British American Tobacco Group R&D Acquires Novel Mass Spectrometry Technology

British American Tobacco Group R&D has become the first laboratory in the UK to benefit from Folded Flight Path (FFP®) Time-of-Flight Mass Spectrometry equipment pioneered by Leco Corporation, St Joseph, MI. This instrument employs a multi-reflecting flight path through a chamber of only 70cm to create flight paths of up to 40m and yield a mass resolving power of up to 50,000. Whilst remarkable in its own right, this very high resolving power is achieved at a mass accuracy of <1ppm across the full mass range with data acquisition speeds of up to 200sps.

The Pegasus GC-HRT (High Resolution TOFMS) is in operation at the Group R&D laboratories in Southampton to support BAT’s research into understanding the chemical complexity of tobacco smoke. It is the latest addition to BAT’s expanding analytical capability and complements collaborative research at the University of Liège, where a group led by Professor Jef Focant is using another novel Leco instrument, the Pegasus 4D GCxGC-TOFMS, for similar purposes.

The additional chromatographic dimension and True Signal Deconvolution of the Pegasus 4D allows high chromatographic and spectral separation and thus the identification of large numbers of substances in smoke samples. Both instruments utilise Leco’s integral ChromaTOF® software which is the only software platform used for sample acquisition, data processing and reporting.

Dr Chris Wright, Head of Analytical Science, said: “Our strategic purchase of the new Leco instruments keeps us at the forefront of technology in this challenging field of research. We are very pleased with their performance and the new capabilities that they provide.”

Garagiola tireless in his antitobacco campaign

Joe Garagiola walked into the Giants' clubhouse, sat next to Willie Mays and reminisced about baseball in the 1950s. Garagiola's final weeks as a player were as a rarely used catcher on the '54 Giants, who swept Cleveland in the World Series.

Garagiola told a story, and Mays laughed.

Mays told a story, and Garagiola laughed.

They combined on a few stories, and everyone in the vicinity laughed.

Then Garagiola, as he often does, turned the conversation to his fight against the use of smokeless tobacco, and nobody laughed.

"Here's the guy you should emulate," Garagiola said, his voice rising as he points to Mays. "They threw the ball, he hit it. They hit the ball, he caught it. That's Willie Mays' great theory on baseball. Emulate him, not some guy who has tobacco in his back pocket. Kids see that."

Garagiola, 86 and six years older than Mays, has spent much of his life talking to players about the hazards of chewing tobacco, testifying before Congress and state legislatures and citing horrid examples of the deadly effects of tobacco use.

Major League Baseball and the players' union finally budged, albeit an inch. As part of the new collective bargaining agreement, players cannot go on the field carrying tobacco tins (often noticed in back pockets) or pouches in their uniforms, or be seen using tobacco in interviews.

The regulations, which certainly are being overlooked in spring training, are cosmetic - Garagiola wants tobacco banned; no use at all on the field - but at least they're a start, he admitted.

"I like it," Garagiola said. "But it's like blaming the Johnstown Flood on a leaky faucet, for goodness sake. Why don't you just let a ballplayer smoke a cigarette in the on-deck circle? What's this going to do? What the hell's the difference? They chew it all the time. What I'm trying to do is get it kicked out."

Tobacco is banned in the minors. Minor-leaguers have no union, and the commissioner's office implemented a no-tobacco rule, but don't tell Garagiola that minor-leaguers don't dip or chew.

"That's the worst myth in the world," he said. "They put sunflower seeds in there, mix it in with tobacco and spit sunflower seeds."

Back in the day, Garagiola was a tobacco user. He quit after his grade-school daughter asked if he was going to die from cancer. The other day, he vowed to thank Giants manager Bruce Bochy for recently telling his how-I-quit-tobacco story to The Chronicle's Gwen Knapp.

"What you need is more things like that," Garagiola said. "What Bochy did, that's more than a story, believe me."

Garagiola wants players to come out against tobacco use and eventually agree to have it banned, but he's getting little support. An Arizona resident, he said whenever he walks into the Diamondbacks' clubhouse, players scatter, knowing what message he's about to deliver, knowing they don't want to be told to kick the habit.

"One guy, I told him, 'You put that tin in your back pocket, you think you're tough. You think you're macho. John Wayne. That's bull. Don't do it for yourself. Do it for your family,' " Garagiola said. "All these guys say, 'Oh, when I get out of the game or when my kids grow up, I'm going to quit.' I say, 'Oh, really? When did you get that contract from God?' "

The Royal Smoke Shop is the one-stop shop for all tobacco needs

The Royal Smoke Shop is a one-stop shop for all tobacco needs. Carrying the finest products from all the leading manufacturers worldwide, Royal Smoke Shop guarantees that customers will be satisfied with the store’s wide assortment of products and services.

