Smokeless tobacco marketing and sales are regulated at the federal, state and local levels.
At the federal level, for example, they are regulated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Smokeless tobacco products are also regulated by the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax Trade Bureau, which designates tobacco classifications and enforces tax and permitting laws. At the state level, for example, the state attorneys general enforce the Smokeless Tobacco Master Settlement Agreement (STMSA).
USSTC is the only smokeless tobacco manufacturer to sign the STMSA with 45 state attorneys general. Under this agreement, the company adopted an array of marketing and advertising restrictions, and contributed to a national fund, the primary purpose of which is to fund programs to reduce youth usage of tobacco products. USSTC today remains the only smokeless tobacco company in the country participating in this
agreement.
This agreement includes a variety of restrictions on the sale and marketing of smokeless tobacco products, including prohibiting:
- use of cartoons in advertising, promotion, packaging or labeling of tobacco products;
- most outdoor advertising, including billboards and stadium ads;
- most transit ads;
- paid product placement;
- brand name sponsored concerts; and
- distribution of merchandise with smokeless tobacco brand names and logos.
The FDA has implemented restrictions on smokeless tobacco product marketing and advertising, including:
- prohibiting the sale of smokeless tobacco products in vending machines, self-service displays, or other impersonal modes of sales, except in very limited situations;
- restricting sampling of smokeless tobacco;
- prohibiting smokeless tobacco brand name sponsorships; and
- prohibiting gifts or other items in exchange for buying smokeless tobacco.
Read more about
Federal Regulation of Tobacco
