Research funded by the National Campaign Against Drug Abuse in 1990(39) has shown low awareness among smokers of labelling requirements. Only around half of smokers surveyed were aware that tar and nicotine levels are printed on cigarette packs, and around 5% recalled that CO levels were listed (Table 5.5).
Over 60% of those smokers aware of tar labelling knew the tar content of their chosen brand, and selected their brand on this basis.
Half of the respondents in this study felt that there was 'not enough' information on packs, 35% thought that current requirements were 'about right', and 4% thought there was 'too much' information on packs. The remaining 11% had no opinion.39
A Victorian survey undertaken in 1991 showed that half of the total sample of smokers questioned were able to accurately report the tar level of their current brand, while one-quarter did not know. Fewer than one-third of the sample were able to give even a plausible estimate of nicotine levels, and fewer than one in ten could give a plausible estimate of the carbon monoxide level in their current brand.(40)
Research funded by the National Campaign Against Drug Abuse in 1990(41) has shown that despite the requirement for CO levels to be printed on the side of cigarette packs, only 7% of smokers were able to nominate CO unprompted as being found in cigarettes (see Table 5.6). Victorian research undertaken earlier in the same year showed that smokers had a very low awareness of specific substances in cigarettes, although this improved significantly following an education campaign on the subject.(42)
The fact that, when prompted, smokers nominated the two fictitious substances, monosodium bromide and glutone, relatively highly, casts some doubt on their 'real' knowledge of the presence of substances other than the most frequently mentioned tar, nicotine, CO and arsenic.(39) This study found that 82% of smokers surveyed felt that specific warnings about other toxic substances found in cigarette smoke would worry them and induce them to quit.(41) It is anticipated that information on the major components in the new format required by the federal government will provide information that is understandable and salient to smokers.(44)
