I heard all about the Master Settlement Agreement and how Big Tobacco was putting nasty crap in their tobacco. Does that affect pipe tobacco as well?
As far as I can tell, it doesn’t. First, the smaller tobacco companies that blend their tobaccos are by and large sticklers for purity, and I’m sure most of them wouldn’t be caught dead putting stuff like ammonia and formaldehyde in their tobaccos. Second, if you’re looking for very pure pipe tobacco with no additives, you can find it fairly easily. One Big Tobacco company has an online guide to their pipe tobacco additives, and I haven’t seen anything remotely dangerous on their list. The MSA does affect pipe tobacco in a way, though: in their attempts to punish Big Tobacco, the government is unable to avoid hitting tobacco companies as a whole. Many states levy significant tobacco taxes. So while the connections between Big Tobacco and pipe tobacco seem to be insignificant, we still pay somewhat for Big Toby’s indiscretions. I found out recently that Big Tobacco does make a particular brand of pipe tobacco that’s used in a wide variety of store blends called 1Q. Also, drugstore brand
