Tobacco Use in Military and Veteran Populations

Since the 1960s, tobacco use has declined in the United States, including the military, but
rates of smoking remain higher in the military than in the general population. In 2005, 32% of
active-duty military personnel and 22% of all veterans smoked, compared with just over 20% of
the US adult population. The prevalence of smoking is over 50% higher in military personnel
who have been deployed than in those who have not, and an increasing number of service
members use smokeless tobacco.
Tobacco use has broad implications for both the Department of Defense (DoD) and the
Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). It adversely affects military readiness; harms the health
and welfare of military families, retirees, and veterans; and costs the nation millions of dollars in
health care and lost productivity each year. Tobacco use has been implicated in higher dropout
rates during and after basic training, poorer visual acuity, and a higher rate of absenteeism in
active-duty military personnel in addition to a multitude of health problems, such as
cardiovascular and respiratory diseases and cancer. DoD and VA are working toward reducing
tobacco consumption by military personnel and veterans, respectively, and each has initiated
several tobacco-control efforts.
The military and veteran populations are not representative of the general US population:
military populations are overwhelmingly male, younger, and healthier; and veteran populations
served by the VA health-care system are predominantly male, older, and of lower socioeconomic
status and tend to have poorer general health than the military population or the general
population. Many military personnel and veterans have been deployed to war zones or
participated in peacekeeping missions in conflict areas, and those experiences may influence
tobacco use.
Many military tobacco users eventually enter the VA health system or the DoD
TRICARE system. Most tobacco-related diseases take years to develop, so those two health-care
systems bear much of the burden of care, and each has a vested interest in assisting active-duty
and retired military personnel and veterans in quitting the use of tobacco. It was in response to
DoD’s and VA’s need to determine what the medical and public-health records can document as
best practices for reducing tobacco consumption by military and veteran populations that the
Institute of Medicine (IOM) was asked to conduct a study.

Crave Coping Techniques

How do we successfully navigate a less than three minute crave episode? We’ve
already discussed a few methods. Let’s take a look at a few additional coping
techniques.

Embracing crave episodes - Upon sensing danger, our survival instincts tell us to
either prepare to stand and fight or get ready to run. What approach will you use?
Will you duck and run or turn and fight? While the objective is clear - to not use
nicotine - our natural instincts on how best to achieve that objective may not be the
easiest path to travel.
Can we hide from cravings or will they find us? Can we runaway from them or will
they catch us? It's the same with going toe to toe in battle, isn't it? Can we beat-up our
craves and make them surrender or cry "uncle"? Can we scare them away? I think
not. Encountering our use cues and extinguishing each crave trigger is true healing,
it’s how we destroy use expectations and reclaim life.
While tobacco's deadly cargo is clearly a killer, what about craves? Can a crave that
lasts a couple of minutes kill us? Will it cut us, make us bleed or send us to the
emergency room? Can it physically harm us? If it cannot harm us then why fear it?
How much of the anxiety associated with recovery is self-induced? Why agonize over
the anticipated arrival of that next crave? Once it does arrive, why immediately begin
feeding our mind additional anxieties that only fuel the fire?
Let's not kid ourselves. The anxiety associated with a craving for nicotine is as real as
our arms and hands. While capable of mentally embracing and wrapping our arms
around the energy associated with anxiety, most have never done so. Instead, what we
feel is a tremendously inflated experience driven by fear, fueled by anticipation, and
possibly tense due to a history of prior relapse.
Try this just once. Instead of listening to run, hide or fight instincts, stop, be brave,
drop your guard, take slow deep deliberate breaths and in your mind reach out and
wrap your arms around the crave's energy. It won't injure or hurt you. It's normal to be
afraid but try to be brave for just one moment. Wrap yourself around and feel the true
level of the anxiety of healing. Continue taking slow deep breaths as you clear your
mind of all chatter, worries, fears and thoughts so that you can sense and appreciate the
episode's level of raw anxiety.
Touch it, sense it, hug it hard. Doing so will not make it any more intense than it
otherwise would have been. You're witnessing a moment of the most profound healing
your mind may ever know. Yes, there is anxiety. But possibly for the very first time, it
is not being fed and fueled by you. Now feel as the crave episode's energy slowly
begins to subside. You've won. You've taken back another piece of life and did so
with hugs not dread.
You will have learned that the greatest challenge presented by natural recovery cannot
hurt you. Only we can do that. Embrace recovery don't fear it. There's a special
person waiting down the road. Your birthright, it's a person you will once again come
to know and enjoy.

Smokeless tobacco tax is one we can live with

The war against the ravages of tobacco smoke has been waged for years. While there have been major victories, we now stand at the brink of a potentially serious defeat.

In 1998, Pennsylvania’s attorney general settled a lawsuit with the country’s major tobacco companies, recovering some of the financial burden imposed by the industry’s predatory practices. Big tobacco was made to pay $11.3 billion over 20 years.

In 2001, the state General Assembly passed Act 77, which allocated that money to various health care concerns. Almost all of the funds went to offset the costs of gaps in insurance and into supporting research. Only a small portion was dedicated to preventing tobacco use among children and helping adults stop smoking.

Despite the minimal allocations, Pennsylvania’s smoking cessation and prevention programs have been extremely successful. In 2001, an estimated 24 percent of Pennsylvania’s adults used tobacco. Estimates as recent as July suggest that number is down to 18 percent.

This achievement was made possible, in large part, by the extraordinary efforts of nonprofit community organizations, keeping costs down while bringing services to the neighborhoods where they’re needed most. This has saved lives, reduced the burden of suffering, and has put millions of dollars in reduced health care costs back into our economy each year.

The current budget proposal cuts this investment in half. The proposed 50 percent cut in funding will devastate smoking cessation and prevention programs.

We know what happens when tobacco cessation and prevention funds are drastically cut. California and Massachusetts did just that, and the cuts translated directly into higher smoking rates, especially among youth. There were also increases in smoking-related diseases and higher health care costs.

A study released by the Massachusetts Association of Health Boards showed that the funding cuts were followed by a substantial increase in illegal sales of tobacco products to children because of reductions in enforcement efforts within local municipalities. The cost will be great; fewer smokers will quit and more youth will start, creating an even larger burden on an already overburdened health care system.

We understand that in these economic times hard choices must be made. But our elected officials must also be aware of the long-term consequences of their choices.

What is particularly frustrating is that there are some good solutions that will enhance public health, increase revenues and continue Pennsylvania’s cost-effective investment in smoking cessation and prevention. The most obvious is to tax smokeless tobacco products and cigars.

Pennsylvania is the only state that does not tax smokeless tobacco products and, according to the Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids, is the only state other than Florida that does not tax cigars.

A modest tax on smokeless tobacco products and cigars would easily replace the lost funding for cessation and prevention and have the added benefit of protecting public health. Furthermore, polls have shown that seven of every 10 Pennsylvanians support such a tax.

Pennsylvania has already achieved much with modest funding from the tobacco settlement funds. The proposed budget before the legislature that does not include a tax on smokeless tobacco products and cigars and drastically cuts smoking cessation and prevention programs will only add to the continuing health care crisis in the state.

