Category: Featured

Court: Vuse Infringes on Fuma Patents

Photo: R.J. Reynolds Vapor Co.
R.J. Reynolds (RJR) Vapor Co.’s Vuse Solo and Ciro e-cigarettes infringe patents owned by Fuma International, a federal court in North Carolina ruled, according to Reuters.
Fuma sued RJR in 2019 for infringing two of its patents that outline types of e-cigarettes made of a cartridge and power source.
U.S. District Judge Catherine Eagles found that the products included two of the disputed elements and infringed both patents but that the question of whether they included the third element should go to trial.
The Vuse Solo has one of the patent’s “electrically conductive portion” that couples the cartridge to the power source, and the Vuse Ciro has a type of airflow passageway featured in both patents, Eagles said.
However, the third disputed element—whether the Solo has the “electrically conductive threaded portion” from a Fuma patent—will be decided at trial. RJR provided enough evidence to show that the relevant part of its device may not be “threaded” under the patent’s definition, according to Eagles.
RJR spokesperson Kaelan Hollon told Reuters that the company “looks forward to proving at trial that the Fuma patents are invalid” and that Solo doesn’t infringe the part of the patent still at issue.
Vuse is one of the most popular e-cigarette brands in the United States.
Earlier this month, a judge ruled that Philip Morris International’s IQOS tobacco-heating device infringes two Vuse Vibe and Vuse Solo patents. That case will likely be reviewed by the full International Trade Commission.
May 27, 2021
Universal Corp. Reports Strong Fiscal 2021

Photo: Universal Corp.
Universal Corp. reported sales and other operating revenue of $1.98 billion in the fiscal year that ended March 31, 2021, up 4 percent over the amount reported in the previous year. Operating income was up 17 percent to $147.8 million while adjusted operating income increased 22 percent to $172.9 million. Gross profit margin improved 80 base points to 19.5 percent.
Tobacco operations sales and other operating revenues were $1.84 billion in fiscal year 2021 compared with $1.89 billion in 2020. Tobacco operations operating income grew 15 percent to $168.8 million.
“I am pleased to report that our net income and diluted earnings per share, and our non-GAAP adjusted operating income for fiscal year 2021, are all up over 20 percent compared to fiscal year 2020,” said George C. Freeman III, chairman, president and CEO of Universal, in a statement.
“Strong leaf tobacco shipments in the second half of fiscal year 2021, the addition of our plant-based ingredients acquisitions and favorable foreign currency comparisons all contributed to this improvement in our results.

I am especially proud that we were able to deliver these results in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic.
George C. Freeman III, chairman, president and CEO, Universal
“I am especially proud that we were able to deliver these results in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic and would like to thank our employees, growers, customers and other partners for their support, adaptability and hard work that made this a successful year.”
Leaf tobacco shipments, which started slowly in fiscal year 2021, accelerated in the second half of the fiscal year, according to Freeman. The company ended the year with leaf tobacco volumes that were just slightly below those in fiscal year 2020, in part due to some tobacco shipments that were delayed and will ship in fiscal year 2022.
“As we move into fiscal year 2022, we currently expect global supply for flue-cured leaf tobacco to be in line with anticipated demand and for burley leaf tobacco to be in a slight undersupply position,” said Freeman. “We are continuing to monitor freight costs as the Covid-19 pandemic disrupted shipping patterns, which has resulted in cost increases due to limited container availability.”
May 27, 2021
PMI Releases Scientific Update
Philip Morris International (PMI) released the latest issue of its Scientific Update, a publication devoted to research efforts to develop and assess a range of smoke-free alternatives to cigarettes as well as products beyond nicotine.
In this issue, PMI reviews milestones from 2020, examines advances in multiple fields of research arising from its smoke-free product assessments and discusses the company’s new research initiatives. Announced in February of this year, these initiatives focus on products that contain neither tobacco nor nicotine, with initial areas of exploration including respiratory drug delivery and botanicals.

