PMI and JTI Expand Investment in Poland, Stepping Up Heated Tobacco Market Push

Japan Tobacco International to Increase Investment in Poland to $1.3 Billion

On September 27, Japan Tobacco International (JTI) announced it would increase its investment in Poland to $1.3 billion and promote its heated tobacco device, PloomX. The tobacco sticks used in this device are produced in Poland.

The heated tobacco product market in Poland is very active, currently accounting for over 10%. In Warsaw, this proportion has exceeded 25%. Its estimated value is 4.8 billion zlotys.

The innovative tobacco product factory located near Łódź in Stare Gostków is increasing the production of tobacco sticks for the PloomX device to meet the growing demand for these products in Poland and around the world.

Yan Sobolevskyy, the operations director of JTI's Polish factory, stated that this year alone, the factory has added over 100 employees, with investments in the innovative tobacco product factory exceeding $200 million. This is the only JTI factory of its kind outside Japan, and JTI is expected to make further significant investments in the production of innovative products and the entire production center in Stare Gostków.

Philip Morris Announces $230 Million Investment in Polish Factory

On September 13, international tobacco giant Philip Morris International Inc. (PMI) announced a new investment plan exceeding 1 billion zlotys (approximately $231 million) in Poland.

PMI's Polish branch announced this new investment plan of over 1 billion zlotys. This investment will be used for the production of the latest IQOS ILUMA heated tobacco sticks at its factory in Kraków. This investment will create numerous job opportunities for residents of Kraków and its surrounding areas.

Michal Mierzejewski, PMI's president for the Nordic and Eastern European regions, stated, "Poland has always held an important position in our strategy."

Mierzejewski noted that since 1996, PMI has invested 25.5 billion zlotys (approximately $5.8 billion) in Poland for the ongoing transformation of its Kraków factory and the upgrade of its Kraków R&D center.

PMI stated that more investment details will be announced in the coming months.

Poland is a typical representative of a country with a high smoking rate. After the introduction of extensive tobacco control measures in the 1990s, Poland's cigarette consumption and smoking rates have steadily declined. However, by 2020, 26% of Poles aged 15 and older were still smokers.

In Poland, the smoking rate and the burden of tobacco-related diseases are higher among men than women. Additionally, the proportion of smokers among socially disadvantaged groups is particularly high. Furthermore, there is increasing evidence that e-cigarettes and heated tobacco products are becoming increasingly popular in Poland.