US: FDA Warns on Mislabelling Tobacco

Source from:  Tobacco Reporter  08/23/2013

US tobacco regulators sent warning letters to three small manufacturers and a retailer for promoting or selling RYO tobacco labelled pipe tobacco, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said.

Contained in the letters are alleged violations of modified risk tobacco product regulations that require obtaining an order from the FDA before putting an MRTP product on the market and sale of banned flavoured tobacco products, the FDA said.

Recipients are BnB Tobacco in Virginia, RSB Tobacco in North Carolina, Trademark Company in Minnesota doing business as Golden Valley Tobacco and Tobacco Outlet Express in Ohio, according to FDA.

Commenting on the FDA letters, Matthew Myers, the president of Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, said the agency, "has taken important steps to protect public health and fight tax evasion by initiating enforcement action against several online tobacco sellers who are illegally misbranding roll-your-own (RYO) cigarette tobacco as pipe tobacco.  This misbranding is aimed at evading higher federal taxes imposed on RYO tobacco in 2009 and FDA tobacco regulations, which currently apply to RYO tobacco but not pipe tobacco." Enditem