Current specials include a Buy One, Get One Free sale on Herbal Incense and items on the back wall of the store are running 10 percent off.

“We have been in business for nearly a year now and we pride ourselves at being the one-stop shop for all your tobacco needs with the highest quality of smoke shop products available,” Kady Davenport, of The Royal Smoke Shop, said. “We sell the best quality cigarette and pipe tobacco along with all your smoking needs.”

The Royal Smoke Shop is located in Webster and serves a wide area, including the communities of Clear Lake and Friendswood. The tobacco store offers a wide range of the highest quality smoke shop products at competitive prices at a very convenient location.

NSW Police raid 'medicinal marijuana crop'

Police have raided the property of a man who openly distributes marijuana as a medical aid.

More than 200 plants and a quantity of cannabis were seized last Thursday from the home of Mullaways Medical Cannabis, at Crescent Head on the NSW north coast, a police spokeswoman said.

The company, run by 56-year-old Tony Bower, breeds a specific strain of the plant which Mr Bower makes into an extract and gives for free to more than 300 patients.

Mr Bower was issued a court attendance notice for the cultivating an indictable quantity of a prohibited plant and supplying a prohibited drug.

But Mr Bower said he has always been transparent with police and government authorities are aware of his operation and what he does.

"I have worked tirelessly to try to please people in government but continue to be treated with disrespect," Mr Bower said in a statement sent to ninemsn.

"I know that I can help and even heal people with my medicine, a medicine that doesn't get people stoned."

Mr Bower dubbed last week's raid "a new low" for NSW police.

"Through the confiscation of this medical cannabis crop, the NSW police have deprived many Australians their medicine," the statement read.

"It is a form of discrimination against sufferers of chronic illness and pain who need this medicine."

Each plant is labelled for specific patients, who are required to provide letters of support from their doctors in order to receive the drug.

Mr Bower is due to appear in court on April 16.

He can apply for an exemption from the charges if he can prove in court he grows cannabis for medical use, a police spokeswoman said.

However, there is no law specifically allowing the use of medicinal marijuana in Australia.

Medicinal marijuana is sometimes used to relieve pain and nausea in patients with cancer, HIV, migraines or spinal cord injuries.

Chirwa urges planning for tobacco marketing

THE Zambia Co-operatives Federation has urged the government to quickly address the chaotic tobacco marketing before the opening of the next auction floors.

In an interview, Zambia Co-operatives Federation (ZCF) director general James Chirwa said the government ought to adequately prepare for the coming tobacco marketing season.

Key stakeholders in the agriculture sector have described the last tobacco marketing season as chaotic saying there were massive underpayments to farmers for their produce.

"We need to have proper and predictable policies overall in the agriculture sector and this includes those to do with tobacco farmers," he said.

Chirwa advised the government to develop properly defined policies which would state the roles and run-up activities to be undertaken in crop marketing.

He said the role of the private sector, the government and financial sector players should be well defined in government policy to address the challenges facing tobacco producers.

"The policy of the government must be predictable to allow people to plan and this is what we want to see as a co-operatives movement. We believe that agriculture in this country, with abundant resources, Zambia has potential to emerge as the major supplier of agriculture produce and products for the region and beyond but this goes with consistency in policies," he said.

Chirwa said Zambia could earn a lot from tobacco sales but marketing challenges needed to be addressed.

"Zambia, as late as the 1980s, was a major producer of high-grade tobacco; it was competing very well with Zimbabwe and Malawi and there were in existence defined auction floors for selling of tobacco in the country. But over the years, the country has not been very elaborate on agriculture policies," he said.

"Firstly, with the coming in power of the MMD in 1991 the whole agriculture policy was sort of mixed up. People didn't know what to do and when to do it, so we saw a decline in most of the agricultural production in the country and tobacco was not spared. I know that Eastern Province was producing high-grade tobacco, including Kaoma but because of the inconsistencies in the agriculture policies, coupled with lack of markets and marketing structures, the country was no longer investing in tobacco production."

Chirwa also urged the government to back its crop diversification rhetoric with action.

He condemned the government's continued massive and exclusive spending on maize production.

"…it is unfortunate that the country has been reduced to a mono-crop nation from a multi-crop nation as it were in the times before the liberalisation of the economy…we thought that by bringing on board economic liberalisation policies, agriculture could be enhanced so that the private sector is accelerated and driven into full-scale production but what has happened is the opposite. We need to shift from mono to multi-crop kind of agriculture activity. It is not too late…," said Chirwa.

"Economic growth is about exploring all the available opportunities within the agriculture sector, not just maize."

Tobacco and machines are seized in customs raid

CUSTOMS officers raided a ‘rural farm building’ near Leighton Buzzard on Thursday in a crackdown on a counterfeit tobacco operation.