Frank Leone is director of the Comprehensive Smoking Treatment Program at the University of Pennsylvania; and Joseph O. Minott is executive director of the Clean Air Council.

NYC officials want to ban smoking in city's parks

From Coney Island to Central Park, banning smoking at New York City's famous parks and beaches is the next goal of Mayor Michael Bloomberg's anti-tobacco crusade.

Bloomberg's health commissioner, Thomas Farley, said Monday that parents shouldn't have to breathe smoke while standing on the sidelines of their children's soccer games, and children shouldn't even have to look at adults smoking, he said.

"Smoking is responsible for killing over 7,000 New Yorkers a year," Farley said. "We don't think it's too far to say that people shouldn't be smoking in parks, and to try to protect our children from getting addicted to tobacco."

New York City wouldn't be the first local government to ban smoking in parks — other states, counties and cities have already done it, including in Utah, Louisiana, Maine and California.

But the nation's largest city would be among the most ambitious urban efforts — New York has hundreds of parks and 14 miles of beaches.

Bloomberg, a former smoker turned tobacco hater, has waged a war on smoking since taking office in 2002. His administration banned smoking in bars and restaurants, raised taxes on cigarettes and has tried to scare smokers with gory advertising campaigns about smoke-related health problems.

The mayor revealed Monday that his anti-smoking agenda includes scowling at smokers "with not a particularly nice look" as he passes by them when they are gathered outside of buildings.

"And social pressure really does work," he added.

The restaurant smoking ban presented a tough political battle for the mayor, and he said recently that it would be difficult to outlaw smoking in parks.

In advocating for the 2002 ban, the city pinned its arguments on the right to a safe workplace, saying waiters, bartenders and others deserved a smoke-free environment where they wouldn't have to worry about getting sick.

On his weekly radio show this summer, when a caller complained of having to walk through clouds of smoke in Union Square Park, the mayor sympathized but said it would be complicated to make parks smoke-free.

"It would be harder to do, harder to build a consensus, and generally I don't think that, you know, we could get it done," he said in July.

On Monday, Farley, who was unveiling the administration's health agenda for the next three years, said he believed it was possible.

He said officials had not worked out whether it would be a new city law or a parks department policy.

Bloomberg issued a statement late Monday that sought to soften the idea of smoke-free parks as something he would like his administration to study, rather than a policy New Yorkers can expect to see soon.

He said he wants to understand the health hazards and said it may not be logistically possible to enforce a ban across thousands of acres of parks.

"But there may be areas within parks where restricting smoking can protect health," he added. "We will continue to explore this and the other ideas presented in the plan."

Smokers in City Hall Park on Monday were not alarmed by the idea. Some said they had been expecting it.

"I understand that — it's respect for people who don't smoke," said Maria Rodriguez, a student taking a smoking break on a park bench. "I wouldn't really care."

"It wouldn't be the greatest hardship of my life," said Andrew Moreno, who smoked an American Spirit cigarette while on a lunch break. "Am I happy about it? No. But can I understand it? Yes."

Farmers see ‘better than average year'

Farmers temper the good crop assessments with a reality that corn prices are down.

“It looks like we are going to have a better than average year,” said Stonewall farmer Maurice Benton, who plants about 1,300 acres of corn. “Right now the prices are down considerably from what they were. But, overall, the opportunity has been there and you take some good with the bad and we’re going to be alright for this year.”

He said costs for this year’s crops were higher by 20 percent or more for fuel, fertilizer and chemicals.

Corn prices were about $6 a bushel in 2008, but this year that has dropped to little more than $3.

Benton said a larger crop nationwide, especially in the Midwest, contributed to the lower prices.

As for the overall 2009 season, he is content.

“I would take another one like it next year,” he said. “It’s average to above-average.”

Benton said he planned to spend Labor Day harvesting corn.

Scott Whitford, one of the owners of Whitford Farms in Arapahoe called it a good year for corn and tobacco.

“We’re doing well,” he said. “We’ve got an average to a little better than average crop of tobacco. We’ve had plenty of water, so we’ve got a good corn crop.”

He said corn prices were tied to the production of ethanol, which is corn based.

“Most of the corn grown here goes to the hog industry, but it’s traded on the Chicago Board of Trade and everything is tied together,” he said.

Whitford Farms planted its normal corn crop, about 1,100 acres.

“It’s going to be tight to make very much money with the corn this year,” he said. “What’s going to save us is we’ve got a good crop. When you’ve got more bushels per acre that lowers the cost of production per bushel.”

Whitford said most farmers have contracts with the tobacco companies.

“You have the grades of tobacco and there is already a set price for each grade,” he said. “When you carry it in, the tobacco is graded and you get the price that goes with the corresponding grade.”

He said the 2009 tobacco crop was good, and prices were stable with 2008.

“We were on the verge of having too much rain early on,” he said. “June was very wet. July was cooler and we didn’t have excessive rains, so the crop kind of made a comeback. Tobacco can’t take a lot of water.”

Whitford Farms uses four converted school buses as tobacco haulers, which Scott Whitford said was a safer upgrade over pulling trailers. The buses will hold about 6,000 pounds of green tobacco, which goes back to the farm, where it is loaded into boxes for curing. After about seven to eight days, the tobacco is bailed and shipped to the Phillip Morris buying station in Kinston.

Bill Ellers, director of the Pamlico County Extension Service, said harvesting the crops in a timely manner is vital amid the east coast’s main hurricane season.

“Most all crops look good, if we can just get them harvested,” he said. “You can’t really count on what you’ve got until it’s harvested.”

Tobacco Cos. Win Inches with Dollars

A battle for space is being waged at the back bars of convenience stores by tobacco companies' field sale force representatives, who are vying for every square inch of shelf space with promotional dollars, the Richmond Times Dispatch reported.

The Federal Trade Commission's latest report on cigarette sales, advertising and promotions, released last week, found major tobacco companies spent $9.2 billion on discounts to retailers and wholesalers in 2006, largely in return for shelf space, the report stated.

"It is amazing," Cigarettes Unlimited smoke shop owner Harold Price told the Dispatch on salespeople for tobacco companies. "They will argue over one pack on that rack: 'He's got one more pack than I do.'"

In an attempt to gain market share, the large tobacco companies are trying to introduce the same types of financial incentives on cigarettes as they do the smokeless tobacco and cigar brands that have been added to their product lines, Gary Poehlmann, vice president for sales at Chesterfield County-based Swedish Match North America, a producer of snuff, chewing tobacco and cigars, said in the report.

Altria Group, parent company to Philip Morris USA, John Middleton and UST, offers retailers a range of financial incentives to gain a variety of marketing advantages, spokesman Bill Phelps said in the report. Other big tobacco companies do as well, the report noted.

"We have to work where we are allowed as hard as possible," added Reynolds American spokeswoman Maura Payne.

"The major tobacco companies have really stepped up over the last 15 years or so and have become much more engaged in helping retailers grow their sales and profits in this category," Terry Kailey, 7-Eleven's category manager for tobacco products, told the Dispatch. "Topics of frequent discussions include promotional activities, new brand introductions, best-in-class merchandising techniques and important attributes of the products, such as freshness."

