From: SMOKEFREE@compuserve.com
Date: Wed, 10/08/08
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Please urge the FDA to approve the NY State Health Commissioner's petition
to (1) alter warning labels on nicotine products (i.e. gums, lozenges,
patches, inhalers) to inform smokers that nicotine products are far less
hazardous alternatives to cigarettes; (2) allow nicotine products to be
sold in less expensive daily dose units: and (3) allow nicotine products to
be sold in all stores that sell cigarettes. Go to:
http://www.regulations.gov/fdmspublic/component/main?main=DocketDetail&d=FD
A-2008-P-0116
Then click on the "Add Comments" icon to the right of the first document
"State of New York Department of Health - Citizen Petition"
So far, the following organizations/agencies/associations (along with many
health professionals and citizens) have submitted comments urging the FDA
to approve the NY State Health Commissioner's petition. Noticably absent
from the list are the Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids, American Cancer
Society, American Heart Assocation and American Lung Association.
Also below is a Winston-Salem Journal article about three new dissolvable
smokefree tobacco products that will be test marketed to smokers by
Reynolds. Perhaps Matt Myers can explain why he and CTFK don't want
cigarette smokers to reduce their health risks by substituting and/or
switching to smokefree products.
Bill Godshall
- - -
Organizations/agencies/associations that have urged the FDA to approve the
NY State Health Commissioner's petition (listed chronologically)
Association for the Treatment of Tobacco Use and Dependence
Herkimer County Public Health
Association of State and Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO)
North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services Division of Public
Health
New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene
Dutchess County Department of Health
American Medical Association
New York Chapter, American College of Physicians
New York State Public Health Association
Tobacco-Free Michigan
New York State Tobacco Use Prevention and Control Program Advisory Board
Society for Research on Nicotine and Tobacco
Smokefree Pennsylvania
Tobacco Cessation Center of Northern New York
Roswell Park Cancer Institute
American Association of Public Health Physicians
Partnership for Prevention
Southern Adirondack Tobacco Free Coalition
National African American Tobacco Prevention Network
GlaxoSmithKline
Michigan Dept of Community Health, Tobacco Section
Community Tobacco-free Coalition
Reduce Smoking and Exposure to Tobacco Center of the University of
Pittsburgh
Action on Smoking and Health (UK)
American Legacy Foundation
- - -
Dissolvable tobacco offered as smoking bans proliferate; critics say it
looks like candy
By Richard Craver
Winston Salem-Journal
October 8, 2008
http://www2.journalnow.com:80/content/2008/oct/08/reynolds-moves-to-be-on-t
op-when-smoke-clears/business-nationworld/
R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. is introducing three dissolvable smokeless
products in its latest bid to make its tobacco more accessible within a
society that's clamping down on smoking.
The dissolvable products -- a pellet (Camel Orbs), a twisted stick the size
of a toothpick (Camel Sticks) and a film strip for the tongue (Camel
Strips) -- had their debut at this week's National Association of
Convenience Stores convention.
The products are made of finely milled tobacco and come in the flavor
styles of fresh and mellow, spokeswoman Maura Payne said. The products last
from two to three minutes for the strips, 10 to 15 minutes for the orbs and
20 to 30 minutes for the sticks.
"We're meeting the adult tobacco consumer where they are in society today,"
Payne said. "Consumer research has found that adult tobacco consumers have
wanted another option for using tobacco where it wasn't comfortable or they
weren't permitted to smoke."
Reynolds said that it is the first major U.S. tobacco manufacturer to offer
the products. Star Scientific Inc., a smaller manufacturer based in
Petersburg, Va., has been selling its dissolvable tobacco products -- Ariva
and Stonewall -- in select regional and national chains such as Food Lion
and 7-Eleven.
Reynolds plans to test the new products in Indianapolis; Columbus, Ohio;
and Portland, Ore. The orbs and sticks products will have their debut in
January and the strips in the second quarter.
Although Reynolds does not dictate retail prices, the company said that the
dissolvable products should sell at a comparable price to a tin of Camel
Snus, which is between $4 and $4.50.
The products drew criticism from the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, which
has protested most Reynolds tobacco innovations in recent years.
"These products are flavored and packaged like candy, and very likely will
appeal to children," said Matthew Myers, the president of the advocacy
group.
"These products appear to be part of a continuing effort by RJR and other
tobacco companies to get around the growing number of smoke-free laws and
give smokers new ways to sustain their addiction in places they cannot
smoke," Myers said.
Payne said that the products are sold in child-resistant packaging. Only
adult consumers will be able to buy the products, and they will carry the
same health warnings as other oral smokeless products.
Bill Godshall, the executive director of SmokeFree Pennsylvania, said that
Reynolds is probably trying to introduce its new smokeless products before
potential Food and Drug Administration regulation stamps out most
innovation.
"I'm pleased that Reynolds is being aggressive in accelerating the switch
to smokeless tobacco and getting more products that are likely to appeal to
tobacco users," Godshall said.
In the past nine years, Reynolds has expanded its flagship brand Camel
through such introductions as Camel Exotic Blends, Camel No. 9 and Camel
Signature. It has branched out with Camel Snus, a smokeless product that is
being promoted as the industry's best bet in a post-smoking environment.
Michelle Roehm, an associate marketing professor at Wake Forest University,
said that she likes the packaging design.
"It appears to mimic the shapes and sizes of PDA devices that we're all
accustomed to carrying around these days," Roehm said. "The design speaks
to the occasions on which the products are likely to be used, such as on
smoke-free flights, where it can conveniently be stored and accessed in the
compartments of a carry-on bag."
Roehm said that the shape of the packaging does lend itself to complaints
"from certain sectors that the product may catch the eye of children
because the package resembles those used for gum."
John Sweeney, the director of the sports-communication program at UNC
Chapel Hill, said that Reynolds will need to be subtle in how it markets
the dissolvable products.
"If the ads surround Camel Sticks with bursts of color and youth-oriented
language, there will be a social uprising," Sweeney said. "On the other
hand, if the advertising is adult in orientation and quietly informative,
the product may be left to find its way."
Products at a glance
R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. is preparing to test three new Camel smokeless
tobacco products in 2009.
Product - Flavors - Flavor length - Pack amount - Nicotine amount
Orbs - Fresh, mellow - 10-15 minutes - 15 - 1 milligram per orb
Sticks - Mellow - 20-30 minutes - 10 - 3.1 milligram per stick
Strips - Fresh - 2-3 minutes - 20 - 0.6 milligram per strip
Source: R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co.
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