Tobacco Harm Reduction
THR is one of the most important public health movements in America.
Reynolds Believes THR is an Opportunity to Benefit Public Health
Reynolds champions Tobacco Harm Reduction (THR) in an array of ways, including product development and science, regulatory engagement with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and external engagement with interested stakeholders.
THR is an evidence-based public health strategy intended to reduce the health impact associated with using combustible tobacco products.
THR encourages adult smokers uninterested in quitting tobacco altogether to consider using an innovative, alternative nicotine product that may present less risk, like vapor, tobacco heating, oral nicotine and smokeless products.
Empowering Adult Smoker Choice
The best choice any adult smoker can make will always be quitting tobacco products completely.
Even with this in mind, all adult tobacco users deserve to understand their alternative options, from combustible to non-combustible. Because of this, we are working to reduce the health impact of our business by offering adult consumers a greater choice of enjoyable and potentially reduced-risk*† products compared to cigarettes.
*Based on the weight of evidence and assuming a complete transition from cigarette smoking. These products are not risk-free and are addictive.
† Our Vapor product Vuse (including Alto, Solo, Ciro and Vibe) and certain products including Velo, Grizzly, Kodiak, and Camel Snus, which are sold in the U.S., are subject to FDA regulation and no reduced-risk claims will be made as to these products without agency clearance.
The Risk Continuum
Non-combustible tobacco products and moist products offer an alternative to combustible tobacco products. Nicotine pouches, Heated Products, and vapor products all present potentially lower levels of risk than combustible tobacco products. Adults who do not want to quit tobacco products altogether may instead opt to consume potentially reduced-risk4,5 products like these.
Reducing the Health Impact of Our Business
Reducing the health impact of our business is paramount to our sustainability commitment. To do this, we prioritize innovation among our New Category products so we can offer an increased variety of potentially reduced-risk products for adult nicotine consumers.
Adult smokers deserve accurate, science-backed information about alternatives that could be less harmful than combustible cigarettes. By empowering adults with knowledge, they can make informed decisions about their smoking choices and informed decisions regarding their consumption of nicotine products.
-Chris Junker, Vice President, Scientific & Regulatory Affairs within the Reynolds American Organization
Creating A Better Tomorrow for Public Health in America
In 2023, we released our inaugural white paper, Tobacco Harm Reduction: Creating A Better Tomorrow for Public Health in America. The report provides information about harm reduction and its scientific evidence. We encourage its use as a resource and guide for productive conversations about harm reduction and its benefits. It is available in written and audio versions on ReynoldsHarmReduction.com.
https://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/data_statistics/fact_sheets/adult_data/cig_smoking/index.htm
Our continued commitment to scientific understanding of THR
In 2023, Reynolds American companies initiated a 24-month study, Longitudinal Tobacco Use and Transitions Survey (LTTS), as part of our Pre-Market Tobacco Product Application (PMTA) for Vuse Alto. The study measured the impact of Vuse vapor on certain adult populations across the country and how using Vuse may benefit adult consumers who do not want to quit tobacco use.
Scientific evidence is the number one driver of our THR strategy. We value constructive debate and transparency among all stakeholders in this effort to bolster THR and enable the transition to potentially less harmful products. This is why we released the findings of LTTS to the public. A full presentation on the study can be found at reynoldsscience.com.