Our Commitment to Underage Access Prevention
Reynolds American Inc. and its operating companies (Reynolds) are committed to preventing those under 21 from accessing tobacco, vapor and nicotine products and from being exposed to marketing about the subject.
Reynolds uses multiple third-party data sources and technologies in our efforts to prevent underage access to tobacco, vapor and nicotine products.
Our products are responsibly marketed to existing adult tobacco, vapor and nicotine consumers through tailored advertisements that only use models who are aged 35 and older.
We do not want our products in the hands of youth. Period. We remain committed to operating responsibly and working collaboratively with regulators and retail partners. We’re using cutting-edge technology, trusted data, and strong marketing controls to improve our tools for underage protection.
-Shay Mustafa, SVP Business Communications & Sustainability
Underage access prevention is critically important across all areas of our business.
Reynolds is the U.S. parent company of, among others, R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company; Santa Fe Natural Tobacco Company, Inc.; American Snuff Company, LLC; R. J. Reynolds Vapor Company; Modoral Brands, Inc. (collectively the ‘operating companies’ or ‘companies’). Reynolds Marketing Services Company (RMSC) provides support for the operating companies and plays a critical role in our Underage Access Prevention efforts.
Continuous Innovation
At Reynolds, we are committed to a multi-category strategy to provide adult tobacco and nicotine consumers a choice in products. As part of our vision for “A Better Tomorrow™,” we aim to establish the highest standards in the industry as we work to offer a broad portfolio of products to meet adult tobacco and nicotine consumer preferences. Using the latest science and technology, we consistently work to improve our tools for underage protection.
As part of our A Better Tomorrow™ corporate purpose, we conduct our business ethically, legally, and responsibly. Reynolds employees have been—and will continue to be—committed to Retailer Compliance, Responsible Marketing, and Underage Access Prevention through a variety of trainings and programs.
SoBC
Our Standards of Business Conduct (SoBC) covers underage access prevention and other areas such as anti-bribery and anti-corruption, political contributions, anti-money laundering, and tax evasion. Our annual SoBC sign-off is a key component of delivering our business in an ethical and lawful manner and with integrity. We have consistently achieved 100% sign-off completion.
iCommit
We educate our employees on effective ways of marketing our products while delivering on our commitment to underage access prevention. All of our employees must complete a training module covering various marketing practices and guidelines to ensure that across all channels, our marketing aims to appeal to tobacco and nicotine consumers aged 25 and up.
Right Decisions Right Now Program
We believe that educating youth about the dangers of tobacco, vapor and nicotine product use is the right thing to do. It’s important to our companies’ long-term strategic goal of transforming the nicotine industry. Underage prevention makes good business sense because, as we help the continuing decline in underage cigarette use, all interested parties and the public may gain a greater understanding of our commitment to this issue.
In 1991, we began the “Right Decisions Right Now (RDRN)” underage tobacco prevention program that offers materials to educators, parents, and students in grades 5-9, to provide them with tools to help persuade youth to be tobacco- and nicotine-free by making good decisions. The “Right Decisions Right Now: Be Tobacco Free” program was independently tested nationally and was found to be successful on two key measures: (1) recent smoking levels decreased significantly in test schools, particularly for grades 8-9; and (2) the program lowered anticipated tobacco use among middle school-age students. In addition, students’ susceptibility to peer pressure and their perception of the popularity of tobacco-using peers both showed significant declines versus the control groups. The program also has been updated to include a vapor module.
Today, we continue to support the Right Decisions Right Now program. Reynolds employees are encouraged to present the RDRN program to a youth-focused group and each group is entitled to a grant of $500 – $1,000.
