70% and 80% of adult smokers who switch to IQOS completely abandon cigarettes. For the company, the medium-term objective is that by 2025 at least 40 million smokers of cigarettes who would otherwise continue to smoke switch to smoke-free products.
Various experts, such as the American Surgeon General and the British Royal College of Physicians, agree that nicotine, although addictive and not without risk, is not the first cause of smoking-related diseases, such as lung cancer and cardiovascular diseases, which are instead mainly caused by the inhalation of harmful compounds generated to a large extent by the combustion of tobacco.
It is on the issue of correct consumer information that one of the main duties of a company like Philip Morris is grafted: “We are not talking about a risk-free and addictive product, it must be said. We are responsible for providing correct and objective information to smokers: Iqos heats tobacco without burning it and for this reason potentially emits a lower level of substances than cigarettes. The most difficult exam globally, i.e. the Food and Drug Administration, was passed when the US institution authorized the marketing of Iqos, defining it as an adequate tool for the protection of public health", explained Stefano Volpetti, chief consumer officer of Philip Morris International, which deals with the management of the adult consumer experience with the company's alternative products.
