Australia's Anti-Smoking Idea: Very Boring Packages

Australia is pushing for a new tool in its quest to cut smoking rates: really boring cigarette packages. The government has announced legislation that would ban logos, colors, brand imagery, and promotional text, while mandating that all packages be olive green—determined in studies to be the least appealing color. The move would “take away the tobacco industry’s final capacity to promote its product,” says a professor of public health.

Australia has long been a leader in war on tobacco, the Christian Science Monitor reports, but this time the country will face quite a fight from the tobacco industry. A legal challenge has been threatened, alleging that the proposed legislation infringes on international trademark laws. If the government's plan comes to pass, brand names will appear on each cigarette package in a standard font, and the rest of the box will be covered in health warnings. (More tobacco stories.)