Big Tobacco's Big Picture

In the midst of this legislative session, there have been a slew of tobacco registry bills deliberated by states across the United States. If you follow the money, the key lobbyists pushing these bills may come as a surprise. Indeed, Altria, one of the largest tobacco companies, has been fighting for increased tobacco regulation. This fact alone should raise some eyebrows.

Zoom out, and take a look at what the implications are of a tobacco registry. Sure, a vetted list of products that can be sold in the state sounds great on paper. But the obvious targets of these registries are the misunderstood and poorly-legislated vapor industry. Allowing the FDA’s approved list of products to be the arbiter of legal products denies an entire maligned industry their right to a fair shake in the marketplace. The homegrown vapor companies and retailers of the USA have consistently been pushed aside by the Food and Drug Administration, which is demonstrated by the fact that the “approved” list of items are all from Big Tobacco Companies.

The fact is, Altria and others feel threatened by the emergence of the vapor industry. They have a vested interest in keeping the public smoking cigarettes, or remaining within their nicotine ecosystem. Altria has effectively removed themselves from the vapor industry, hot off the tails of their failed involvement with Juul Labs. As of March 31, 2025 Altria can no longer import their NJoy vapor products, which are also manufactured in China, like 99% of other vapor products. This is because they were sued by Juul Labs in the International Trade Court and were found to have violated Juul's patents.

Now that there’s an understanding of where Altria stands in the nicotine market today, some big questions come to mind. Why would a Big Tobacco Company try crowding out an industry they’re not even participating in? Could it be that there is evidence that stopping the sales of vapor products directly correlates with an increase in cigarette smoking? Perhaps some of the scrutiny placed upon the vapor industry should come back around on the tobacco companies pushing for increased regulations.