The WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC) is the first global health treaty negotiated under the auspices of the World Health Organization. This convention is an evidence-based treaty that includes measures related to reducing demand for tobacco (e.g. price and taxation, protection from exposure to tobacco smoke, product regulation, education, restrictions on advertising, promotion, and sponsorship), as well as measures related to the supply of tobacco (e.g., illicit trade, sales to minors). To date, more than 160 countries have ratified the FCTC.

Article 11 covers three main areas: 1) Government-mandated health warnings, 2) Labelling of tobacco constituents and emissions, and 3) The removal of misleading information from the package. Article 11 sets standards in each of these three areas that countries are required to adopt, as well as recommendations that countries "should" adopt to enhance the effectiveness of labelling policies. These standards are included in the "main" guidelines included in the FCTC text, while additional detail and advice on implementation are included in the "Elaborated guidelines" (see below).

Article 11 Guidelines: Packaging and labelling of tobacco products

1. Each Party shall, within a period of three years after entry into force of this Convention for that Party, adopt and implement, in accordance with its national law, effective measures to ensure that:

(a) tobacco product packaging and labelling do not promote a tobacco product by any means that are false, misleading, deceptive or likely to create an erroneous impression about its characteristics, health effects, hazards or emissions, including any term, descriptor, trademark, figurative or any other sign that directly or indirectly creates the false impression that a particular tobacco product is less harmful than other tobacco products. These may include terms such as “low tar”, “light”, “ultra-light”, or “mild”; and

(b) each unit packet and package of tobacco products and any outside packaging and labelling of such products also carry health warnings describing the harmful effects of tobacco use, and may include other appropriate messages. These warnings and messages:

(i) shall be approved by the competent national authority

(ii) shall be rotating,

(iii) shall be large, clear, visible and legible,

(iv) should be 50% or more of the principal display areas but shall be no less than 30% of the principal display areas,

(v) may be in the form of or include pictures or pictograms.

2. Each unit packet and package of tobacco products and any outside packaging and labelling of such products shall, in addition to the warnings specified in paragraph 1(b) of this Article, contain information on relevant constituents and emissions of tobacco products as defined by national authorities.

3. Each Party shall require that the warnings and other textual information specified in paragraphs 1(b) and paragraph 2 of this Article will appear on each unit packet and package of tobacco products and any outside packaging and labelling of such products in its principal language or languages.

4. For the purposes of this Article, the term “outside packaging and labelling” in relation to tobacco products applies to any packaging and labelling used in the retail sale of the product.

Article 11 Elaborated Guidelines: Additional detail and advice on implementation

Many of the WHO recommendations are included in a set of "Elaborated Guidelines" for Article 11, passed in November 2008. The purpose of the elaborated guidelines is to provide guidance to countries on the implementation of labelling policies.  Topics addressed in the elaborated guidelines include recommendations for the content, design, and layout of pictorial warnings, recommendations for "plain packaging" , as well as additional detail on what constitutes "misleading information" on packages. You can download the Elaborated Guidelines by clicking here.