Plain tobacco packaging companies have had to sell their cigarettes in a logo-free, drab dark brown packaging from 1 December 2012. Government research found that a specific olive green colour, Pantone 448 C, was the least attractive colour, particularly for young people. After concerns were expressed over the naming of the colour by the Australian Olive Association, the name was changed to drab dark brown. With the plain packaging and tax increases the Australian government aimed to bring down smoking rates from 16.6% in 2007 to less than 10% by 2018. Statistics published in 2014 showed that the amount of excise and customs
Tobacco packaging warning messages of Health amended the "Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products (Packaging and Labelling) Rules, 2008" to enforce the changes effective from 1 April 2015. However, the government decision to increase pictorial warnings on tobacco packets from April 1, was put on hold indefinitely, following the recommendations of a Parliamentary committee, which reportedly did not speak to health experts, but only spoke to tobacco lobby representatives. On April 5, 2016, the health ministry ordered government agencies to enforce this new rule. Following the intervention by the Parliamentary committee, NGO Health of Millions represented by Prashant Bhushan filed a petition in Supreme Court