It is believed the manufacturing and distribution activities of gang behind the operation would have resulted in a loss to the public purse of £6 million.

A spokeswoman for HM Revenue & Customs could not reveal where the raid had taken place, but said 750kg of tobacco and two cutting and drying machines were seized.

Officers also seized 100 cannabis plants.

Raids also took place in Milton Keynes and Staffordshire, and a total of nine people, three of whom are believed to be illegal immigrants, were arrested.

Former taxman jailed over tobacco bribes

AS A former federal policeman and then a Tax Office investigator, Philip James Roper was used to being trusted.
But, motivated by greed, he breached that trust - and tarnished the reputation of his colleagues - by taking bribes from illegal tobacco producers, a judge said yesterday.
A County Court jury convicted Roper, 52, of dishonestly asking for a benefit, dishonestly receiving a benefit and theft. He pleaded guilty to dishonestly receiving a benefit and abuse of public office. Judge Joe Gullaci said in sentencing that Roper, who had spent nine years with the federal police before joining the Tax Office, met Jimmy Wang, involved in the chop-chop industry, at the Gotham City brothel. Roper asked Wang for the names and addresses of other chop-chop sellers and said he would look after him.
The offences occurred between June 2001 and mid-2004. Wang believed that the arrangement was beneficial because it would remove competitors, Judge Gullaci said. The information Wang provided also allowed Roper to steal tobacco leaf and cutting machines, which were sold and the profits taken by Roper. Roper also stole five 100-kilogram bales of tobacco leaf from a Dandenong property. These were sold and he shared in the profits.
He also stalled a prosecution of a woman who had sold chop-chop at the Caribbean Gardens Markets by telling his colleagues that her address could not be determined. The woman's husband had also been selling chop-chop at a supermarket in Frankston North.
Judge Gullaci called Roper's crimes an ''abuse of trust and power'' and said Roper was motivated by the lure of easy money, free meals, meeting in hotels and being feted by criminals. ''But at the bottom of it, your motivation … was greed.''
Roper was jailed for 2½ years but will be released on a recognisance order of $1000 after 14 months.

Wrightsville Beach to discuss smoking ban

Wrightsville Beach town officials will hold a public hearing Thursday to discuss instituting a smoking ban on the beach strand – and they're expecting a crowd.
The meeting, which will be held at 6 p.m. in the town's Public Safety Building to accommodate for numbers, will be a forum for supporters and opponents to air their opinions and to listen to the board's thoughts on the ban.

If passed, Wrightsville Beach would be the first beach in North Carolina to adopt the ban, joining the likes of Surfside Beach and Atlantic Beach in South Carolina.

In 2010, the Board of Aldermen voted down the ban 3-2. Board members were reluctant to pass the ban because of questions about how to enforce it.

Enforcement continues to be a point of contention. Town Manager Bob Simpson said whenever a town creates an ordinance it needs to be able to enforce it.

"As soon as you create an ordinance with a fine associated with it, which this would, it is expected to be enforced," he said. "So it puts us and law enforcement in a bad position."

Supporters of the ban say signage, peer pressure and overall awareness will be enough to enforce the ban, believing it would not require extra efforts by law enforcement. Sean Ahlum, chairman of the Cape Fear chapter of the Surfrider Foundation, said peer pressure works.

"In Santa Monica, Calif., which is a smoke-free beach, police just casually mention (the ordinance) to someone who is smoking, and they put it out," Ahlum said. "Most people want to follow the rules."

Blue Ribbon award for smoke-free food centres

Ten food centres around the island have voluntarily removed their demarcated smoking zones as part of a Health Promotion Board (HPB) programme to encourage a smoke-free environment.

They were recognised by the HPB yesterday under a Blue Ribbon initiative for their commitment. The board aims to encourage 20 per cent of the 107 food centres islandwide to be smoke-free by next year.

The Blue Ribbon initiative is part of the larger smoke-free movement that the World Health Organization (WHO) Western Pacific Region has embarked on. Singapore is the first country in the region to adopt this initiative on a nationwide scale.

"While Singapore has one of the lowest smoking prevalence in the world, recent trends suggest a rise in the prevalence, although the vast majority of Singaporeans are non-smokers," said Dr Amy Khor, Minister of State for Health.

Statistics from the HPB show that the prevalence of smoking among adults in Singapore has risen from 12.6 per cent in 2004 to 14.3 per cent in 2010.

Dr Khor added that this bottom-up approach - which engages ordinary Singaporeans to step forward and promote tobacco-free living - is one of the ways to build such smoke-free environments.

Posters will be placed around the 10 food centres to inform the public of the smoke-free policy.