And Altria offers an online data system resource to retailers that tracks profits from the various products on their tobacco shelves, along with inventory management tools, the newspaper reported.

Swedish Match has a similar service, though its salespeople bring printed reports to the stores, rather than linking online, Poehlmann said, adding "It helps build a relationship."

The tobacco companies' incentives and resources help build bonds with both consumers and retailers, according to Dr. Alan Blum, director of the University of Alabama's Center for the Study of Tobacco and Society.

"They're building one-to-one relationships with customers and a much tighter one-to-one relationship with retailers," he told the newspaper.

The goal of these measures centers on customer service, retailers told the newspaper.

"They want people walking into your store to know the product they want is in stock, that it's fresh," Lou Sheetz, executive vice president of Sheetz Inc., said in the report. "If you adhere to their terms, about carding people, about the displays, then you get a discount on the wholesale price, which allows you to sell to customers for less."

Fight Against Indian Tobacco Vendors

A federal judge ruled on Tuesday that a group of tobacco vendors on an Indian reservation on Long Island cannot sell tax-free cigarettes to the general public until a court rules in a closely watched legal battle between the reservation and New York City.

A temporary injunction issued by Judge Carol B. Amon of Federal District Court in Brooklyn gave the city at least a temporary victory in its efforts to collect hundreds of millions of dollars in tax revenue.

“The city will go after every dollar that is owed to city taxpayers,” Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg said in a statement on Wednesday. Under Judge Amon’s ruling, a group of cigarette businesses on the Poospatuck Indian Reservation near Mastic can sell tax-free cigarettes only to tribe members, for personal use, until a verdict is reached in a federal lawsuit the city filed in September.

The judge stayed the ruling for 30 days to give the vendors time to appeal.

“The judge’s ruling is completely wrong,” said Harry Wallace, a lawyer and the chief of the Unkechaug Indian Nation, which is on the Poospatuck reservation, adding that it ignored the Indian nation’s sovereignty.

The city says the reservation businesses are illegally selling large amounts of cheap cigarettes to people outside of the tribes, including bootleggers who bring cartons upon cartons into the city for resale. City officials estimated that the sales deprived the city of $420 million from 2004 to 2008.

The loss of tax income to tribal tobacco businesses has taken on greater urgency for many officials amid state and municipal budget cuts. A state court ruled in July that the Cayuga Indian Nation could not be prosecuted for failing to collect cigarette taxes, and the application of that decision is at issue in Mr. Bloomberg’s federal suit, which could have nationwide implications.

Are taxes on tobacco products working to raise revenues for states and decrease smoking?

So far the new $1-per-pack state sales tax seems to be making a lot of smokers cut back or give up. If this holds true, the Florida tax stands to save the taxpayer a lot more than the $1 billion.

Less smoking means less expensive lifestyle diseases of the sort that are driving health care in the United States toward a financial precipice.

Studies have shown links between smoking and many different types of cancer, accelerated aging, anxiety disorders, hypertension, heart disease, respiratory ailments and strokes. Treating each drives up the cost of health care in the United States especially if low- to moderate-income people without health insurance use emergency rooms for care.

The reliance of the state of Florida on tobacco settlements and tobacco taxes is satisfying short-term, but immoral. If taxation destroys the tobacco industry, we’ll all be better off. Sorry about the effect on convenience stores.

But if you’re living off the disease caused by the sale of products such as cigarettes, cigars, pipe tobacco and smokeless tobacco, get other products.

Earlier this year, the Florida Legislature voted to increase the state cigarette tax by $1 a pack to help balance the budget. The anti-smoking scolds declared that along with raising money, the tax would cut down on tobacco use, improving overall health and save on medical bills.

Obviously, people would be better off if they didn’t smoke, but that doesn’t mean excessive taxation of tobacco is the way to engineer a tobacco-free society.

It’s hard to imagine a more regressive tax. The financially underprivileged pay a disproportionate share of tobacco taxes.

“All these people need to do to avoid the taxes is to stop smoking,” the scolds argue. But nicotine addiction is one of the hardest addictions to break.

High taxes now make cigarette counterfeiting and bootlegging even more profitable. Buy cigarettes in a low-tax state and sell them illegally in a high-tax location. Or hijack a truck loaded with cigarettes and unload them in New York City, where a pack of legal smokes can cost upward of $10.

Report urges timeline for tobacco-free military

The military has come a long way from the time when it packaged cigarettes in with rations, but more must be done, according to an Institute of Medicine report.

The report, titled "Combating Tobacco in Military and Veteran Populations," calls for Defense Department officials to set a timeline to eliminate smoking on military installations.

Officials from the Pentagon and Department of Veterans Affairs asked the institute to prepare the report in 2007. It was released June 28.

More than 30 percent of active-duty military members use tobacco products of some kind. "Of greater concern, the rate of tobacco use in the military has increased since 1998, threatening to reverse the steady decline of the last several decades," the report states. "Furthermore, smoking rates among military personnel returning from Iraq and Afghanistan may be 50 percent higher than rates among nondeployed military personnel."

Officials from the DOD and the services have worked hard to become tobacco-free. The services have banned use of tobacco products during basic training, the report said, and they have launched extensive public-education campaigns and commander training. "The committee recommends that [the Defense Department] establish a timeline to eliminate all tobacco use on military installations to protect the health of all military personnel, civilian employees, family members and visitors," the report says.

The committee -- chaired by Stuart Bondurant, a professor of medicine and dean emeritus at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill -- found that "achieving a tobacco-free military begins by closing the pipeline of new tobacco users entering the military and by promoting cessation programs to ensure abstinence."

The committee recommended using a phased approach. The military academies and officer training programs should become tobacco-free first, followed by new enlisted recruits and finally all other active-duty personnel, the report says.

DOD officials fully support the goal of a tobacco-free military, said Pentagon Spokeswoman Cynthia Smith, and officials believe it's achievable through development and execution of a comprehensive plan as recommended by the report. "However, achieving that goal will in part depend on coincident reductions of tobacco use in the civilian population."

The department has been at the forefront of tobacco-cessation efforts. Officials recently launched the "Quit Tobacco -- Make Everyone Proud" campaign at http://www.ucanquit2.org. It targets young enlisted men and women who use tobacco. The Web site provides information, resources, interactive tools and practical help. Servicemembers who want to quit tobacco can get immediate help from a trained tobacco-cessation coach from 8:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. EST every day.

The report also recommends DOD officials stop selling tobacco products in military commissaries and exchanges, to prohibit tobacco use anywhere on military installations, and to treat tobacco use in the same way as other health-related behaviors, such as alcohol abuse and poor physical fitness.

Plowed under tobacco crop

Up and down the Connecticut River valley, fields where tall, leafy tobacco plants would be growing in past summers are now barren of life.

Many farms that cultivate broadleaf or shade tobacco have lost nearly their entire crop to viral diseases brought on by the unrelenting rain and cold since May.

"I plowed all mine under," said Joseph Czajkowski. "Our family raises about 35 acres of tobacco, and we lost all of it. Almost everyone I know who grows tobacco lost almost all theirs."

