Round Snus Can Turns 40..

November 22, 2007 — Up until 1967, snus had been packed for decades in oval cans and the move to round cans was thought to be so radical that Svenska Tobaks (tobacco operations began in Svenska Tobaks AB, the former Swedish tobacco monopoly, which was founded in 1915) felt obliged to run advertisements with headlines saying, ‘Stay calm guys! We’ve made new snus cans’. When the cans were developed in the middle of the 1960s, the round cans were considered more practical since the snus tended to collect in the corners of the square cans making it difficult to collect the tobacco. Also for manufacturing reasons, the round cans were preferable since production became more efficient. Swedes first started tucking snuff snus, known in Sweden as Swedish snus, under the lip at the end of the 1700s. Portion packaged SNUS (tea-bag like, packets) was launched in 1973. The dominant tradition of snus use in Sweden appears to have prevented the widespread adoption of tobacco combustion (e.g., cigarette smoking). This had a profound and lasting effect on Swedish tobacco use patterns and — in the case of cigarette smoking — related adverse health consequences.
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Snus can in round shape is turning 40 years old.
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Chantix Reports of Suicidal Thoughts and Aggressive and Erratic Behavior..

November 21, 2007 - CHANTIX™ (also Champix) (varenicline) is non-nicotine prescription medicine specifically developed to help adults quit smoking. CHANTIX contains no nicotine, but it targets the same receptors that nicotine does. CHANTIX is believed to block nicotine from these receptors. Studies show: At the end of 12 weeks of CHANTIX, 44% were able to quit smoking. It also helped reduce the urge to smoke. (From WhyQuit.com: According to boasts by Pfizer, the drug's maker, "approximately one-in-five" users quit smoking for a year.) Posted 11/20/2007 - FDA informed healthcare professionals of reports of suicidal thoughts and aggressive and erratic behavior in patient who have taken Chantix. There are also reports of patients experiencing drowsiness that affected their ability to drive or operate machinery. FDA is currently reviewing these cases, along with other recent reports. A preliminary assessment reveals that many of the cases reflect new-onset of depressed mood, suicidal ideation, and changes in emotion and behavior within days to weeks of initiating Chantix treatment. The role of Chantix in these cases is not clear because smoking cessation, with or without treatment, is associated with nicotine withdrawal symptoms and has also been associated with the exacerbation of underlying psychiatric illness. However, not all patients described in the cases had preexisting psychiatric illness and not all had discontinued smoking. The FDA recommends that healthcare professionals monitor patients taking Chantix for behavior and mood changes. Patients taking this product should report behavior or mood changes to their doctor and use caution when driving or operating machinery until they know how quitting smoking with Chantix may affect them. Read more...

Imperial Tobacco Gets Approval to Sell Brands in U.S..

November 21, 2007 - Imperial Tobacco Gets Approval to Sell Brands in U.S.. Imperial Tobacco Group Plc, won approval to introduce its European brands (e.g., Davidoff, West, Lambert & Butler - the UK's best selling brand, Richmond, Superkings, Embassy, Regal, Excellence )the U.S., the industry's most profitable market. The Bristol, England-based company said today it joined the Master Settlement Agreement, an accord between cigarette makers that restricts advertising and is a prerequisite to selling tobacco in the U.S. Imperial will start selling brands such as Davidoff in the U.S. within weeks. Imperial this year became the first foreign competitor for Altria Group Inc. and Reynolds American Inc. in their home market in a decade. Imperial already sells cigarettes locally through Commonwealth Brands (4th fourth largest cigarette manufacturer in the United States (e.g., USA Gold, Montclair, Malibu), which it bought in April for $1.9 billion, and will get the biggest U.S. cigar business when it completes the purchase of Spain's Altadis (Alliance Tobacco Distributors) SA next year.(10/18/2007—The European Commission approved Imperial Tobacco Group’s proposed acquisition of Altadis. Imperial Tobacco in September 2005 purchased a 43.5% interest in Swedish company Skruf Snus AB. - Tobacco_Watch.org) Read more...

Ease of Obtaining Smokeless Tobacco Products - High School Students...

November 20, 2007 - Source: Philip Morris USA Newsletter - Insights c3m (Consumer Centered Category Management) volume 3, issue 3, November 2007 page 7. While cigarette smoking among children and adolescents has decreased over the past ten years, not all tobacco products are following the trend. According to a recent national survey (the Pride Survey), nearly 8% of high school seniors reported using smokeless tobacco in the past 30 days. This rate has not declined substantially in the past several years. It is also higher in some parts of th e country than in others. Just like with cigarettes, retail access remains one of the primary means by which kids obtain cigars and smokeless tobacco products. The survey found that 34% (see image for news brief)of high school students report that it is "very easy" to obtain smokeless tobacco products. This finding is of concern because numerous studies have found that higher perceived ease of access to other tobacco products correlates to a greater risk of use of these products. While cigarettes are typically stored behind the counter at retail, cigars and smokeless tobacco products are still placed on the front selling counter in many stores. Click on image to enlarge..
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Swedish government to increase tax on SNUS again on January 1, 2008

November 18, 2007 - - Last year on January 1, 2007 the tax on SNUS went up 100%. The tax for 2008 is to go up another 50%. (Svenska Tandsticks - SM) with a near monopoly on the SNUS market in Sweden accounting for over 90% of sales plans to increase prices and reduce portion sizes. (Some SM brands include General (40%), Ettan (19%), Grov (17%), Göteborgs Rapé (10%) and Catch (8%)). A box of General Portion SNUS (pouches) will cost 34 kronor ($5.34) compared to 30 kronor ($4.72) at present. The lose SNUS version will rise in price from 35 kronor ($5.50) to 43 kronor ($6.76), while the amount in each box will fall from 50 grams to 45 grams. The rise in the tobacco tax at the beginning of 2007 led to a large drop in sales. (Snus prices set to skyrocket, The Local, 11/18/2007) (See related news briefs: October 25, 2007 and September 17, 2007.) As more and more information surfaces on the dangers of SNUS (e.g., increased risk of developing pancreatic cancer - the deadliest cancer of them all, increased risk of fatal cardiovascular disease and stroke, exposure to carcinogens and the oral lesion of hairy tongue) it seems that Sweden is giving up the harm reduction model. ( Sweden giving up harm reduction model?, Eudoxa Science, 12/06/2006)
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