Role of trade associations in managing conflict between US cigarette and smokeless tobacco industries

Objective The merging of US smokeless tobacco (SLT) and cigarette industries in the early 2000s was highly predictable based on cigarette manufacturers’ long-standing interest in developing SLT products. Yet, conflicts preceding the merger have not been examined, thus, warranting an investigation of how trade associations managed industry relations. Methods Materials from the Truth Tobacco Industry Documents Library were searched using names of the two trade associations, the Tobacco Institute (TI) and Smokeless Tobacco Council (STC). Names of committees, US state legislation and influential personnel employed by TI, STC and tobacco manufacturers formed the basis for additional searches. A total of 290 internal documents from the 1980s and 1990s were analysed for content. Results The cigarette industry’s power over the SLT industry dictated how trade associations managed relations. While STC depended on TI for legislative support, TI depended on STC to align with its policy positions. Otherwise, any unresolved difference, notably the younger minimum age for sampling SLT, could lead US state legislators to enact indiscriminate policy affecting SLT and cigarettes (ie, complete sampling ban). Policy differences at the state level created a greater rift between trade associations than more consequential issues such as marketing SLT as a cigarette alternative. Conclusion TI’s quest for STC to align with its policy positions was intended to minimise restrictive measures on cigarettes, akin to transnational tobacco companies’ acquisition of e-cigarette companies to influence tobacco control policy. Based on recent events, acquisitions of non-cigarette tobacco companies may be scrutinised by the US Federal Trade Commission.