TAAT and the rise of hemp cigarettes

As nicotine products manufacturers continue to promote their products with harm reduction claims, a new market for products claiming to be tobacco-free and/or nicotine-free might be growing and mimicking traditional tobacco marketing tactics. TAAT, introduced to US markets in late 2020, appears to be capitalising on harm reduction marketing opportunities, appealing to consumers who are looking for ‘safer’ alternatives to tobacco cigarettes. TAAT’s Chief Executive Officer Michael Saxon spent 25 years in the tobacco industry, including at Philip Morris USA and Altria, and helped launch Accord (now IQOS) heated tobacco products.

TAAT states that their products are made from a proprietary blend (‘Beyond Tobacco’) of hemp and ‘100% food grade ingredients’ with up to 25 mg cannabidiol (CBD) per stick and less than 0.3% delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the federal legal limit set by the 2018 Farm Bill.4 TAAT is available in Original, Smooth and Menthol flavours. These products are not advertised as having psychoactive properties but are designed to mimic the ‘sensory components of smoking’ tobacco cigarettes5 and to allow adult smokers ‘to keep the experience of smoking they love without consuming nicotine’ by imitating the packaging, appearance, taste, burn, smoke and ash of tobacco cigarettes.