These efforts run in parallel to PMI’s ongoing work to phase out cigarettes by encouraging those adults who would otherwise continue to smoke to switch to less harmful smoke-free products.
“With our work in these new areas, we are looking to contribute to a better future. We have a lot to offer the world, and it would be inconsistent with our scientific mission not to use our knowledge to expand into new solutions-based areas such as respiratory drug delivery and botanical products,” said Jorge Insuasty, chief life sciences officer, in a statement. “We are leveraging those areas in which we have strong research and technology expertise to strengthen our business while making a difference for society.”
The May 2021 issue of the Scientific Update also details some of the ways in which PMI’s ongoing research is impacting various fields of science. These include developing a better understanding of the human airway, research and development on aerosols for inhalation, advancing methods in toxicology and working to minimize animal studies in scientific research, among other examples.
Several science-related milestones from 2020 are also reviewed, including the decision by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to authorize the marketing of the IQOS tobacco-heating system as a modified-risk tobacco product with reduced exposure information. Another milestone is the creation of PMI’s Open Science online conference series, an ongoing program in which PMI scientists present their research and answer audience questions live. The next event—“The Challenge of Measuring the Use of Nicotine-Containing Products”—will take place on June 10.
May 27, 2021
FDA Issues Guidance on User Fees

Photo: Grandbrothers
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has issued a draft guidance that helps answer frequently asked questions around tobacco product user fees.
The draft guidance provides information regarding the submission of information needed to assess user fees owed by each domestic manufacturer or importer of tobacco products and how FDA determines whether a company owes user fees in each quarterly assessment. Starting May 27, public comments related to this draft guidance may be submitted through July 26, 2021.
The Federal Food, Drug & Cosmetic (FD&C) Act requires FDA to “assess user fees on, and collect such fees from, each manufacturer and importer of tobacco products subject to” the tobacco product provisions of the FD&C Act. Under the calculations required by the FD&C Act, the tobacco products that are subject to user fee assessments are cigarettes, snuff, chewing tobacco, roll-your-own tobacco, cigars and pipe tobacco.
The FD&C Act provides for the total quarterly assessment to be allocated among specified classes of tobacco products. The class allocation is based on each tobacco product class’ volume of tobacco products removed into commerce. Within each class of tobacco products, an individual domestic manufacturer or importer is assessed a user fee based on its market share for that tobacco product class.
May 27, 2021
‘Reforestation Efforts Paying off in Brazil’

Photo: Joao Bispo
Tobacco industry reforestation efforts are paying off in southern Brazil, reports industry association SindiTabaco on National Atlantic Forest Day. Over the past 40 years, the tobacco sector has been working to eradicate the consumption of wood from native trees for curing. As a result, Forest cover on small-scale tobacco farms has now reached 24 percent, split into 15 percent native forests and 9 percent planted forests, according to data released by the Tobacco Growers’ Association of Brazil.
“For some decades now, the sector has been self-sufficient in fuel wood for curing tobacco, and thus native forests are preserved,” said SindiTabaco president Iro Schunke. “Incentives provided by the industries, which started in the mid-1970s, and the farmers’ willingness to plant eucalyptus trees played a fundamental role in the present enviable forest cover rates.”
In 2019, SindiTabaco partnered with the Federal University of Santa Maria to preserve forests while providing farmers with a sustainable source of energy.
“Tobacco is a centuries-old crop, and when it was brought to our region, it was strongly dependent on natural forests as a source of fuel wood, particularly because back then there were no planted forests,” says research coordinator Jorge Antonio de Farias.

For some decades now, the sector has been self-sufficient in fuel wood for curing tobacco, and thus native forests are preserved.
Iro Schunke, president, SindiTabaco
“Such common tree species as eucalyptus and acacia were rare at that time and little known, and, on the other hand, native forests were in great abundance. As of the 1970s, when the sector set targets to eradicate the consumption of wood from native trees, the farmers began to use wood from planted forests.
“Within this context, the target of the project consists in strengthening the conquests achieved so far—that is to say, the maintenance of the existing native forests—and at the same time come up with new elements and technologies capable of increasing the productivity rates of existing reforested plots whilst establishing new reforestation areas.
“To this end, we are creating reference units in tens of tobacco farms, testing new technologies and techniques, like spacing—distance between trees—new genetic materials and forest species that lead to higher productivity and energy performance.”
The results of the research will be shared through social media channels with tobacco farmers.
May 26, 2021
Vapor Stocks Plunge on China Health Warning

