British American Tobacco Sustainability Report 2011

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Sustainability Report 2011

We have a responsibility to seek to reduce the health risks of our products. In the future, we expect to be able to offer adult tobacco consumers reduced toxicant cigarettes and new categories such as low-toxicant smokeless tobacco and regulatory approved nicotine products.

Demonstrating that new products are less risky poses many scientific and regulatory challenges. To tackle these, we expect to see many more research collaborations being established involving the tobacco industry, academia and tobacco research centres. This will hopefully lead to the development of a regulatory assessment framework for potentially reduced-risk products that is underpinned by sound science.

More and more it seems clear to me that, to reduce the health impacts from smoking, prevention and quitting initiatives alone will not be enough. We need a broader approach – one that accepts that many adults are going to continue to use tobacco and nicotine products. That means developing reduced-risk products. David O’Reilly, Group Scientific Director

Read David’s full viewpoint

How we’re preparing for the future

Identifying which smoke toxicants pose the greatest health risks and developing new technologies to reduce these.
Developing a framework of scientific tests to evaluate the likely health impacts of potentially reduced-risk products.
Our stand-alone company, Nicoventures, is exploring the development and commercialisation of regulatory approved nicotine products.
Engaging with regulators, scientists and the public health community to develop the scientific and regulatory frameworks needed to deliver reduced-risk products.