Page 4 - TOB Magazine March/April 2013
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TOBACCO OUTLET BUSINESS
MARCH/APRIL 2013
NEWS & TRENDS
Highlights
FDA Change
at the Top
The Center for Tobacco Prod-
ucts will be led by Mitch Zeller.
Mitch Zeller, an FDA veteran who helped
spearhead efforts to regulate the tobacco
industry in the 1990s, is taking over for Dr.
Lawrence Deyton, who recently stepped
down as the head of the agency’s Center for
Tobacco Products to become a professor
of medicine and health policy at George
Washington University.
Zeller currently serves as an executive
with a Maryland-based pharmaceutical
consulting firm. He previously served as
an executive with the American Legacy
Foundation.
Zeller brings more than 30 years of FDA-
related experience to his new role, including
six years serving as a public interest
attorney working on food issues, five years
as a congressional counsel working on
food and drug issues, and seven years as a
senior FDA official. During his tenure at the
FDA, he also oversaw the agency’s original
assertion of jurisdiction over tobacco
products and was the founding director of
the FDA’s Office of Tobacco Programs.
New Packaging
for Camel Snus
R.J. Reynolds recently debuted new
Fresh Seal packaging for Camel snus.
The packaging change will help ensure
freshness without refrigeration and also
incorporates a thinner, easier-to-carry tin.
R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company
has transformed its non-corporate
website dedicated to educating
wholesalers and retailers on tobacco
tax issues, renaming the site
from
to www.
transformtobacco.com. In addition
to the name change, the updated
structure and content of the website
reflects the company’s strategic
framework around three key
transformationpillars: TobaccoHarm
Reduction, Commercial Integrity and
Youth Tobacco Prevention.
“This new website will continue
to inform retailers and wholesalers
about the impact higher cigarette
excise taxes will have on their
businesses,” says Steve Kottak,
director
of
trade
marketing
communications. “It will also serve
as an education and activation tool
on other critical tobacco-related
issues that can adversely affect the
tobacco industry.”
Among its many features,
transformtobacco.com is mobile
device friendly and it features an
interactive state-by-state map with
key information, links to social
media channels
.
com/transformtobacco and www.
twitter.com/transformtob), and fully
updated content on tobacco issues.
Most importantly, visitors can quickly
connect with their legislators via toll-
free call, email (determined by zip
code), and by following steps for
ongoing relationship building with
elected officials.
RJR Redesigns Cig Tax Web Site
New site to be called
