143 



We would also make the point that FDA is an overburdened 

 Agency now. I think this committee knows probably better than 

 anybody else in Congress what a track they have of doing the 

 things that they are already directed to do without getting into this 

 area of trying to regulate cigarettes and trying to regulate ingredi- 

 ents. 



My entire written statement refers to other provisions of the 

 Synar bill that I will not go into because they haven't been the sub- 

 ject of this hearing. I will stop now and if the chairman would in- 

 dulge us, I would like to ask that Dr. Spears be permitted to follow 

 me. 



Again, I would like to make the point that Dr. Spears has a 

 Ph.D. in chemistry, has been a research chemist, he is Chief of Op- 

 erations for Lorillard Tobacco Company and has been in the ciga- 

 rette manufacturing business since 1959. 



Mr. Waxman. Thank you Mr. Whitley. 



Dr. Spears? If you would pull the microphone closer to you. 



STATEMENT OF ALEXANDER W. SPEARS III 



Mr. Spears. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, members of the sub- 

 committee, my name is Alexander Spears and I am Vice chairman 

 and Chief Operating Officer for Lorillard Tobacco Company. 



Within the last few weeks the ABC's Day One show has featured 

 tv/o cigarette-related programs alleging that the tobacco industry 

 adds nicotine to cigarette tobacco for the purpose of manipulating 

 the dose of nicotine to the consumer. These statements are com- 

 pletely false. 



David Kessler, Commissioner of the FDA, who testified here ear- 

 lier, stated in a letter to Scott Ballin of the Coalition on Smoking 

 OR Health dated February 25, 1994, that manufacturers commonly 

 add nicotine to cigarettes to deliver specific amounts of nicotine. 

 This letter was released to the media perpetuating its false asser- 

 tions. 



The level of nicotine in tobacco products is solely determined by 

 the tobacco we buy and the blending of the different tobaccos dur- 

 ing manufacturing. Tar and nicotine yields of our products are de- 

 termined by a combination of the tobacco blend and the construc- 

 tion of the cigarette; for example the length, circumference, filter, 

 tip, ventilation, tobacco density. 



The Federal Trade Commission has reported the results of tar 

 and nicotine analysis by brand for years. We do not set levels of 

 nicotine for particular brands of cigarettes. Nicotine follows the tar 

 level. The easy proof that no nicotine manipulation has occurred 

 may be found in the tar and nicotine data from the 1950's to 

 1990's. 



If I could have the first chart please. This graph comes from the 

 Surgeon General's report and it depicts the change in tar and nico- 

 tine from the 1950's until the 1990's. It also depicts the change in 

 nicotine from the 1950's to 1990's, and the insert indicates that tar 

 has decreased in this period of time by 69 percent and that nicotine 

 has decreased by a similar amount of 69 percent. 



I could not help but notice in Dr. Kessler's testimony that he pre- 

 sented some graphs which might suggest something different, and 