"It's been devastating," said Ted Smiarowski, the area agent for the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Farm Services Agency. "A lot of farmers are saying this is the worst crop that they can remember. There wasn't any drying weather, so the crops stayed damp and diseases settled in."

Nearly 16 inches of rain fell in much of the Connecticut River valley in June and July. And, temperatures ran 4 to 5 degrees below normal over the two months in most areas. Tobacco crops were struck by as many as four separate viruses, growers said.

Tobacco was once one of the biggest cash crops in Massachusetts, and much of it was grown in the Connecticut River Valley, which was renowned for the quality of its tobacco used to wrap cigars. However, the decline in smoking rates has meant fewer acres devoted to tobacco here and elsewhere.

In 1950 in Massachusetts, 13.1 million pounds of tobacco were harvested from 8,000 acres, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. In 2008, the harvest was only 970,000 pounds from 690 acres.

But it's still important for those who grow it, Czajkowski said.

"I know some people don't appreciate tobacco, but it's helped a lot of families pay their bills. It's a higher value crop than most. For instance, an acre of tobacco earns a lot more than an acre of field corn," he said.

Smiarowski's brother, Bernie A. Smiarowski, grows about 40 acres of tobacco on his farm in Hatfield, all of which was lost. While most farmers have crop insurance through the U.S. Department of Agriculture, it does not pay for the entire loss, he said.

The Pantry just breaks even

The Pantry announced that sales and profit fell during its fiscal third quarter, as gasoline prices rose and the recession hurt sales of cigarettes and soft drinks.

The results were weaker than Wall Street expected, and the company's stock fell sharply Tuesday.

The Pantry, which moved its headquarters to Cary from Sanford this summer, is the largest convenience-store chain in the Southeast, with 1,679 stores in 11 states.

Net income for the quarter that ended June 25 was $43,000, or break-even on a per-share basis. During the same quarter last year, net income was $10.7 million, or 48 cents a share.

Revenue fell 34 percent to $1.63 billion, mostly because of a huge drop in gas prices from last year.

But during the quarter, wholesale gas prices rose, which ate into profit. The results also were affected "by the ongoing economic softness in our markets and by higher tobacco excise taxes," said CEO Peter J. Sodini, who plans to retire this fall.

A new federal tax on cigarettes hurt sales, and several states added tobacco taxes. Florida, for example, which accounts for about a quarter of the chain's stores, added a $1 per pack tax July 1.

Soft drink sales also are down, and the company is doing more promotions to boost sales, said Chief Financial Officer Frank Paci.

During the quarter, the company bought 38 stores, mostly in the Mobile, Ala., market. And the company is adding more Subway restaurants in its stores, another effort to increase traffic and sales.

The company continues trying to reduce its labor costs by using scheduling software to adjust staff levels during slower and busier times of day.

The Pantry's stock is down 26 percent in the past year. It closed Tuesday at $15.76, down $2.60.

2 US suppliers form venture with Japan Tobacco

Two leaf tobacco suppliers in Virginia and Tennessee are forming a joint venture company with Japan Tobacco Inc.

Japan Tobacco says in a news release that the new company, JTI Leaf Services LLC, will supply it exclusively with contracted U.S. leaf tobacco.

Danville, Va.-based J.E.B International Co. and Hail & Cotton of Springfield, Tenn., signed an agreement last month with Japan Tobacco to participate in the venture.

Japan Tobacco says it also has acquired leaf tobacco supplier Tribac Leaf Limited, which has operations in Malawai, China, India, Zambia and other countries.

RDB Industries Plans to Sell Stake to Global Company

RDB Industries Ltd., an Indian real estate and tobacco company, said it’s in talks to sell shares to a global cigarette manufacturer.

“We have given the mandate to some people and they are in the market place to get us the best deal possible from around the globe,” M.P. Singh, a director, said by phone today, declining to identify the potential buyers.

Kolkata-based RBD, which sells cigarettes under its Regent brand, expects to spin off its real estate business after the cigarette stake sale. The company’s shares rose 10 percent to 97.60 rupees at the close, extending a 20 percent surge yesterday, compared with the 0.9 percent decline in the Bombay Stock Exchange’s Sensitive Index, or Sensex, today.

The planned sale follows a rally in Indian stocks, where the Sensex surged 56 percent this year after the victory of the ruling Congress party in elections in May. The benchmark gauge is the fifth-best performer among 89 measures tracked by Bloomberg. The Sensex is valued at 17 times reported earnings, twice the 8.8 multiple in March, data compiled by Bloomberg show.

“We had offers in the past but we didn’t find it attractive,” Singh said. The company expects to get a better valuation this time, he said.

RDB Industries, which went public about 15 years ago, is a part of the RDB Group, with interests in tobacco processing, printing and packaging, power and telecommunications transmission equipment, as well as transportation and logistics, according to its annual report.

The company expanded into the cigarette business by taking over the management of National Tobacco Co. in 1994 and buying the assets a year later, it said on its Web site. The unit, now called NTC, was the first to introduce filter and mentholated cigarettes in India, it said. NTC was founded in 1931.

Blue mold confirmed in Ky. burley field

A tobacco expert is confirming Kentucky's first outbreak of blue mold in a burley tobacco crop along the Montgomery-Clark county line in east-central Kentucky.

University of Kentucky extension tobacco specialist Kenny Seebold says the tobacco disease has infected parts of a tobacco crop planted in a couple of fields straddling the county line.

Due to weather patterns, he's urging tobacco farmers east of the outbreak to apply fungicides as a preventive measure. He says tobacco growers west of the infected area should check their fields.

Seebold said Friday that the recent cloudy, cooler-than-normal weather is ideal for blue mold.

In 2006, he says blue mold cost Kentucky tobacco farmers an estimated $30 million to $40 millions, either in production losses or from the costs to control the disease.

Frankfort mulls tobacco license

Citing problems with underage smokers, Frankfort officials may license businesses that sell tobacco.

Police Chief Rob Piscia said during routine compliance checks his officers have had repeated problems with some retail clerks selling cigarettes to people younger than 18. The clerk who sells tobacco gets a ticket and pays a fine, but there are no repercussions for the business owners.

The village's land use and policy committee recently decided to recommend a new village-issued license to sell tobacco that could carry a $100 fee and a $250 fine for a first offense. The village also could revoke a retailer's license, thus prohibiting tobacco sales.

The license could be revoked after a hearing.

The license suspension depends on the circumstances, Chief Piscia said.

The state of Illinois requires tobacco distributors to be licensed, but not retailers, said Jeff Barr, tobacco program manager for the Illinois Liquor Control Commission.

Through the state commission's grant program, Frankfort police have distributed packets of information to retailers regarding tobacco sales, and have followed up with compliance checks two or three times a year.

Businesses that have been cited multiple times include Frankfort Tobacco and Always Open, a convenience store, Police Commander John Burica said. Walgreens and Gas City also have been cited more than once, but both have more than one location in the village, he said.

"The license would give us the authority to go after the owner, not just the clerk," village administrator Jerry Ducay said. "We want to make sure the business owner takes this responsibility seriously."

"It makes all the sense in the world to me," Trustee Kevin Egan said.

