The Korean armed forces opened the tobacco market for soldiers to foreign brands in 2006. However, as none of the foreign brands have succeeded in offering their products so far, voices have been raised about the objectivity behind the brand selection process. (image: Yonhap)
SEOUL, April 21 (Korea Bizwire) – Foreign tobacco brands failed again to offer their products to Korean soldiers.
According to the Ministry of National Defense Welfare Agency, the four tobacco brands that will be added this year were all from KT&G, including This Africa Mola. At this year’s bidding, brands from KT&G, PMI Korea, BAT Korea and JTI Korea fiercely competed with one another.
However, there were no unusual changes, and once again all the tobacco brands provided for the armed forces are Korean.
The Welfare Agency evaluates all the tobacco brands provided to its soldiers every year, based on their product quality and sales, and this year it replaced four brands that showed poor sales last year.
Panels comprised of officers, noncommissioned officers, soldiers and civilian workers evaluated the brands for the armed forces, checking their price, taste and designs.
The Korean armed forces opened the tobacco market for soldiers to foreign brands in 2006. However, as none of the foreign brands have succeeded in offering their products so far, voices have been raised about the objectivity behind the brand selection process.
By Lina Jang (linajang@koreabizwire.com)