Photo: Kenishirotie
Vapor company stocks listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange plunged following an official warning that e-cigarettes can damage health, reports the Global Times. Smoore International saw its shares slump nearly 20 percent near the end of the May 26 trading session before finishing the day down 17.1 percent. China Boton Group lost 17.94 percent while Huabao International Holdings shed 7.69 percent. By comparison, the benchmark Hang Seng Index gained 0.88 percent.
The rout was triggered after the National Health Commission and the World Health Organization’s China office unveiled a joint report stating that there’s sufficient proof that e-cigarettes are unsafe and harmful to health.
According to the report, China’s smoking population tops 300 million, with the smoking rate for those aged 15 and above standing at 26.6 percent and the percentage of male smokers hitting 50.5 percent. Cigarettes claim the lives of more than 1 million people in the country per year, the authors wrote. The annual number is estimated to rise to 2 million by 2030 and then to 3 million by 2050, assuming the absence of effective actions.
The recent report contradicts a report by the U.K. Royal College of Physicians, which in 2016 concluded e-cigarettes are 95 percent safer than regular cigarettes and are likely to be hugely beneficial to public health.
One vapor company defied the panic selling on May 26: In the final hour of Hong Kong trading, BYD Electronic soared 22.91 percent on reports that the company has finalized patenting its e-cigarette business, which is expected to begin mass production in June.
May 26, 2021
RJR Ordered to Pay $3 Million to Sick Smoker

Photo: Alex
A Florida jury on May 24 ordered R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. (RJR) to pay roughly $3 million to a man suffering from chronic lung disease after decades of smoking, reports Courtroom View Network.
Plaintiff Roosevelt Gordon, who suffers from emphysema and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, will receive $447,000 for medical expenses and $2,522,880 for past and future pain and suffering.
Gordon blames his illness on the Winston cigarettes he began smoking as a teenager. RJR countered that Gordon chose to smoke despite knowing the risks to his health.
The plaintiff’s attorney argued that Gordon never saw the messages RJR put out about the health risks associated with smoking and that consumer expectations in decades past were very different than today.
The case, which is unrelated to the historic Engle class action, relied on only two claims—defective product and negligence—and demanded no punitive damages, which allowed it to reach a conclusion relatively quickly.
These two trials come on the heels of an April trial in Miami, where a jury cleared Philip Morris of any liability for a longtime smoker’s stroke.
In February, an Oregon jury returned a defense verdict for RJR over responsibility for a smoker’s fatal lung cancer.
May 26, 2021
Poda Patents Closed-Ended HnB Cigarette

Photo: Poda Lifestyle and Wellness
Poda Lifestyle and Wellness expects to receive patent protection for its Poda zero-cleaning heat-not-burn (HnB) technology in Europe and the United States soon.
The Poda system uses proprietary biodegradable single-use pods. The design prevents cross-contamination between the heating devices and the pods, eliminating cleaning requirements and providing users with a convenient and enjoyable potentially reduced-risk smoking experience.
The company says its pods are the first and only cigarettes to have a completely closed end. A closed-ended cigarette utilizing HnB heating technology allows for an ashless experience and provides for consistent quality each time a new pod is inserted into the heating device.
Poda Lifestyle and Wellness’ research and development commenced in January 2015. The Poda zero-cleaning technology was granted a Canadian patent in 2018 with patent entries filed in more than 65 additional countries.
“We have spent years of research and development with regards to our invention and are very pleased to see that our invention has been granted a patent in Canada,” said Poda CEO Ryan Selby in a statement.
“We have filed for patents in 65 other countries and expect USA and European patents to follow in short order now that we have received the Canadian patent.”
We have spent years of R&D and are very pleased to see that our invention has been granted a patent in Canada.
Ryan Selby , CEO, Poda
“This will protect our company for many years ahead as we launch Poda into the global marketplace as the first heat-not-burn system that allows users to experience maintenance-free heating of substrates such as tobacco or dried plant material with zero cross-contamination when switching from one substrate to another.”
May 26, 2021
Farmers Targeted by Dishonest Middlemen

