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is in fact responding. They are making products that have low tar 

 and nicotine to respond to the U.S. manufacturer. 



Now, I don't want you to get the impression that the U.S. manu- 

 facturer owns much of the Japanese market. We don't. I think the 

 last figure I saw was somewhere around between 10 and 15 per- 

 cent of the cigarettes sold in Japan are manufactured by what we 

 call U.S. manufacturers or making a U.S. blended cigarette. 



But I think we are dealing with a subject here and I can under- 

 stand how there can be an honest disagreement of individuals who 

 have the best interests of the American citizen in mind, but I can 

 tell you that our company tries to market things that are to the 

 best of our ability that we know what we are doing and try to mar- 

 ket things that the consumer, the American public makes the 

 choice to use. 



Mr. Greenwood. You've addressed some of the concerns that I 

 have because I can't quite imagine the FDA designing cigarettes for 

 the American public. It seems an absurdity. It seems contrary to 

 the purpose of the FDA for them to say we will design cigarettes 

 and will certify them to be relatively safe. I don't think that's 

 where the FDA belongs. 



I think that's a consumer choice. Consumers can choose to smoke 

 zero cigarettes, a lot of cigarettes, low nicotine cigarettes, or high 

 nicotine cigarettes. They have a lot of choices, and the choice that 

 they make if they want to be safest and minimize the risk, would 

 be to smoke no cigarettes at all. 



But I certainly have a hard time imagining the FDA inserting it- 

 self in here and sajring, "Well start designing cigarettes," any more 

 than I can imagine the FDA going to all of the California wineries 

 and starting to tell them, "We are going to tell you how to blend 

 your wines." I think they'd run into a lot of resistance there as well 

 and it wouldn't be a proper place for the FDA to be. 



Mr. Sandefur. Yes, sir. 



Mr. Greenwood. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 



Mr. Waxman. I thank you, Mr. Greenwood. 



Mr. Bryant. 



Mr. Bryant, Mr. Sandefur, you were just talking about foreign 

 brands a moment ago and speaking about the fact that, unfortu- 

 nately, in foreign countries, levels of nicotine and tar are very high. 



Why does that concern you? 



Mr. Sandefur. It doesn't concern me. 



Mr. Bryant. Why did you comment on it? 



Mr. Sandefur. I commented on it to suggest that if the intent 

 of the FDA or Congress and the FDA is to reduce the levels of nico- 

 tine in the cigarette smoked in the United States, there is a risk 

 involved because nicotine is an important constituent in the taste 

 of the cigarettes, and if you take it out, the consumer won't like it 

 and then find cigarettes outside of the jurisdiction of the FDA to 

 smoke. 



Mr. Bryant. I see you are not concerned about the health effects 

 of high tar and nicotine content? 



Mr. Sandefur. Well 



Mr. Bryant. You are not expressing the opinion that high tar 

 and nicotine levels have anything to do with health factors? 



