Swedish "Snus" Hits Thailand And Laos
Laos and Thailand have emerged as unlikely leaders in the production of a Swedish smokeless tobacco known as Snus. A pinch of the damp, fudge-colored and pea-sized tobacco, rubbed on the gums, gives a nicotine rush comparable to a deep cigarette inhale.
Snus is so deeply embedded in the Swedish ethos, that it almost prevented the country from membership in the European Union – which banned smokeless tobacco. (As an exception, Sweden was allowed to join.)
The American Cancer Society’s position is that Snus is not as destructive as cigarettes, but it can cause nicotine addiction and serious cardiovascular illness.
Smokeless tobacco is extremely popular in Scandinavia and America (mostly in the south where it’s also known as dip.) But in Southeast Asia, customs officials still consider it contraband and often confiscate it from tourist’s possessions.
Swedish tourists, however, flock to the Thai-Laos region, and recently, two of those tourists have turned to the pursuit of developing a serious cottage industry of growing and distributing Snus in a region where it is essentially unknown.
Initially targeted to Swedish tourists, in an area where five percent of total visitors are Swedes, the potential market is substantial. Statistics from the Tourism Authority of Thailand state that 620,000 Scandinavians arrival annually.
Using local tobacco farmed along the Mekong River, the Swedish entrepreneurs are hoping to leverage the tourist trade as well as cultivate a whole new group of Snus users.
Thai advertising laws regarding tobacco are strict and forbid billboards, radio spots, and cigarettes on television, even obscuring actor’s smoking onscreen. But the ageless predilection to addiction may open up an entire global region to a new brand. Thanks to the influences of tourism and tobacco.
Read original article at Brandchannel.com
http://www.brandchannel.com/home/pos...-and-Laos.aspx
Laos and Thailand have emerged as unlikely leaders in the production of a Swedish smokeless tobacco known as Snus. A pinch of the damp, fudge-colored and pea-sized tobacco, rubbed on the gums, gives a nicotine rush comparable to a deep cigarette inhale.
Snus is so deeply embedded in the Swedish ethos, that it almost prevented the country from membership in the European Union – which banned smokeless tobacco. (As an exception, Sweden was allowed to join.)
The American Cancer Society’s position is that Snus is not as destructive as cigarettes, but it can cause nicotine addiction and serious cardiovascular illness.
Smokeless tobacco is extremely popular in Scandinavia and America (mostly in the south where it’s also known as dip.) But in Southeast Asia, customs officials still consider it contraband and often confiscate it from tourist’s possessions.
Swedish tourists, however, flock to the Thai-Laos region, and recently, two of those tourists have turned to the pursuit of developing a serious cottage industry of growing and distributing Snus in a region where it is essentially unknown.
Initially targeted to Swedish tourists, in an area where five percent of total visitors are Swedes, the potential market is substantial. Statistics from the Tourism Authority of Thailand state that 620,000 Scandinavians arrival annually.
Using local tobacco farmed along the Mekong River, the Swedish entrepreneurs are hoping to leverage the tourist trade as well as cultivate a whole new group of Snus users.
Thai advertising laws regarding tobacco are strict and forbid billboards, radio spots, and cigarettes on television, even obscuring actor’s smoking onscreen. But the ageless predilection to addiction may open up an entire global region to a new brand. Thanks to the influences of tourism and tobacco.
Read original article at Brandchannel.com
http://www.brandchannel.com/home/pos...-and-Laos.aspx
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