As cigarette smoking rates have dropped, the tobacco industry has created new products to keep users hooked and find new customers. These "other tobacco products" (OTPs) are harmful addictive, plus they're marketed aggressively and priced inexpensively. That's not safe, not fair and not good for business.
The sweet flavors and candy-like packaging of these products makes it ahrd to believe that life-long smokers are the target audience. Strawberry, grape, apple and chocolate are just a few of the kid-friendly flavors used for new products like cigarellos. Some of the products come in packaging that resembles markers and lipgloss. The products' harmless appearance and cheaper prices make them more appealing to young people.
Recent report findings from our Wisconsin Wins (WI Wins) campaign New Product Watch project concluded that these products are easily accessible to youth. In Racine County over half our schools are within six blocks of a tobacco retailer and that tobacco retailers outnumber schools more than 2 to 1. State law does not require all types of tobacco products to be behind the counter and a tax loophole makes the price of some tobacco products as affordable as candy.
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The New Product Watch project keeps watch for new tobacco products that come on the market and are available for sale at our communities' tobacco retailers. It is an opportunity to spread education and awareness as part of the WI Wins campaign. The Wi Wins campaign decreases youth access to tobacco products through tobacco retailer tobacco compliance checks and provides free tobacco sales training for retailers.
The 2012 rate of illegal tobacco sales to minors if Racine county was 10.9%.