Tobacco Veteran Leo Wijnbelt Joins CLE Cigar Co. to Run Its Honduran Operation
Seven-plus years at General Cigar plus Swisher and Universal Leaf — now overseeing all of CLE's tobacco out of Danli.
EU Losing 13 Billion Euros a Year to Illicit Tobacco, Auditors Say
One in 10 EU-made cigarettes illegally produced or smuggled; vapes and heated tobacco 13% of the illicit market by value.
Flor de Selva Rings In the Year of the Goat: A 6x56 Toro Gordo for InterTabac 2026
All-Honduran 6 x 56, 2,027 boxes of 10, around 27 euros — Maya Selva's Lunar New Year cigar debuts at InterTabac 2026 and ships in November.
PMI Raises 2026 EPS Guidance to $8.35-$8.50 on Currency Tailwinds
Full-year adjusted diluted EPS growth of 10.7-12.7% off $7.54 in 2025, Q3 at $2.29-$2.34 — CEO Jacek Olczak laid it out Sept. 8 at Barclays in Boston.
Imperial Brands Buys Yoik Group, Owner of Sweden's Helwit Pouches, for £39.8M Up Front
SEK 515M initial plus a two-year performance kicker — Helwit's 3.4% Swedish share more than doubles Imperial's modern-oral footprint via Skruf AB.
5th Avenue Pauses Cuban Cigar Deliveries in Germany, Austria, Poland Over Banking Freeze
Managing director Christoph A. Puszkar told retailers no new orders or shipments “until further notice” amid a compliance review tied to a shareholder — no timeline given.
Prometheus Ships New Diademas Across OpusX Rare Black, Rare Purple and God of Fire Lines
Three new vitolas per blend, 100 boxes each of the first two now heading to stores — plus a Rare Black sampler.
Micallef Orange Ships Nationwide: Color Series Hits Seven Blends at $8/$9
Connecticut-seed wrapper, San Andrés binder, DR/Nicaraguan fillers — Robusto (5x52, $8) and Toro (6x52, $9) in boxes of 25, on shelves Sept. 5.
ZYN's "When It Clicks": A New Brand Platform Built Around the Moment Everything Falls Into Place
PMI U.S. rolls out ZYN's national campaign built around the signature "click" — spanning point of sale, digital, out-of-home, and live cultural moments, with limited-edition metal cases to follow.
Reynolds' Vuse Alto Royalty Ruling
A North Carolina federal judge ruled that a Juul Labs sublicense frees R.J. Reynolds from future Vuse Alto royalty payments to Altria — potentially worth hundreds of millions through 2035.
FDA Authorizes JUUL2 and Its Tobacco and Menthol Pods — a Marketing Order, Not an Approval
Marketing granted orders for the JUUL2 device plus tobacco and menthol pods bring the FDA-authorized e-cigarette tally to 48 — with switching data of up to 34.6% and 49.3% at six weeks.
PMI & Altria Contract-Manufacturing Collaboration
PMI's non-U.S. affiliates will contract-manufacture combustible cigarettes for Altria's Philip Morris USA — a supply collaboration that leans into the U.S. 'double duty drawback' rebate, with first shipments expected in early 2027.
FDA Clears 11 ZYN ULTRA Products as the Pouch Shelf Gets Crowded
Higher-moisture, tobacco-leaf-free ZYN ULTRA wins authorization across 9mg and an 11mg variant — while challengers ZSY and Altria's on! PLUS press onto the shelf.
Swedish Match and the Next Wave of Modern Oral Nicotine
Pouches grabbed the headlines — but the same modern-oral category is quietly pulling traditional snus and new formats along with it.
Marlboro, Camel, and the ZYN Boom: Tobacco's Great Pivot
Combustible volumes keep sliding while nicotine pouches explode — and the biggest names in tobacco are racing to own the transition.
Copenhagen and Swisher Keep the C-Store Shelves Anchored as Pouches Surge
Chew and cigars aren't fading — they're the steady backbone of the tobacco category while the pouches do the growing.