烟草在线据《华尔街日报》报道编译　　韩国的控烟力度不断加大，似乎刺激了一些吸烟爱好者转向吸瑞典的一种粉末状烟草。

　　蒸汽熏制的烟草袋被称为“鼻烟”，从今年年初以来，已经开始在韩国出现，鼻烟进口商介绍说，他们提供了一种对健康有较少危害的烟草替代品。

　　潮湿的粉末状烟草装在一个类似茶包的烟草袋中，可含在上嘴唇下面，以释放尼古丁。提倡者说，因为是通过牙龈摄取尼古丁，所以是一个轻松的戒烟方式，并且没有肺癌风险。而包括世界卫生组织在内的批评者说，任何形式的烟草都会对健康造成严重的威胁。

　　经济与合作发展组织称，瑞典是世界上吸烟率最低的国家，一直试图出口鼻烟。在今年年初，斯德哥尔摩努力将鼻烟出口到其他欧盟国，但没有成功。

　　在欧盟销售鼻烟是非法的,瑞典是一个例外,这是瑞典在1995年加入欧盟的一个条件。鼻烟消费者大多位于瑞典和非欧盟国家挪威。根据瑞典最大的鼻烟制造商——瑞典火柴公司统计，每年总共有2.85亿罐鼻烟在这两个国家售出。

　　据官方数据显示，从瑞典和丹麦（丹麦也出口鼻烟）进口的烟草量，从去年的零进口达到现在的1公吨（从3月到7月）。韩国关税厅的数据没有对鼻烟进行单独归类，但韩国也没有从这两个国家进口现成的其他烟草产品。

　　进口商说，把鼻烟进口到韩国正值一个有利的时机。韩国政府计划从2015年起加大所有餐馆和许多公共领域的禁烟力度。

　　根据经济与合作发展组织提供的数据，韩国还是发达国家中成年男性日吸烟率最高的国家，为45%。算上女性人口后，该比例是23%。

　　根据韩国企划财政部资料显示，去年，韩国吸烟者大约购买了900亿支卷烟，价值11.3万亿韩元（103亿美元）。这相当于人均购买卷烟超过1800支，即每人每天消费5支卷烟。

　　政府数据显示，虽然在最近几十年内销售的卷烟数量已经大大减少，但是在过去几年里卷烟市场规模一直保持相对稳定。

　　现在断言无烟产品将流行于韩国还为时过早。韩国最大的卷烟制造商KT&G公司，拥有该国最大的市场份额，该公司发言人表示，他们还没有计划出售鼻烟产品。进口商也拒绝透露进口鼻烟的销售数据，但他们表示，进口数量正在上升。

Korean Smokers Turn to Sucking Tobacco

　　South Korea's increasing crackdown on smoking appears to be spurring some tobacco fans to turn to a Swedish powder variety.

　　Steam-cured tobacco pouches known as 'snus' have begun appearing around South Korea since earlier this year, with their importers saying they present an alternative less damaging to health.

　　The moist powdered tobacco is packaged in a teabag-like pouch and is tucked under the upper lip to give off nicotine. Because it is ingested through the gums, advocates say it's an easy way to quit smoking with no lung cancer risks. But critics, including the World Health Organization, say tobacco in any form poses grave health threats.

　　Sweden, which has the lowest percentage of smokers in the world, according to the Organisation of Economic Co-operation and Development, has long tried to export snus. Stockholm's effort to export the product to the rest of the European Union was unsuccessful earlier this year.

　　The sale of snus is illegal in the EU except in Sweden, which made the exception a condition to its joining the union in 1995. Snus consumers are mostly in Sweden and non-EU member Norway. A combined total of 285 million cans are sold in those countries each year, according to Sweden's largest snus maker, Swedish Match AB.

　　Imported tobacco from Sweden and Denmark-which also exports snus-reached 1 metric ton each from March to July, official data show, up from nil last year. South Korean customs service data has no separate category for snus, but there are no other tobacco products from those countries readily available in Korea.

　　The introduction of snus to South Korea comes at a favorable moment, say the importers. The Seoul government plans to expand a limited smoking ban to all restaurants and many public areas from 2015.

　　South Korea also has the highest rate of adult male daily smokers in the developed world at 45%, according to the OECD. With the female population combined, the percentage was 23%.

　　Last year, South Koreans bought about 90 billion cigarettes, worth 11.3 trillion won ($10.3 billion), according to the Ministry of Strategy and Finance. That's equivalent to over 1,800 cigarettes sold per capita, or five cigarettes consumed per person each day.

　　Though the number of cigarettes sold has declined over recent decades, the market size has been relatively stable in the last few years, government data show.

　　It's too early to tell the smokeless experiment will catch on in South Korea. A spokeswoman for KT&G Corp., the country's largest cigarette maker with the biggest market share, said they have no plans to sell snus products. The importers declined to disclose their sales data but said they are on the rise. Enditem