Photo: Taco Tuinstra
Many small-scale farmers in Zimbabwe complain they are being impoverished by merchants who are luring them into a debt trap.
According to an article by AP, unscrupulous middlemen offer farmers loans to pay for fertilizer, seed and firewood for curing. In addition to repaying the loans with interest, farmers must sell the crop at a price set by the merchant, who then sells it to the highest bidder at auction.
Farmers end up earning only a fraction of what the tobacco fetched at the sales floor.
For more than 60 years, tobacco was a lucrative export crop from which white farmers profited. But after the year 2000 when President Robert Mugabe’s supporters began seizing white-owned farms, often violently, tobacco production plummeted. The flue-cured tobacco crop dropped from a 1998 peak of 260 million kg to just 50 million kg in 2008.
Since then, tobacco production by Black farmers has grown. Before Mugabe’s land reforms, the bulk of the tobacco crop was grown on a few thousand white-owned commercial plantations. Today, it is grown by more than 145,000 small-scale Black growers. Zimbabwe’s tobacco crop is estimated to be 200 million kg this year, up from 180 million kg last year.

At the heart of the problem is the inability of resettled farmers to raise their own finance through banks. Banks fear that they will be left holding a piece of paper if a farmer fails to repay.
John Robertson, economist
Before the land reforms, Zimbabwe’s commercial banks gave loans to white farmers so they could purchase inputs for their crops. But the banks pulled out years ago because the government has not issued transferable ownership deeds to the Black farmers resettled on the formerly white-owned land. This means they have no collateral to secure commercial bank loans.
At the heart of the problem is the inability of resettled farmers to raise their own finance through banks, said economist and analyst John Robertson.
“Banks fear that they will be left holding a piece of paper if a farmer fails to repay. They can’t touch the land,” said Robertson.
While many farmers are contracting with reputable leaf merchants who buy tobacco directly for their customers, the difficulty of securing bank loans leaves others vulnerable to predatory middlemen.
The government says the solution lies with a state-owned Land Bank launched in April, which would loan farmers money for their tobacco crops at reasonable rates.
May 25, 2021
Demand for Menthol Liquid up After Ban

Photo: Max
A year to the day since menthol cigarettes were banned in the U.K., more than two-thirds of vapor retailers are reporting a rise in sales of menthol-flavored e-liquids, according to a study by the U.K. Vaping Industry Association (UKVIA).
The ban last year, which also prevented menthol filters, papers and skinny cigarettes from being produced or sold in the U.K., followed a four-year phasing-out period, which saw smaller packs of rolling tobacco and 10-packs of cigarettes banned in 2017.
The study revealed that more than 70 percent of owners of brick-and-mortar stores and online retail operations said they had seen an uptake in demand for menthol vape products.
And, while fruit e-liquids remained the customer favorite, menthol was the second most popular flavor, according to the survey.
“What we have witnessed in the U.K. is that menthol as an ingredient in vape e-liquids has continued to increase following the combustible menthol ban and is now one of the most important components of all e-liquids,” said Tim Phillips, independent analyst at ECigIntelligence.

Menthol as an ingredient in vape e-liquids has continued to increase following the combustible menthol ban and is now one of the most important components of all e-liquids.
Tim Phillips, analyst, ECigIntelligence
UKVIA Director-General John Dunne said the survey results were a clear indication of the importance e-cigarettes have in helping smokers to quit their habits in favor of vaping, which Public Health England acknowledges is far less harmful than combustible tobacco.
“Our survey of retailers clearly shows that, as menthol cigarettes were removed from sale, vape stores witnessed an increase in sales of the same flavor in e-liquid form,” he said.
“It is not unreasonable to surmise that the majority of menthol e-liquid sales above retailers’ baseline pre-ban were to those who would have previously smoked cigarettes.”
May 25, 2021