"Here could be a product that, if handled correctly, could well offer an opportunity for a special female-targeted product that could be as significant as Virginia Slims was for Philip Morris."

That's what Stephen Pope, a tobacco industry analyst and managing partner of Spotlight Ideas in England said about R.J. Reynolds' dissolvable line of tobacco products. Convenience Store News reported:

"The product line -- Camel Sticks, Camel Strips and Camel Orbs --do not require spitting, which could be a deciding factor among female tobacco users. According to a report in the Winston-Salem Journal, females represented 45 percent of all adult smokers who bought Camel Sticks, Camel Strips and Camel Orbs during September and October. Of all adult tobacco users, 31 percent were women.

"By comparison, adult males make up 85 percent of moist snuff and Camel Snus users. 
The dissolvable products 'could prove to be the first viable smokeless tobacco products for females,' stated Bonnie Herzog, an analyst with Wells Fargo Securities LLC."

The tobacco industry has long targeted different demographic groups, successfully creating brand identity for various products. Smokeless tobacco products have traditionally had greater use among boys and men than girls and women. It's troubling to consider that more women might begin to take up tobacco products with the dissemination of these dissolvable products.

"Dissolvable tobacco products have caught the eye of the Food and Drug Administration. The agency gained the authority to regulate the manufacturing, marketing and distribution of tobacco products under the 2009 Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act. The FDA's Tobacco Products Scientific Advisory Committee (TPSAC) took up the issue at its July meeting, the first step toward issuing regulations."

Reynolds has not said when a national rollout of the products will occur.


CSNews Online