The War on Smoking Reading Answers

Make no mistake, the move to introduce plain packaging is just the latest front in the war against smoking. Over the past decade, there has been a ban on smoking in public places and moves to restrict displays in shops. But one of the issues that has been concerning health experts and ministers is the number of people who continue to take up smoking, particularly young people.

More than 200,000 under-16’s start in the UK each year – helping ensure a viable market remains for manufacturers once the number of people quitting and dying is taken into account. In countries like the UK where there is a ban on advertising, the pack remains the last major vehicle for promotion. Hence the detail and care taken in the design of the packets with their laminated and special print effects, foil decorations and slide openings and bevelled edges. It should come as no surprise therefore to learn that they have become known as the “silent salesman” and “mobile billboard” within the industry. They are that important.

Questions

Complete the sentences. Choose no more than two words and / or a number from the passage for each answer.

1 __________ is the most recent strategy to tackle the problem of smoking.
2 The large number of new smokers, particularly under 16’s, makes certain that cigarette companies will always have a__________
3 In some countries, packaging is the only method that cigarette companies have for __________.
4 Packets are seen as being the __________ in the cigarette industry.

Reading answers

1 Answer: Plain packaging
Question type: Sentence completion

Answer location: Paragraph 1, line 1

Answer explanation: Plain packaging has been introduced as the latest strategy to curb smoking. Hence, the answer is plain packaging.

2 Answer: Viable market
Question type: Sentence completion

Answer location: Paragraph 2, line 1

Answer explanation: Since the number of people who smoke increases every year, especially young people who are aged under 16, cigarette companies have a viable market to which they can discreetly promote and sell their products. Hence, the answer is viable market.

3 Answer: Promotion
Question type: Sentence completion

Answer location: Paragraph 2, line 4

Answer explanation: In some countries like the UK, advertising of cigarettes is banned. As a result, cigarette companies have to resort to other measures such as taking care to design detailed foils and packaging so that it can indirectly act as a promotion for the cigarettes. Hence, the answer is promotion.

4 Answer: Silent salesman/mobile billboard (any one)
Question type: Sentence completion

Answer location: Paragraph 2, line 7

Answer explanation: The detailed effort put into designing cigarette packets by companies lead to such packaging indirectly promoting the cigarettes as advertisement is banned. Such packets may have eye-catching features such as

laminated and special print effects, foil decorations, slide openings, bevelled edges. These contribute to making cigarette packaging act as silent salesman/mobile billboards. Hence, the answer is silent salesman/mobile billboard (choose any one of these).