Philip Morris shifts course: the future is smoke-free -Interview

One of the world’s largest tobacco companies, Philip Morris International, has in recent years embarked on a strategic transformation toward a smoke-free future.

The company reports that more than 38 million adults have already switched from traditional cigarettes to smoke-free alternatives. This shift is becoming increasingly evident in both the social and economic spheres, particularly in EU countries, including Italy.

To better understand the goals, investment strategies, and principles of social responsibility behind this transformation, we present an in-depth interview with Michele Samoggia, Director of External Affairs at Philip Morris Italia. 

-  What percentage of Philip Morris EU total sales in 2024 came from smoke-free products such as IQOS? How has this figure evolved over 2 years?

- Philip Morris International aims for smoke-free products to generate more than two-thirds of its total net revenues by the end of 2030, a target that is part of a broader strategy to transition to a smoke-free future and ultimately phase out traditional cigarettes. The contribution of innovative products to PMI net revenues has grown substantially and steadily in recent years, increasing by 10 percentage points from 32% in 2022 to 42% in the first quarter of 2025. As a demonstration of progress toward this goal the share of market of IQOS heated tobacco units in the first quarter of 2025 increased to 11,4%, with excellent progress in European key cities such as Budapest (41,9%), Athens (34,4%) and Rome (31%). 

-  What impact have Philip Morris’ smoke-free alternatives had on smoking prevalence in Italy and the EU over the past five years? Do you have statistics on how many smokers have switched to these alternatives?

- PMI estimates that 38.6 million adults around the world use PMI's smoke-free products. In particular, in Italy, since the launch of IQOS in 2014 more than 2 million adult smokers have completely switched to this innovative device and quit smoking  .

- What share of Philip Morris EU’s investment is currently allocated to the development of sustainable technologies and eco-friendly products?

- Since 2008, PMI has invested more than $14 billion in the development, scientific validation, and commercialization of smoke-free products, many of which incorporate principles of eco-design, circularity, and environmental footprint reduction. As evidence of this, in 2024 alone, 99.5% of R&D spending was allocated to smoke-free products, which are the core of the company's sustainability strategy. Furthermore, as early as 2024, PMI published the first Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) for IQOS ILUMA i devices and set a goal of certifying 100% of new electronic devices placed on the market according to eco-design standards by the end of 2025.

- Does Philip Morris have a waste disposal program in place for electronic devices that are used with next-generation products?

- Philip Morris Italy promotes “REC - Recycling for Circular Economy”, a recycling project dedicated to the waste of IQOS, Lil and Veev electronic devices, aimed at reducing their dispersion in the environment and recovering important raw materials so as to avoid new extractions. The project, in fact, has an ambitious goal of recovering an average of more than 80% of the raw materials in the devices, including plastic and metal materials, magnets, lithium-ion batteries, and circuits. 

By the end of 2024, one year after the launch of the project, more than 500 thousand devices had been collected, meeting the initial collection goal. The success of the initiative has led us to set the same collection target for 2025, thus bringing the number of devices collected since the launch of the project to 1 million.

To implement the project, Phillip Morris Italy is collaborating with a prominent player in the distribution sector, which is in charge of collecting and transporting the devices left by consumers at the collection points, and with a company specialized in the treatment of Waste

Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE), which is in charge of treating and recovering the raw materials of which these devices are composed in compliance with PMI standards.

-  What is Philip Morris Italy’s overall contribution to the national economy in terms of investments, tax payments, and job creation?

- Philip Morris Italy leads an integrated value chain that goes from tobacco plant to end-of-life product management, passing through the manufacturing of excellence linked to innovative smoke-free products. This supply chain is composed of about 8,000 Italian supply and service companies, including 1,000 companies active in the agricultural sector, and generates employment for about 41,000 people throughout the country.

This has been made possible thanks to strategic investments in agriculture, industry and services. Starting with agriculture, thanks to framework agreements with the Ministry of Agriculture and Coldiretti, the main national association representing Italian growers, more than 2 billion euro has been invested in the agricultural supply chain since 2011, to be added up to an additional billion by the 2033-2034 business year. 

From the industrial point of view, with total investments of more than 1.5 billion euros, in 2014 Philip Morris inaugurated in Crespellano (Bologna) Philip Morris Manufacturing & Technology Bologna, the largest greenfield factory in Italy in the past 25 years. The factory represents the center of excellence for large-scale production of innovative combustion-free products, with an export value exceeding 1.8 billion euro in 2022 .

Finally, in the cities of Taranto, Marcianise (Caserta) and Terni Philip Morris Italy recently inaugurated three Digital Information Service Centers (DISCs) dedicated to supporting smoke-free products users, with investments that by 2027 will reach about 180 million euro and the creation of about 700 total jobs.

Summing up, the total annual contribution to the Italian economy by Philip Morris Italy exceeds 10 billion euros, equivalent to 0.5% of national GDP . This contribution is determined by the direct, indirect and induced value added from Philip Morris' activities in Italy, value added generated by the fees from the sale of PMI products at tobacconists and tax revenue from excise taxes and VAT on products. 

- Do you have any data on how Italians and Europeans perceive smoke-free products? For example, what percentage of people believe they are less harmful than traditional cigarettes? 

- A recent survey by the research center CENSIS, conducted with the contribution of Philip Morris Italy , shows that most Italian respondents (57.6%) perceive smoke-free products as potentially less harmful than traditional cigarettes. 

The survey also shows an interesting finding about perceived benefits: the majority of respondents believe that smoke-free products pose fewer problems than cigarettes both aesthetically (61.8%) and physically, with less coughing and more breathing (56.4%). 

These perceptions, however, do not undermine the awareness that these products are nonetheless addictive, which is believed by 79.5% of Italian respondents.

-  Which upcoming legislative initiatives in the EU do you think will have the greatest impact on Philip Morris’ operations in the next few years?

- The European institutions, in the recent past, have established a regulatory framework that has enabled significant investments on the Continent for the development of new smoke-free products. It is very important, in the event of a future update of this regulatory framework, to prioritize a differentiating system that fosters investment, research and innovation, which are the drivers of the industry's transformation toward a smoke-free future. 

-Do you believe that a constructive dialogue between the state and tobacco companies is possible in the context of harm reduction?

- No single actor is capable of achieving alone the transformation of a sector as complex as the tobacco one. Each transitions affecting this sector can only take place within the framework of a collaboration between different actors from the public, private and social sectors, each of which plays a key role taking into account the respective roles. 

- You have worked at Enel, BASF, the Ministry of Economic Development, and FAO. Which of these roles had the greatest impact on your view of corporate external relations?

- Each of these roles has uniquely shaped my perspective on corporate external relations and helped in building a comprehensive view of how government policies and economic strategies influence corporate behavior and stakeholder engagement. 

These experiences underscored the importance of aligning corporate objectives with national economic goals and highlighted the critical role of transparent communication and collaboration between the public, private and social sectors. 

- You served as a board member of UNICEF Italy. How has your experience in the humanitarian sector influenced your approach to corporate social responsibility?

- Serving as a board member of UNICEF Italy helped me to be aware of the importance of prioritizing human welfare and ethical considerations in business practices and the need for companies to actively contribute to societal well-being, beyond mere compliance with regulations.

In the humanitarian sector, the focus is on addressing urgent needs and fostering sustainable development. This perspective has shaped my belief that CSR initiatives should be integrated into the core strategy of a company, ensuring that its operations positively impact communities and their environment. 

N.Tebrizli