Tobacco Facts.

More than a decade after the tobacco settlement, the tobacco industry continues to target the health of Minnesotans. Despite regulations and efforts to educate people about the health risks of tobacco use, tobacco companies continue to thrive:

THE TOBACCO INDUSTRY:

ADAPTING TO THE TIMES Arguably, no other business in history has better adapted to changing markets and increasing restrictions. Its ingenuity and resilience in the face of a shrinking domestic market—and its willingness to mine new markets in the developing world—help explain how tobacco companies have overcome the decades-long health campaign against them. Specifically, they spend $12.8 billion in the U.S. each year to …

Make tobacco a part of our culture Historically, the industry made tobacco use an acceptable part of the mainstream, and difficult to regulate or campaign against.

Attract and retain customers through target marketing Tobacco companies have focused on minority communities and specific demographics with great success.

Use public relations to buffer lawsuits and health claims
From community giving to stop-smoking campaigns, the tobacco industry positions itself as a “good corporate citizen” to insulate itself from criticisms and regulations.

Promote new products With new, addictive products, the industry is responding to smoke-free laws and public awareness of the dangers of cigarettes.

Create new markets worldwide The industry is setting its sights on developing countries around the world—where there is little knowledge about tobacco’s dangers and the practices of the tobacco industry.

A PART OF OUR CULTURE

Targeting our military—the real war stories about tobacco Historically, free and discounted tobacco has hooked generations of soldiers. Tobacco companies still send free cases of products to troops serving in the Middle East, and it’s no coincidence that military smoking rates are significantly higher than in the general population.

Cigarettes in movies/video games—playing unfairly with kids Research in 2002 found that smoking in movies was as common as it was in 1950, with most of the tobacco use occurring in youth-rated films. Video games, sales of which exceed the movie box office, can also make smoking seem acceptable to young people. In the game Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay, cigarettes are given as rewards and cigarette warning labels are mocked.

TARGET MARKETING

Camel No. 9 and young women— the glamorizing of tobacco With only 30 percent of its customers being female, R.J. Reynolds realized it was missing a big opportunity. To appeal to women, Reynolds created Camel No. 9 in 2007, and marketed it with sexy packaging, coupons and parties with free massages and gift bags. This glamorous marketing appeals to girls as well as adult women.

Skoal and Playboy partnership— sex sells Skoal United States Smokeless Tobacco Company, makers of Skoal, reached out to Playboy readers—including 600,000 smokeless tobacco consumers and 3.7 million smokers—with sexually provocative images. Skoal’s “Welcome to the Brotherhood” campaign partnered with the magazine and allowed readers to vote on a model for a pictorial.

Targeting minority communities— there’s nothing Kool about targeting African Americans African American men are an important and lucrative market for tobacco companies. This has led to the use of culturally specific images and hip hop music to imply that Kool cigarettes are part of a successful, affluent African American lifestyle. And a 2007 study found 2.6 times more tobacco ads per capita in African American neighborhoods than in other neighborhoods.

Coming to a bar near you— Cigarette Fairies provide the personal touch “Cigarette Fairies” are young, attractive women hired by tobacco companies to go to bars and promote tobacco products. The industry sponsors events and sends Cigarette Fairies to distribute free products and socialize with young adults. College students and other young adults are a key market—they are experiencing transition, they experiment and they are influenced by their peers—and smokers often stick with the first brand of cigarettes they used regularly.

Aggressive point-of-sale advertising—tobacco advertising surrounds you To retain and attract customers, tobacco companies place advertisements in locations where they know people will see them—convenience stores. Tobacco companies pay retailers to place ads inside and outside their stores, manipulating the environment so people can’t miss them, and contracting with the stores so that management can’t move them. Tobacco is often displayed at the eye level of children, and this point-ofsale marketing increases in stores frequented by teens.

REINVENTION AND INNOVATION

Flavored tobacco—the taste kids don’t need Regulations preventing direct youth marketing forced a different tactic by tobacco companies. Sweet-flavored tobacco products are attractive “starter products” for youth because they “taste better.” The FDA banned flavored cigarettes, but “little cigars” and smokeless tobacco are still available in candy and fruit flavors such as peach, grape and chocolate.

Aggressive new product development—new products, same old nicotine Smokeless tobacco is hard to detect, making it easy to use in places people cannot light up a cigarette. Camel Snus comes in tea-bag-like pouches and requires no spitting. Other new products resemble candies, mints and breath strips.

OPPORTUNITIES ABROAD

International profits fueling growth—a new world of profits for tobacco As cigarette sales have declined in the United States, developing countries have become a very lucrative market for the tobacco industry. These countries have minimal regulations on tobacco and very little public awareness of health impacts. China has 350 million smokers – 50 million more cigarette buyers than the entire population of the United States. The World Health Organization predicts that the death toll of tobacco in the 21st Century will exceed 1 billion worldwide, with 80 percent of deaths occurring in poor countries.

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