Saturday, July 31, 2010
SnusCentral
Facebook Group Facebook Page Linked In Group Twitter
Translate Site:

No News is Good News

Written by Andrew Romeo Monday, 26 October 2009 13:59

Swedish Match AB is in PR Emergency Mode today, Monday, October 26th.  Why?

An American researcher from Harvard, Greg Connolly, read a snus ingredient label in 2008, and found a smoking gun called "E500" which regulates acidity in food products, and has been in traditional use in snus for many decades.  It is all snus products produced in Sweden.

The Swedish want-to-be equivalent of "60 Minutes," called "Kalla Fakta" on Channel 4, after having been given full access by Swedish Match to its R&D and production processes for months, aired a piece SundayGregory Connolly, Well known Anti-All-Tobacco Zealot night focusing on how the company manipulates nicotine levels in its products using E500 as a tool to increase availability of "free nicotine" in its snus products.  This strengthens an individuals addiction to the product.  Oh, and Swedish Match has also launched higher nicotine products (sterk/extra sterk, etc) to bring its consumers' addiction up a notch, and prevent them from quitting.

Skruf, JTI, BAT, Taboca, Gotlands and V2 must be quite happy their use of E500 was not revealed.  That would have implied that SM cannot possibly be manipulating free nicotine levels as a way to solidify its 90% market share.  Sorry.  E500 in all these products levels the playing field.

What about "strong" products?  Skruf has done it successfully for years with Skruf Stark.  Gallaher attempted to launch "Strong Cut" in 2005, but it failed to drag consumers up to 1st class on the addiction train, and it was de-listed in months.  Consumer research shows many consumers would prefer a stronger dose of snus because, lo and behold, snus's nicotine delivery is consumer-dependent.

NICOTINE LEVEL MANIPULATION

Snus pouches deliver about 10% of the nicotine naturally available in the enclosed tobacco.  Consumers naturally manipulate the pouch with their tongues and/or fingers, and can receive fresh nicotine from the same pouch until the flavor wears off, or later.  Many consumers choose to double-dose standard or mini-pouches, or use loose products.  The size of a loose dose is entirely up to the consumer.  He/she controls the dose.

In fact, the allegation that a snus producer would increase the addiction potential of its products plays more to the assumption that long-term addiction is a higher priority than sales.  If Swedish Match reduced the ability of its products to deliver free nicotine, like "light cigarettes," it would probably notice that consumers are buying its products more often, and double/triple dosing to reach their desired level of nicotine.  Wouldn't that be more desirable?

BUT THE SWEDISH SNUS MARKET IS 'IN DECLINE'

With two straight years of huge increases in weight-based excise taxes (100% in 2006, 50% in 2007), the first increases in 10 years, snus consumption among men dropped 3%.  This was primarily traditional male users of loose products which began pricing themselves out of the market due to the can's 50g gram-weight.  Additionally, the market as a whole spasmed during this two-year period, creating a larger Duty Free market on the ubiquitous ferries while it simultaneously suffered a slow draw-down of pre-excise-hike overloaded stocks in traditional retail.  In one word, this is called an "adjustment."

WHERE'S THE NEWS?

Is snus addictive?  Yes.  It's written on the can.  Where's the E500?  Also written on the can.  Why is Greg Connolly bothering?  In my opinion, he is looking for the 'ammonia in Marlboro' revelation that was revealed to be one of the ways that product was made more addictive in the 1970s.  He hasn't found it.  The Health Authority has promised to look into the issue, but since the products are produced under its guidelines already, I can't see anything coming of it.

This is a story that will undoubtedly cause some ripples in Scandinavia.  US impact will be zero as snus is still generally unknown in what is still a one-billion can smokeless market.  Swedish Match will no doubt deftly handle the potential fallout, even in Nervous-Nellie-Norway, and we can all move on.

ANDREW ROMEO
That's My Perspective; on SnusCENTRAL.org

10% New Customer Discount at SnusCentral.com!

< Prev   Next >

4 Comments

Feed

  1. Larry Waters makes this comment

    Tuesday, 27 October 2009

    I think once the Kalla Fakta "expose" on Swedish Match was finally released, Swedish Match's PR threat mode immediately dropped to LAUGHABLE. This story is such a non-story that I'm sure even Swedes are scratching their heads saying "So..?"

    Kalla Fakta's building the story around Dr. Greg Connolly is very telling. Google greg connolly harvard and you will immediately see he is a darling of the Anti-ALL-Tobacco fanatics crowd.

    The crux of Kalla Fakta's so-called investigative reporting was that Swedish Match uses the evil sounding and mysterious additive E500 to produce more free nicotine in its snus product. E500 is (gasp!) Sodium Carbonate, an approved and common acidity regulator in snus and other food products.

    As you so clearly point out, Andrew, which the researchers at Kalla Fakta must have somehow missed, is that EVERY Swedish and Scandinavian Snus manufacturer uses E500, and used it for years, and that E500 is an approved food additive under Swedish Food Regulatory Law.

