Effectively managing the impact of our products on the environment is a key pillar of our sustainability strategy at Philip Morris International (PMI).
By reducing and appropriately managing post-consumer waste from our products, we’re thereby able to extract, convert, and use fewer raw materials from a planet with limited natural resources. It makes sense for our business and consumers—and it’s the right thing to do.
Most cigarette butts are disposed of properly, but too many are still inappropriately discarded, causing potential damage to the environment. To tackle this, PMI focuses on two pillars:
- Sustainable design: We invest in researching and developing plastic-free filters.
- Encourage behavioral change: We inspire change in consumer habits through impactful anti-littering awareness initiatives to empower consumers to dispose of cigarette butts properly, regardless of filter materials.
In 2023, over 55 markets1 in the PMI network implemented anti-littering programs for cigarettes, in keeping with our 2025 aspiration to reduce post-consumer waste and prevent littering by implementing comprehensive programs covering all our consumables. In Lithuania, one such program that started in 2022 is gaining traction. Thanks to strategic thinking coupled with creative campaign ideas, two of PMI’s affiliates—Philip Morris Baltic and Philip Morris Lithuania—alongside environmental organization Mes Darom, are working to encourage the responsible disposal of cigarette butts.
“The project was commissioned by Philip Morris Baltic and is implemented by Mes Darom,” said Liudas Zakarevičius, Director of External Affairs Baltic States at Philip Morris Baltic. “Our aim is to educate the public, and particularly adult smokers, about the impact of littering on our environment—especially watercourses. If there is no trash can nearby, the cigarette butt can be placed in the reusable pocket ashtray distributed during the project to reduce littering. We want to encourage smokers to act responsibly and dissuade them from throwing away their cigarette butts.”
Edvardas Baltuška, Communications Manager at Mes Darom, agreed: “The goal is not only to reduce littering, but also to change the attitude toward environmental protection, making it a part of everyday life. We want to show that each of us can contribute to a cleaner environment.”
Fishing for change
The team focuses on specific groups for maximum impact. For example, in 2023 it launched a campaign to reduce the cigarette butts littered by those who fish in Lithuania’s waters. Armed with the slogan “You won’t catch a fish with a cigarette butt!” the team distributed 6,000 portable ashtrays and the campaign was well received.
“If at least 50 percent of those who received our portable ashtrays go on to use them regularly, that’s 3,000 fewer people littering in our waters,” said Baltuška.
“Whether they are in the middle of the lake fishing in their boats in summertime, or ice fishing in the winter, they’ll have a better way to dispose of their used butts.”
Strawberries, summer, and sustainability
The team continued to roll out the program in the summer of 2024, this time focusing on holidaymakers in the resorts and parks of the country. They distributed 10,000 portable ashtrays at festivals, tourist information points in holiday resorts, and national parks. The slogan this time was “Cigarette butts, unlike strawberries, do not smell like summer.”
“Our program received a lot of external coverage, including municipalities publishing project information on their websites, TV reports, and further reach into social media,” said Baltuška.
Although there were no major barriers to the project’s successful roll-out, the team did learn some useful lessons. “The consistency of messaging and activity clearly engaged larger audiences and united them,” Baltuška added.
“We also saw that as the program became more recognizable, it got easier to engage stakeholders, so that by the end, no outreach was necessary, as people had begun volunteering.”
Looking to the future
Building on the success of the project, with almost 70,000 portable ashtrays distributed to date since the program launched in 2022 and the positive feedback that it received from both those involved in the project and the public, the team are now managing inbound requests from potential partners looking to join the initiative and help distribute the portable ashtrays. Their next target group? Farmers.
“We’re excited to continue the concept in 2025 but with a different target audience,” said Liudas Zakarevičius. “For example, farmers spend a lot of time in the fields, but with few bins nearby.
“It’s early days, but—based on our previous slogans—we may go with: ‘Cigarette butts are not seeds, so don’t plant them!’”
1PMI Integrated Report 2023 page 78.
