BAT buys Creative company to help with evolving harm reduction policy

British American Tobacco said today that it had acquired CN Creative Ltd, a UK based start-up company that specialises in the development of e-cigarette technologies intended to offer smokers a less risky alternative to cigarettes.

BAT says that CN Creative, which has its own research and development facilities, currently has several e-cigarettes on the market and new, innovative e-cigarette technologies in the development pipeline.

“Our core business is, and will remain in, tobacco but we’ve always made it clear that our goal is to provide those adult smokers who are seeking safer alternatives to cigarettes with a range of reduced-risk products that will meet their varying needs,” said Kingsley Wheaton, director of corporate and regulatory affairs at BAT.

“And we believe the innovative e-cigarette technologies that CN Creative has been developing over the past few years will help us move closer to achieving this goal.”

The acquisition of CN Creative, BAT says, is a natural extension of its approach to tobacco harm reduction that has been evolving over a number of years.