77 



Mr. Wyden. Have you found Brown & Williamson 



Mr. Kessler. There is one other, Andrew, can we just — there is 

 an LTR quote that I think is interesting. This is from a quote in 

 World Tobacco and it talks about a European maker of reconsti- 

 tuted tobacco essentially using the dust and stems to make a sheet. 

 And they talk about how various European cigarette houses cannot 

 only reduce tar in the sheet it sends back to clients, it is able to 

 work into client's scrap and waste new tobacco of the rustica type, 

 which I mentioned earlier is rich in nicotine in order to change the 

 relationship of nicotine and tar. 



It is also able to do the same by an alternate method of adding 

 salts of pure nicotine into the slurry that eventually becomes to- 

 bacco sheet. 



The article goes on that this is an operation that adding purer 

 nicotine into the slurry into the sheet is an operation parallel to 

 though more exact than that on which U.S. geneticists are engaged 

 in this seeking to develop types of tobacco that are low on tar but 

 fairly rich in nicotine. Similar processes. 



Mr. Wyden. Now are you investigating these issues? 



Mr. Kessler. We are. Our investigation continues, sir. 



Mr. Wyden. All right. Has Brown & Williamson been forthcom- 

 ing in your requests at the Agency for documents that would clear 

 up these remaining questions you have? 



Mr. Kessler. I am not in a position, Mr. Chairman, to editorial- 

 ize in any way on 



Mr. Wyden. Let me ask specifically. I understand that the Agen- 

 cy requested a number of documents about 6 weeks ago in early 

 May and which the Agency felt that those documents were nec- 

 essary for its inquiry. My reports show they have not been forth- 

 coming; is that correct? 



Mr. Kessler. On I think it was — it was early May, two of our 

 two senior counsels for the Agency requested after reports in the 

 press of documents that we believe sound relevant regarding the 

 pharmacological and physiological effects of nicotine, we asked out- 

 side counsel for those documents on the physiological and pharma- 

 cological effects of nicotine. Those documents have not been pro- 

 duced to the Agency as of this 6 weeks later. 



Mr. Wyden. They would be relevant to your inquiry with respect 

 to knowledge and intent concerning manipulation of nicotine? 



Mr. Kessler. Absolutely. 



Mr. Wyden. My last question that I had, Dr. Kessler, concerns 

 the nicotine enhancement effects of ammonia. I have long been con- 

 cerned about these chemical additives. Now, you told us that this 

 will increase the effect of this drug, which, I think you are moving 

 to categorize as a drug, as I noted administratively. 



Have you looked at the adverse health effects that may be part 

 and parcel of smoking these chemicals such as ammonia? 



Mr. Kessler. Congressman, I think it is very important for the 

 industry to release certainly all its inhalation studies and all of its 

 pyrolysis studies. I think it is disingenuous to simply state that 599 

 chemicals that are on the list, are used in foods digested. The issue 

 is not what the effect of those compounds are when they are di- 

 gested. 



