Letter from US Senators (2) to tobacco companies..

June 17, 2010

Dear Tobacco Company:

We write to urge you to comply fully with the requirements and intent of the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act (Public Law 111-31) by using truthful cigarette packaging and advertisements. Specifically, we are concerned by news reports indicating that cigarette companies intend to use colors and other methods to circumvent the law's ban on labeling cigarettes as "light" and "mild" and mislead customers to believe they are buying safer products.

When Congress passed this landmark legislation last June, we included a ban on using descriptors such as "light," "mild," or "low" in cigarette labeling or advertising beginning on June 22, 2010, one year after the date of enactment of the law. This prohibition was put in place to protect public health and prevent consumers from being misled to erroneously believe that products labeled with these terms are less harmful than "regular" or "full-flavor" cigarettes.

Research has definitively shown that although smoke from "light" cigarettes may feel smoother or lighter on the throat and chest, in fact these cigarettes are not less harmful than regular cigarettes. The National Cancer Institute (NCI) has concluded that light cigarettes provide no benefit to smokers' health, as people who switch to light cigarettes from regular cigarettes are likely to inhale the same amount of hazardous chemicals and remain at high risk for developing smoking-related cancers and other diseases.

NCI researchers have also found that the strategies used by the tobacco industry to advertise and promote light cigarettes are intended to reassure smokers, to discourage them from quitting, and to lead consumers to perceive filtered and light cigarettes as safer alternatives to regular cigarettes. However, there is no evidence that switching to light or ultra-light cigarettes actually helps smokers quit.

The lower tar and nicotine content figures used to advertise light and ultralight cigarettes are also misleading. These numbers come from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) cigarette testing method, which uses machines to "smoke" every brand of cigarettes exactly the same way. As brought to light by a Senate Commerce Committee hearing in 2007, the smoking machines do not really tell how much tar and nicotine a particular smoker may inhale because people do not smoke cigarettes the same way the machines do. In fact, smokers may inhale more deeply; take larger, more rapid or more frequent puffs; or smoke a few extra cigarettes each day to consume enough nicotine to satisfy their craving. This practice of "compensating" means that smokers using these products inhale more tar, nicotine, and other harmful chemicals than the results of smoking machines suggest.

Given the compelling evidence that light cigarettes are no safer than ordinary cigarettes, we included a ban on the use of these descriptor terms in cigarette labeling and advertising in the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act in order to improve public health and reduce false perceptions. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued guidance this month to aid industry in understanding the prohibition on the use of these terms. We are aware that to comply with this ban, you will be required to change the packaging of your cigarettes.

However, we are concerned by recent news reports suggesting that cigarette companies are planning to replace the use of words such as "light" and "mild" with colors designed to evoke the terms used previously. Additionally, we understand that cigarette makers have included inserts in packs and displays at retail locations telling customers to "In the Future, Ask For Marlboro Silver Pack 100's or Camel Blues." Such packaging and inserts clearly circumvent the intent of the law by insinuating or implying that certain products are healthier or lower risk or that they are a continuation of a product that allegedly carried less risk in the past.

The use of color shapes perceptions of risks on all products. For example, many food products such as mayonnaise and soda use lighter colors on their packaging to distinguish between diet, light and regular products. Additionally, research on tobacco products specifically shows that smokers and nonsmokers perceive white and light colors on packages as an indication that a product is healthier.

When we passed the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act, our unambiguous intention was to make cigarette labeling as transparent as possible. We urge you to be honest and forthright with your consumers after the new labeling requirements take effect. Consumers deserve to know the truth about the safety of your products, and attempts to mislead consumers into believing that certain products are safer than others will not be tolerated. We will be watching how you handle this transition and will not be silent if you perpetuate the myths about "light" cigarettes using new methods.

Thank you for your attention to this matter.

Sincerely,
Richard J. Durbin
United States Senator

Frank R. Lautenberg
United States Senator