    Attempting to cloak all this in mystery, Dr. Connolly laments "this will make it harder/impossible for people to quit using snus!"

    So what? The more the facts and studies amass, Swedish Snus is at least 98% SAFER for smokers than cigarettes. From a TSNA (carcinogen) standpoint, Swedish Government Snus is in the same league as French Roast Coffee or grilled hotdogs.

    Nicotine is indeed very addictive. It does not cause cancer though. The 6000 to 10,000 toxic substances in inhaled cigarette smoke do.

    Orally absorbed Nicotine has a very different affect on the body than inhaled nicotine through cigarettes.

    Orally absorbed nicotine enters the bloodstream slowly, rises consistently, and falls. It does stay in the system longer than cigarette inhaled nicotine.

    Nicotine inhaled through cigarettes creates a near-instant spike of nicotine well above the levels of snus but falls off quickly.

    Dr. Lars-Erik Rudqvist, Senior Vice President; Scientific Affairs, for Swedish Match has stated publicly and to me personally that the cigarette is the most perfect form of nicotine delivery (and addiction) on the market today.

    Concerning people switching to Swedish Snus from cigarettes, Dr. Connolly and his ilk see the glass 2% full; not 98% empty. For nicotine addicted cigarette smokers, Swedish/Scandinavian snus is SAVING LIVES, eliminating Second Hand Smoke, and reducing the number and expense to society of cigarette-related illnesses.

    Better Kalla Fakta had done a TRUE expose' on how American Big Tobacco is intentionally marketing their product by the total nicotine content; not by the Free Nicotine levels. That's because they intentionally design their "snus" to have very low nicotine levels so that smokers trying to quit cigarettes through snus will be unable.

    Indeed, they market their "snus" products as complementary to their cigarettes: when you can't smoke, snus! Then go smoke.

    PMUSA, to it's credit, does list ingredients including total nicotine and free nicotine on their website. Do the math and Marlboro Snus has 1.3 to 1.4mg of free nicotine per portion with total nicotine levels per pouch at just under 8%.

    RJR states that Camel SNUS has 8mg total nicotine but does not reveal the free nicotine or the pH of SNUS. Since Camel SNUS is dry as dirt, its safe to assume their free nicotine levels are on par with Marlboro Snus.

    THAT is a scandal worth exposing. The fact that Swedish Snus nicotine levels range from zero to low to cigarette equivalent to high to higher isn't. That is simply a response to consumer focus groups in Norway and the United States who wanted more nicotine.

    General Ekstra Sterk (a personal favorite of mine) is not called by the Swedish name Extra Stark for a reason. Traditional Swedish Snusers are happy with the current nicotine levels. Ekstra Sterk is Norwegian for Extra Strong because it's primary market is Norway followed by the United States.

    I admit this comment is more than long enough to be an article of its own, but quite frankly, Kalla Fakta's piece so ....I'm tempted to say irresponsible, but irrelevant is probably more fitting, they I refuse to give them any more undeserved publicity than this stunt has already received.

    BTW, if you're wondering why the front page slide linked to this story is of an unclad young woman with a sheep....that represents another "shocking expose'" by Kalla Fakta. I wanted to put this show in perspective for those who don't/can't watch it.

    I'm done. Great article as always, Andy. Now on to REAL issues.

    Larry Waters
    Tired of bad science and zero-sum anti-all-tobacco zealots.

  2. Andrew Romeo makes this comment

    Tuesday, 27 October 2009

    My issue is primarily with scientists and doctors who sit in their labs without even the slightest knowledge of what makes a consumer goods company tick.

    Swedish Match and its competitors produce a traditional product which has been in use in Scandinavia for 200 years.

    They are tobacco products, and they are addictive. It's written on the can.

    The issue is, if I have a product like General, which is effectively 60+ percent of the snus market, how do I increase sales? Like Marlboro, General is a cash cow. It's gone beyond the ability of a poster or an image to sell that extra can. It's an institution in Sweden and Norway. Should I ask R&D to increase the nicotine content or absorption rate in General?

    No. I'll get fired. Better to have the General consumer using multiple pouches and/or snusing more often. More cans per month per consumer.

    Connolly's argument fails utterly in its inability to grasp the commercial aspect of snus/moist snuff as a consumer product. It is a 100% fail.

  3. bigmick makes this comment

    Tuesday, 27 October 2009

    Larry already came close to my comment, but isn't E500 basically just baking soda? You know, the stuff my Grandma put in pies?

  4. Julls makes this comment

    Wednesday, 28 October 2009

    If anyone happend to miss the program, here it is: http://tv4play.se/aktualitet/kalla_fakta?videoId=1.1292701&selId=1.923834&currPage=0

    Andrew, thanks for taking the time to write this great article!

Add Comment

Banner

The Latest News from SnusCENTRAL

  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4
  • 5
  • 6
  • 7
  • 8
  • 9
  • 10

©Copyright 2010. All rights reserved.

SnusCentral Login