Chapter 13 
Cigarette Design Technologies Reduce Smoke 
Yield and Expand Consumer Ch oices: The 
Role and Utility of the FTC Test AFethod 
David E. Townsend 
BACKGROUND The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) test method for measuring tar 
and nicotine yields of cigarettes provides accurate and reliable information. 
Comparison of yields of various brands is a key factor consumers use to make 
objective choices in the marketplace. Another key factor is the taste of the 
cigarette, which in most cases is related to the tar and nicotine yield. 
Calls for reduced tar yields from cigarettes came from the popular press, 
the scientific literature, and the public health community beginning in the 
late 1950's. Many of these included statements that tar reduction would 
reduce the relative risks for certain diseases. 
The implementation of FTC testing for tar and nicotine in 1967 was an 
important step for cigarette manufacturers to communicate information on 
lower tar products to consumers for them to use to make informed decisions 
in the marketplace. 
Even at that time, FTC understood the limitations of standardized 
machine smoking and recognized that no standard method would be able 
to take into account the wide range in human smoking behavior: 
No two human smokers smoke in the same way. No individual 
smoker smokes in the same fashion. The speed at which one 
smokes varies both among smokers, and usually also varies with 
the same individual under different circumstances even within the 
same day. Some take long puffs (or draws); some take short puffs. 
That variation affects the "tar" and nicotine quantity in the smoke 
generated (Federal Trade Commission, 1967). 
The FTC also recognized that the FTC method could not predict the 
absolute smoke yield any individual smoker might receive from a particular 
cigarette: 
No test can precisely duplicate conditions of actual human 
smoking and, within fairly wide limits, no one method can be 
said to be either "right" or "wrong." The Commission considers 
it most important that the test results be based on a reasonable 
standardized method and that they be capable of being presented 
to the public in a manner that is readily understandable (Federal 
Trade Commission, 1967). 
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