He also suggested the village prohibit vending machine sales of tobacco products.

The $100 licensing fee is not designed to make a profit, but to cover the village's costs for enforcement and administration, Egan said.

New Report: Tobacco Use Impairs Military Readiness

The days when American soldiers got cigarettes with their food rations are long gone, but the military still has higher smoking rates than the general public. More than 33,000 Michiganders are serving in the U.S. military, and about a third of them use tobacco - for now, at least.

A new report by the federal Institute of Medicine lends support to the idea of a tobacco-free military, citing the huge financial burden smokers have become to the Departments of Defense and Veterans Affairs.

The Department of Defense says it could save more than 800 million dollars a year in medical costs and lost productivity by not allowing soldiers to smoke or chew, and the new study cites other potential benefits of such a ban. The Institute of Medicine says tobacco use impairs military readiness as well as harming soldiers' health.

Doctor Ken Kizer, who is one of the report authors, points out some of the disadvantages.

"Tobacco has adverse effects on attention, on night vision; it increases the likelihood of motor vehicle accidents; if you happen to get injured, wounds don't heal as well among those who smoke."

Doctor Kizer says a smoking ban would take up to 20 years to fully implement, but the report includes a number of recommendations for getting started.

"These are things like eliminating the sale, at discounted prices, of tobacco products at the PX's and commissaries, and making the military work site tobacco-free."

The report says 32 percent of active-duty personnel and 22 percent of veterans are smokers, and rates among active-duty soldiers have increased since the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan got started. Right now, Army and Air Force commissaries sell tobacco products, while Navy and Marine Corps locations do not.

Critics of a possible ban point out that the profits from tobacco sales help the military pay for recreation and family programs on the bases.

Tobacco oversight praised

Last month, I witnessed President Barack Obama sign long-overdue legislation granting the U.S. Food and Drug Administration the authority to regulate tobacco products.

Sen. John Cornyn tirelessly fought to pass this legislation for years, and during the Senate debate, he voted against every effort to weaken or delay the bill.

Despite all the harm they cause, tobacco products had been exempt from the FDA's common-sense regulations that apply to virtually every other product we consume.

The new law will stop the tobacco companies from targeting our kids with glitzy advertising. It will stop tobacco companies from making misleading claims that some cigarettes are safer than others and will require large, graphic health warnings that cover the top half of the front and back of cigarette packs.

Congress took a monumental step in the fight against cancer in passing the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act. It will save lives and reduce health care costs.

As a country, we've taken a giant step forward in making America a much healthier nation.

Government is really doing big tobacco companies a favour

The Government, despite spouting an 'anti-tobacco' message, is really in cahoots with the big cigarette companies. And the new ban on all forms of tobacco advertising just goes to prove it.

The latest form of prohibition came into effect last week. It means that not only must cigarettes and other tobacco products be hidden from the view of customers in shops, but all logos, advertising material, and other paraphanelia must disappear too.

That's the reason why there are sheets and reams of blank paper sellotaped up behind the counter of your own local store. They're hiding the big picture of the box of fags on the machine there, for allowing it to remain visible would leave the shop owners to being pursued by the full force of the law with a vigour far in excess of that used for crooked bankers and ageing child abusers.

Supposedly, the idea is that an 'out of sight, out of mind' situation will come to apply, and people won't think of buying fags if they can't see them behind the counter. But that's a load of nonsense, as anyone – including yours truly – who has ever been a smoker will tell you. If you're gasping for a smoke, it doesn't matter whether or not you can see the display in the shop; you know they're there anyway, and you just order them as normal.

Even if you're a teenager who's just staring to hang out behind the bike shed or on street corners or waste ground to smoke, you'll still find a way to get fags anyway – again, the fact that you can't actually see the stock on the shelves will be inconsequential.

The only thing is, since you can't see the full range on offer, you'll stick with the established brands only - so it'll be quids in for the Silk Cuts and Marlboros and John Player Blues and Benson and Hedges of this world. Any new player entering the market, like Winfield did a couple of years ago with their discount brand (about a euro cheaper than other fags), won't have a hope anymore, because they can no longer advertise the fact that they're there.

So the big companies hoover up an even greater proportion of the sales, and they get to keep more of that money too, because they no longer have to spend some of it on advertising materials.

The ban is one of the best things that could happen for them; far from hurting them, it will just see their profits increase, since a certain number of people will always smoke no matter how often they're told that they shouldn't.

It's like banning the ten-box a year or two ago. Nobody gave up on account of no longer being able to buy just ten at a time; instead, they smoked even more, because they usually had more to smoke after buying twenty.

Maybe whoever dreams up these schemes has shares in some of the tobacco companies!

Campaigners target in-store tobacco goods

PEOPLE opposed to smoking are being urged to write to local retailers to persuade them to remove promotional displays of tobacco.
Anti-smoking lobby group ASH Scotland said that by supporting the measures local shoppers could more easily persuade shops to back proposed legislation.

Chief executive Sheila Duffy said the radical approach would counter the "inevitable" challenges from the tobacco industry, which wants to push its products as much as possible.

The Pride of Place? campaign was officially launched yesterday.

Ms Duffy said: "The Tobacco and Primary Medical Services Bill aims to prevent children from smoking by stopping the visibility and availability of cigarettes to young people, including removing cigarette displays at the point of sale.

"Inevitably, the tobacco industry will continue to challenge the measures outlined in the bill and do all they can to delay, dilute and damage the legislation.

"We want to take our message direct to shopkeepers and counter the misinformation from the tobacco industry."

Man shot over cigarettes

A Gainesville man has been arrested on a charge of attempted murder after police allege he shot a 78-year-old Alachua man who refused to give up his cigarettes.

James E. Davis, 56, of 3926 N.W. Sixth St., was arrested by the Alachua Police Department after an incident at the intersection of Northwest 154th Avenue and Northwest 134th Terrace at 11:02 a.m. Saturday. The victim, Dave Washington, was taken to Shands at the University of Florida for treatment of a gunshot wound to his left forearm, a wound police described as non-life threatening.

During an interview at the hospital, Washington told police Davis walked up to him and demanded that Washington hand over his cigarettes. Washington said when he refused to hand them over, David snatched them from Washington's shirt pocket.

Washington said that after he took his cigarettes back, Davis walked over to a green Ford Explorer and picked up a silver automatic pistol. According to Washington, Davis walked back over to where he was standing, fired once and then drove away in the Explorer. Washington told police he "grabbed his arm to stop the bleeding and walked to a nearby house for safety."

Davis told police he and Washington were among a group of men standing around drinking and talking. Davis claimed he he pulled out his .32-caliber handgun and fired a single shot into the air, then got into his vehicle and left the area.

Davis was pulled over and arrested a short distance from the site of the shooting. He was being held Monday at the Alachua County jail.

