Colorado Health Dept. Asks RJR to Stop Selling Dissolvable Tobacco Products

DENVER -- The Colorado Department of Health is asking R.J. Reynolds to stop marketing its dissolvable tobacco products -- Camel Strips, Camel Sticks and Camel Orbs -- in the state.

The request comes as the state's medical chief said dissolvable tobacco is bad news, according to the TheDenverChannel.com. "There is no safe use of tobacco," said Dr. Chris Urbina, chief medical officer of the Colorado Department of Health.

The products are legal to sell in the state, but the Colorado Department of Health issued a resolution Wednesday asking the Winston-Salem, N.C.-based tobacco company to remove the products from stores. The department took up the issue of dissolvable tobacco products at a special meeting in August.

For now, the resolution is just a request. Colorado state legislators would have to pass a law banning the sale of dissolvable tobacco products to give the resolution any weight.

For its part, a R.J. Reynolds spokesman told the news channel that the company believes its sticks, strips and orbs are an option for adult tobacco users to consider. "These products are not candy. They are not mints. They're tobacco and they're clearly labeled," he said.

R.J. Reynolds introduced Camel Sticks, Camel Strips and Camel Orbs to Colorado adult tobacco users this past spring when it chose Denver as one of its test markets for the products, as CSNews Online previously reported.