"In addition to providing signages, posters and banners to distinguish them as health promoting premises for Singaporeans keen to visit smoke-free markets and food centres, HPB's health ambassadors, who are trained to help smokers quit smoking, will also be deployed at various community touchpoints island-wide," HPB chief executive officer Ang Hak Seng said.

The HPB will work with more hawker centres and coffee shops to encourage them to support the movement.

It will also train grassroots organisations and health ambassadors who will go around neighbourhoods to promote a smoke-free lifestyle and encourage voluntary no-smoking zones at void decks and common corridors.

Town top of illegal cigarette table

Smokers in a Northern Ireland town were puffing more illegal cigarettes than anyone else in the UK at the end of last year, research has found.

Two out of every three packs bought in Newtownabbey between October and December originated from the black market, according to the study.

Lisburn ranked second in the UK-wide survey commissioned by tobacco manufacturer Philip Morris, with 43% of cigarettes consumed in the city coming from illicit sources.

Crawley (31.6%), Coventry (30.3%) and London (28.5%) were the next three ranked in the top five.

Criminal gangs are known to target a town or city and flood it with illicit packets before moving their racket to the next location. This could account for the high levels in Newtownabbey and Lisburn last year.

The Exchequer loses millions every year as a result of duty evasion on black market tobacco.

According to the analysis of the last quarter of 2011, the problem is on the rise.

Almost 15% of cigarettes smoked across the UK between October and December did not have duty paid, compared with just over 10% in the previous three months.

The illicit trade includes counterfeit and genuine cigarettes smuggled into the UK without paying tax and ones manufactured and sold in the country without telling the taxman.

Counterfeits of UK cigarette brands are manufactured mainly in the Far East, with China one of the primary sources.

Leicester man facing felony marijuana charges

A 41-year-old Leicester man is facing a felony charge after his son — a kindergarten student — allegedly went to school smelling of marijuana.

According to a release from the Livingston County Sheriff’s office, Deputy Gene Chichester, the full-time school resource officer at the York Central School District, investigated the complaint of a kindergarten student coming to class with the odor of marijuana on his clothing.

Chichester and another deputy met with the child’s father, Mark Biondolillo, at his home in Leicester, and received permission to search the house after allegedly detecting a strong odor of marijuana.

The deputies discovered more than 35 ounces of marijuana packaged for sale, more than 100 plants in the growing stage, two separate growing rooms with equipment in each to grow marijuana, and an unspecified amount of money.

Biondolillo was charged with second-degree criminal possession of marijuana, a class D felony, unlawfully growing cannabis and endangering the welfare of a child. He was arraigned and held on bail.

The child is now in the custody of his mother.

Talks start on Indiana smoking ban compromise

A leading supporter of Indiana’s statewide smoking ban bill says it shouldn’t prevent cities and counties from adopting tougher restrictions.

Republican Rep. Eric Turner of Cicero said Monday that he didn’t support a provision added to the bill last week by the Senate that would block any new local smoking ordinances. That is one of several changes senators made in watering down the statewide ban.

Senators also added exemptions for bars, charity gambling operations, veterans’ homes and nursing homes. The House earlier approved a ban exempting casinos and allowing an 18-month exemption for bars.

House and Senate negotiators are working on reaching a compromise agreement by the end of this week, when legislative leaders are planning to adjourn this year’s session.

Breaking the addiction: wave goodbye to smoking

The harmful effects of smoking are well known. But knowing the risks of smoking and the benefits of stopping doesn't make it any easier to quit.

Quitting smoking is a serious commitment that requires devotion and support from friends and family. The process must be centered around your lifestyle and daily routines to ensure the addiction is kicked for good.

Don't be ashamed to acknowledge the difficulty of this task or ask for help. Before you begin the journey to stop smoking, educate yourself on what to expect and strategies for getting through challenges. Here are a few tips to help you get started: Smoking is an addiction. Don't underestimate the power of cigarettes. Each stick is a highly efficient nicotine-delivery mechanism. Smoking alters the structure and function of your brain so it constantly craves the alertness and calm produced by nicotine.

Your addiction takes many forms. Cigarettes generate two types of addiction, physical and psychological. Your body is physically dependent on nicotine, but smoking has also become a comforting habit. Cigarettes are associated with specific people, places, activities, even emotions. Physical cravings are magnified by these mental urges.

Ease your reliance by using products like Nicorette gum. Nicorette gradually weans you by providing a controlled amount of nicotine to your system without the harmful toxins, tar, carcinogens or carbon monoxide found in cigarettes.

Address your psychological dependence. The brain has already linked certain routines with smoking. You must realize these daily triggers and change your response. Instead of reaching for a cigarette on a morning break, take a nice walk around the building. Replace after-meal cigarettes with a glass of water or favorite dessert.

Smoking cigarettes damages your body, but it is reversible. Before giving in to a craving, remember that your heart and lungs are already healthier.

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