AGRICULTURAL POLICIES RELATED TO TOBACCO

Until 1994, a support price scheme similar to that for other crops operated for tobacco. Prices were differentiated according to grade (Grade A, Grade B, and “Kapa”, the lowest grade) and region. Lower support prices were sometimes offered in advance of the harvest, if requested by the farmers.
The General Directorate of Tobacco, Tobacco Products, Salt and Alcohol Enterprises (TEKEL) was legally obliged to buy all tobacco not sold to private buyers and to stockpile what it could not sell. This stockpile grew and by November 1993 had reached approximately 500 000 tonnes of mainly lowgrade domestic tobacco. A new support system for tobacco was in place from the 1994 crop year, linking deficiency payments to reductions in the area planted to tobacco. Producers have received “compensation payments” to mitigate their losses. TEKEL’s “support” purchases declined substantially, from 231 000 tonnes in 1993 to 44 000 tonnes in 1995, marking the application of production quotas. With the subsequent removal of the quota, production and “support” purchases started to increase, reaching 137 000 tonnes in 1999. Since 1983, the area planted to tobacco has been regulated.
From crop year 1994, new quantitative measures linked to compensatory payments were introduced to control output, targeting areas where profitable alternatives to tobacco existed. The national production quota is fixed by the Interministerial Tobacco Board.
Some of the inputs, namely fertilizers, pesticides and irrigation water, as well as introduction of new technologies, are subsidized by the state in order to promote their use in pursuit of enhanced yields. Out of an annual requirement of 50 000 tonnes/year, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs (MARA) and TEKEL produce and provide 10 000 tonnes, the rest being met by farmers themselves from their own production. There is no subsidy per se on seed and seedlings, and the fertilizer subsidy has been progressively reduced in real terms.

Corrective Statements

As part of the remedial order, the district court ordered Defendants to disseminate “corrective statements” concerning 69 the topics about which they had previously misled consumers. The court will determine the precise content of the statements at a future date after receiving proposals from the parties, but ordered that they must address five topics:
(1) the adverse health effects of smoking;
(2) the addictiveness of smoking and nicotine;
(3) the lack of any significant health benefit from smoking light cigarettes;
(4) the manufacturers’ manipulation of cigarette design and composition to ensure optimum nicotine delivery;
and (5) the adverse health effects of exposure to secondhand smoke.

The remedial order sets out schedules for the manufacturer Defendants to follow in disseminating the corrective statements in cigarette package onserts, retail point-of-sale displays, newspapers, television, and their company websites.
Defendants object to the corrective statements as a whole on the grounds that they did not receive adequate notice of and opportunity to respond to the government’s proposed remedy and that the remedy extends beyond the court’s jurisdiction under RICO. Regarding the specific means of disseminating the statements, Defendants argue that cigarette package onserts violate the Labeling Act, that the point-of-sale displays are duplicative and impose severe burdens on retailers, and that requiring Defendants to make corrective statements in various media apart from existing advertising violates the First Amendment.

Philip Morris activity

The RICO statute requires “a pattern of racketeering activity” on the part of each defendant. “At least two acts of racketeering activity” are necessary to form a pattern. The district court found the requisite pattern committed by each Defendant, Philip Morris, and this finding is not erroneous.
A brief sampling of the 108 enumerated racketeering acts makes the point: Philip Morris, Reynolds, Brown & Williamson, Lorillard, American, and TI committed racketeering acts 24, 132, and 133 by mailing press releases containing false statements about the addictiveness and health consequences of smoking.
Philip Morris, Reynolds, Brown 29 & Williamson, Lorillard, American, Liggett, and CTR committed racketeering acts 66, 73, and 88 by mailing letters regarding funding of CTR’s “special projects” to create data supporting their fraudulent claims.
BATCo and Brown & Williamson committed racketeering acts through their mailings to each other concerning the enterprise’s position on the health effects and addictiveness of smoking as well as smoker compensation and nicotine. Altria committed racketeering in its efforts to coordinate Defendants’ public positions and fund CTR research projects to support their fraudulent claims.
As these examples demonstrate, the district court found each Defendant engaged in a “pattern of racketeering activity,” and that finding is not erroneous. See infra Parts III, IV. The 108 enumerated acts give us ample basis to review the district court’s finding. Although the district court may have concluded other racketeering acts were proven as well, we need look no further. Defendants correctly argue we must ensure the remedy imposed is tailored to “the violation found,” United States v. Microsoft, the voluminous findings detailing the contours of the scheme to defraud are more than sufficient to allow this review.
Given that a mailing or wire transmission need not itself be fraudulent, the remedy needs to be tailored to the scheme to defraud, not the specific use of the mail or wires. For similar reasons, we need not resolve Defendants’ challenges to the racketeering acts involving denials of marketing to youth. As the district court imposed no remedies specifically relating to youth marketing, our assessment whether the remedies are tailored to the violation found is unaffected by the associated racketeering acts. The remaining racketeering 30 acts are fully sufficient to support the district court’s finding of a pattern of racketeering activity as to each Defendant. Because these challenges have no impact on the outcome of this appeal, we decline to address them. The district court set forth findings sufficient to allow our review of its verdict of liability and imposition of sanction.

LM enjoyed

Comprehensive pack warnings

Warning people about the harms of tobacco use is essential and can be achieved in many ways. This initial report on the global tobacco epidemic reviews countries’ requirements for size and characteristics of health warnings on tobacco packs, which disseminate health information at no cost to government except for enforcement.
Government action to prevent deceptive and misleading terms (such as “light” and “low-tar”) was also reviewed. Future reports will assess a wider range of public education measures, including public education campaigns.
Pack warnings should cover at least half of packaging display areas and feature rotating, pictorial warnings. Widespread use of effective warning labels would provide important knowledge about tobacco’s health threat and counter false information spread by the tobacco industry.

Menthol additive makes smokers get a more pleasant and tasty sensation

According to numerous studies, menthol additive makes smokers get a more pleasant and tasty sensation during smoking and after it, but as well stores cigarette smoke with hundreds of hazardous toxins in the lungs for a longer period of time, which makes smoking even more unhealthy.

The Jerusalem attorney would appeal to the Central District Supreme Court to consider the lawsuit as a collective action lawsuit filled against Dubek Co, which is by the way the nations leading cigarette producer, and require the company to pay NIS 3 billion (approximately $1 billion) for health damages compensation. The Court representatives declared that it would take up to six months for the consideration of the case papers presented by Hausner.

Several studies implemented by cigarette manufacturers a couple of years ago in order to find the additives that enhance addiction to cigarettes demonstrated that menthol was one of the most addictive substances. Therefore, they started marketing and promoting the cigarettes with menthol.

Funny smoking pictures

1963 Marlboro Country Man

1963 Marlboro Cigarette World Globe Smoking Ad - A satisfied customer The entire world enjoys a Marlboro. For everyone knows the special quality of this fine American cigarette. Marlboro’s full-flavored blend comes from the kind that grows most of the world’s best tobaccos. People everywhere have made it the best-selling cigarette in the famous Flip-Top box. For richer taste and a fine Selectrate fiber try Marlboro. You get a lot to like, a lot to satisfy you.

1963 Marlboro Cig First in Flavor Flag Ad - Marlboro First in flavor under every flag 1963 Marlboro Cig First in Flavor Flag Ad
Marlboro First in flavor under every flag

1963 Marlboro Country Man Riding Horse Ad - Marlboro Country. There’s not another place like it. You get a bigger helping of flavor here. The tobacco in Marlboro’s famous Richmond Recipe tastes richer… smoother, too, through the exclusive Selectrate Filter. You get a lot to like: a man’s world of flavor in a filter cigarette.

