Development of cigarette components to meet industry needs

ALTHOUGH ALL THE COMPONENTS of today's cigarette were in use to some extent more than forty years ago, the cigarette of today is dramatically different from that of the 1950s. The significant changes in non-tobacco components (including filters, papers and plugwraps, plasticizers, adhesives, flavorants, and packaging materials) are examined in light of the forces affecting the cigarette industry. These influences are (1) consumer preferences and demands, (2) cost and productivity issues, (3) societal and regulatory pressures, and (4) globalization of the marketplace. Consumer demand has resulted in substantially lower yield cigarettes of improved quality with a wide range of product differentiation in terms of yield, size, packaging and price. Lighter weight, more economical raw materials are used at higher and higher processing speeds. Societal and regulatory issues include environmental concerns, a push towards cigarettes with reduced sidestream and ignition propensity, and restrictions on product composition and smoke yields. The globalization of the marketplace requires that manufacturers and suppliers in one part of the world develop products to meet the local requirements in another. In addition, the forces affecting the industry have frequently resulted in component requirements that are seemingly incompatible. How the suppliers to the cigarette industry responded to the myriad challenges will be reviewed.