1963 Marlboro Cigarette World Globe Smoking Adb
A satisfied customer The entire world enjoys a Marlboro. For everyone knows the special quality of this fine American cigarette. Marlboro’s full-flavored blend comes from the kind that grows most of the world’s best tobaccos. People everywhere have made it the best-selling cigarette in the famous Flip-Top box. For richer taste and a fine Selectrate fiber try Marlboro. You get a lot to like, a lot to satisfy you.

1963 Marlboro Country Man Riding Horse Ad
Marlboro Country. There’s not another place like it. You get a bigger helping of flavor here. The tobacco in Marlboro’s famous Richmond Recipe tastes richer… smoother, too, through the exclusive Selectrate Filter. You get a lot to like: a man’s world of flavor in a filter cigarette.

It takes time for a smoker to change his taste habits

Often smokers who say they do not like the taste of certain brands really mean that they are not accustomed to it. Few advertisers of cigarettes realize that it takes time for a smoker to change his taste habits. No matter how pleasant the taste qualities of a brand may seem to be, at first the unaccustomed taste will be disliked.
One of our respondents made the following interesting comment on this point: "I went to Bulgaria once and was forced to smoke Bulgarian cigarettes. I tried one brand after another till I had gone through five brands. Finally, the sixth brand seemed to be perfect. I discovered much later that any of the other brands might have become my preferred brand if only I had tried it in the sixth place. It just took me that long to learn to appreciate Bulgarian tobacco." How Many a Day? Despite all the millions spent on comparing the potentially harmful effects of different brands of cigarettes, our respondents seemed very little concerned about this matter. But all of them, even those who do not smoke excessively, worry about the quantities they smoke. Scientific and medical studies on the physiological effects of smoking provide a confused picture: Some conclude that smoking is harmful; others deny it. This same confusion prevails among smokers themselves. Nevertheless, all of them worry about smoking too many cigarettes, as shown by the fact that nearly everyone has tried, at one time or another, to "cut down on" smoking. "I'll tell you something I do," one smoker confided. "I give up smoking cigarettes every year for one month, and I say to myself that I'll prove to myself I can still do without them." Periodic abstemiousness of this kind indicates an underlying feeling of guilt. Such individuals really think that constant smoking is not only harmful, but also a bit immoral. Efforts to reduce the amount of smoking signify a willingness to sacrifice pleasure in order to assuage their feeling of guilt. The mind has a powerful influence on the body, and may produce symptoms of physical illness. Guilt feelings may cause harmful physical effects not at all caused by the cigarettes used, which may be extremely mild. Such guilt feelings alone may be the real cause of the injurious consequences.
The First Cigarette Much of this guilt feeling can be treated directly to one's first cigarette, which the older generation remember as a forbidden and sinful thing. Their fathers considered the habit an educational problem, whereas many parents nowadays have adopted a "modern" attitude toward smoking. Here is what one such father said: "I told my son I thought he was a little young... He is seventeen. It might not do him any harm to wait another year or two. Then I remembered my own first cigarette and what awful stuff I had to smoke in secret. In a way, my son is lucky to be able to start with a good cigarette without running the danger of ruining his health. I gave him a pack of the brand I smoke." Most of us remember vividly the first cigarette we smoked. "I certainly remember my first cigarette," said one of our respondents. "We were a bunch of boys on our way to a football game. I had trouble lighting my cigarette, and at that moment a man passed by and yelled at me: 'Throw that cigarette away, you rascal!' I was so shocked and frightened that
I obeyed his command without hesitation. But only a few minutes later, I lighted another one just to demonstrate to myself that I was not afraid. "No, Thanks, I'll Smoke My Own" This is the reply of most smokers when they are offered a brand different from their own. Brand loyalty among smokers is strong and persistent.

Cigarette tax negotiators fail to negotiate

House-Senate negotiators didn’t give in and agree Tuesday to resolve the Legislature’s three-month stalemate on how to raise the state cigarette tax and preserve the car tag discount.

But they’re not giving up a potential compromise to generate more than $100 million in much-needed revenue.

“I do think we will all agree to a bill everyone can agree on,” said Senate Finance Chairman Dean Kirby, R-Pearl, who met with his House counterpart for another of the public bargaining sessions they’ve had off and on in recent weeks.

“Everybody knows we’re going to increase the cigarette tax and we’re going to take care of the tag problem,” said House Ways and Means Chairman Percy Watson, D-Hattiesburg. “We’re going to take care of it this year — unless the Senate is insistent on 64 cents.”

That was the case Tuesday as Kirby declined again to agree on raising the state’s current 18-cent-a-pack cigarette tax above 64 cents. Watson and other House leaders are equally insistent on the new tax being 75 cents.

Anti-tax members

In turning down that amount, Kirby said there are enough staunch anti-tax members in the Senate to deny it the 60 percent majority required to pass tax bills.

“We’ve got some people who are not going to vote for any tax increase,” he said.

With Watson having earlier agreed to reduce by 25 cents the $1 tax the House originally voted for in January, he questioned why Kirby won’t equally reciprocate: increase by 25 cents the 49-cent tax the Senate originally passed.

That 75-cent median would generate a state Tax Commission-estimated $140 million a year in extra revenue — enough to replenish the state’s withering car tag reduction fund and boost spending for the deficit-plagued Medicaid program.

‘Not rocket science’

“This is not rocket science. (The public) is wondering why we can’t reach across the table and reach an agreement,” Watson told Kirby.

“People would rather see cigarette taxes go up than car tags.”

“It’s not that simple,” said Kirby, who noted he doesn’t want the cigarette levy to be so high — especially since the federal tax just rose to $1.01.

Full Flavored Cigarettes

In late 2006 both the Full Flavored and Light filtered varieties of Lucky Strike Cigarettes were discontinued in North America. However, Lucky Strike Cigarettes will continue to have marketing and distribution support in territories controlled by British American Tobacco as a global drive brand. In addition, R.J. Reynolds continues to market the original, non-filter Lucky Strikes Cigarettes in the United States.

In 2003 Habanos S.A. released the Combinacciones Selección Robustos 5s case. This case contains five robustos of the most well known Habanos brands in

In 2003 Habanos S.A. released the Combinacciones Selección Robustos 5s case. This case contains five robustos of the most well known Habanos brands including Montecristo, Cohiba, Romeo y Julieta, Hoyo de Monterrey and Partagas.Montecristo RobustosThe Romeo y Julieta and Montecristo robustos are only available in the Selección Robusto case and are not included as a standard offering. The Selección Robusto case is totally handmade with specially selected leaves from the region of Vuelta Abajo. The robusto vitola (124mm x 50 ring gauge) has been one of the most popular sizes released from Habanos and for the review we’ll look a little closer at the Montecristo Robustos.
Montecristo is by far the most popular Havana brand. With their characteristic Colorado Claro, slightly oily wrappers and delicate aroma this wide range of cigars offers a medium to full flavour spiked with a unique, tangy taste. Whilst the No 2 Torpedo size has many devotees the No 4 Petit Corona is still the largest selling havana cigar by size worldwide.In 2004 the launch of Robusto size "Edmundo" marks the first new cigar in the Montecristo range for 33 years. Rolled in the new H.Upmann factory in Havana the cigar is milder than expected with an excellent draw and very attractive price. Certain to establish itself as a favourite among those who enjoy this brand. See our News section for details of the launch of this new Cigar.

Karelia box

Karelia - the hard, flip top boxes are white in color with a floral stripe down the side of the box. The hard box is particularly favored by women because they easily fit inside a purse without the worry of them being crushed or broken. The Karelia name and “Slim” logo, as well as the flavor assortment are splashed across the front in gold lettering. These elements work together to make the packaging as inviting for a woman as buying a new pair of shoes. They are pretty and female to look at while silently conveying a sense of secret feminine power.

Sobranie - a woman oriented smoking brand

Sobranie cigarettes are a woman-oriented smoking brand. It has an exclusive taste and premium quality tobacco. It is a real women's thing.
Ladies love this cigarette mainly because they believe it can increase their sexual appeal, making them more popular to the men they wish to attract. Some men smokers find it amazing themselves, as it can add romanticism in their modern spirit of life and also adds a bit of mystery to their being, making them ever more attractive in the eyes of a woman.
Now, the producers have elaborated a large variety of Sobranie cigarettes that are different in color and, of course, in taste. Every lady can choose her favorite Sobranie cigarette and the color of cig’ pack to complete her style. This is an exclusive tobacco product that combines pleasure and beauty.

It’s important that Gallaher’s cigarettes contain additional ingredients that make the taste special, as Sobranie cigarettes are. The flavor composition of Gallaher tobacco products is a company “secret”. So, if you are looking for cigarettes that are produced especially for ladies, are slim, have the best tobacco and exclusive taste, Sobranie cigarettes are what you are looking for.
These slimmest cigarettes can be bought at the lowest price in the following variety: Sobranie Slims Pinks, Sobranie Slims Mints, Sobranie Slims Blues and Sobranie Slims Whites - every lady can choose her own taste and color.

Cigarettes GaMMaK

Parliament Funkadelic

They are referred to by teenagers in America as "Parlies" or "Parlie Lights," which refer as one might expect to the light variety. Other popular nicknames for the full flavor and lights, respectively, include "P-Funks" and "P-Lights." The former takes its name from the popular funk group P-Funk, or Parliament Funkadelic, most famous for its headliner, George Clinton. Though Parliaments represent a small share of Philip Morris's cigarette sales, they are rather popular among smokers in their 20s in the United States and Russia. Parliament cigarette brand can be even considered a kind of a phenomenon of the Russian market. The sales of Parliaments in Russia constitute almost 15%, while on American market the sale of Parliament has fallen to 3.5% from the entire Philip Morris range of products. Therefore, Parliament can be now considered the leader among premium-segment brands on the Russian market. In the mid-1970s, Parliament Cigarettes were the first to be sold outside of the US. However, Parliament Cigarettes occupied strong positions only in Japan, Argentina, Israel, Turkey, and recently in Russia. On the rest of European markets, Parliament Cigarettes are not very well-known. Nevertheless, Philip Morris decided to launch a small but focused campaign, assuming that a huge ad campaign could negatively affect the image of a premium cigarette brand.

Camel cigarette - new generation

International companyJapan Tobacco International announced the launch of Camel cigarette brand new generation. The launch of a new Camel happen in Europe as early as this month, to be followed and implemented in other markets, including Russia. This is stated in the message the company received in the PRIME-TASS.
The new range includes the Camel Filters, as well as Camel Mild, Camel Lights and Camel Super Lights.
It is at this time scheduled marketing activity to support the brand. In Russia, Camel / Camel Mild and Camel Lights. The representative of the company declined to indicate when the manufacture of a new generation of Camel will begin in Russia.
When launched, the brand will be using a new marketing concept that includes improved packaging, extended range of products, a new image and, if possible, a new advertising campaign.

Worldwide Marlboro Classics

Market participants are convinced that cigarettes are associated with the Marlboro Cigarettes brand Marlboro Classics clothing. If you hold a focus group, the majority of those polled see an billboards advertising Marlboro cigarettes. Worldwide Marlboro Classics has the image of expensive clothes for wealthy people, that is focused on the terms of consumer Marlboro Cigarettes. A similar incident - with the Davidoff cigarette brand, coupled with similar brands in coffee, alcoholic and cosmetic segments.

Market participants believe that the PM decided to use replacement advertising because of tobacco advertising restrictions forthcoming. The new law "On Advertising" and the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control the World Health Organization could seriously reduce opportunities for promotion tabachnikov brands.

Besides, Marlboro Cigarettes brand is losing market share: "Therefore, they do not have time to wait restrictions." Dole brand in the segment more than $ 1 per pack of cigarettes in 2004 decreased from 18.1% to 16.6%.

Advertising agency said that advertising Marlboro Classics is not contrary to law. Since outdoor advertising of tobacco products has not yet been banned, no violations of law could not be here. Only the appearance of advertising on television Marlboro Classics, which banned tobacco promotion, will be able to draw the attention of the antitrust authorities. The campaign was well planned, because sanctions Federal Antimonopoly Service is much stronger against the operators of outdoor advertising: if improper material for placement officials fined only television, the "naruzhnikov" usually dismantle Shield.

New packaging design for Vogue cigarettes

To placate smokers, in the past year, the central office of the company in London has developed a new packaging design. Name of cigarettes moved up from the middle of the stack, and at the same time and appeared to foil inside the package. Internal Frame tutu gained trendy V-shaped notches. Owners Mark handwriting changed, "replacing" strict classics "to write on" frivolous elegance. " Enter touched the entire line of Vogue Cigarettes - Filter, Menthol, Ultra Lights. In doing so, the changes have not affected the product itself.

In August last year, the company began selling cigarettes updated. First, it faced a difficult task to invite friends Customers cigarettes, not otpugnuv them with a new packaging design. After that the new design was to attract a young audience more smoking. The company already has experience in restarting bonus Kent cigarettes. Then BAT acted revolutionary - seized from the sale of all the old packets and in a limited number of outlets selling cigarettes at the start of the new package. But at the time of restarting Kent, in the post-1999, the company had opportunities to go to such costs. Expensive cigarette smokers were then slightly, and the absence of major competitors allowed to save on advertising.

In the case of Vogue Cigarettes BAT decided to act cautiously - in the market with a large range of proposals any sudden movement could cause a negative reaction from consumers. BAT went to the trick. The first updated tutu ladies' cigarettes sold in colorful plastic packaging with the old design. Only by lifting it could see the novelty. In addition, most specifically for not smoking sharp postcard attached to tutus, soobschavshaya on changes in the look of Vogue Cigarettes.

A month after the opening of sales began advertising support "as a feather light" cigarettes. "Restarting maintained in 30 cities in Russia with the help of outdoor advertising, which was accompanied in the field of advertising sales". The company also has been used and tested channels moving - events in restaurants and cafes, PR campaigns.

Marlboro lights