 Plus: tobacco fights cancer and Montana hopes for more smoking
Los Angeles, May 11 – Usually we answer our reader’s questions in this space, but this time, Daniel Nuñez – the new President of General Cigar – answered our questions:
• Question: Daniel, you've spent most of your time in the Dominican Republic up to now; how will your time be split now as President?
Nuñez: Over the past 12 years, I have actually divided my time between New York, Connecticut, the Dominican Republic and Honduras. In fact, on average, I travel 2-3 weeks per month. In my role as President, this will not change. While I am in New York, I will simply schedule additional time to oversee the company's sales and marketing efforts.
• Question: With your departure, who will take over as Chief Blender in the General Cigar
Dominicana factory?
Nuñez: In our organization, blending has always been a group effort. We have 15 people in our new product development team, so there never was just one person responsible for making the cigars. I like to say that it's a democracy, not a dictatorship that drives our production and new product development.
I will continue to lead the process and oversee the proper team to execute. To this end, in the Dominican Republic, Modesta Fondeur will still spearhead production and product development, while Ernesto Perez-Carrillo will continue this effort for his brands. In Honduras, Estelo Padrón and Frank Llaneza will still lead in terms of production and product development.
As has been the case, I will continue to work with sales and marketing to bring new products to market and they will continue to bring to market new products generated by our production teams. It's a give and take; we all work together as a team.
• Question: What are your immediate goals for General between now and the Retail Tobacco Dealers Association show (in August) and then for the rest of 2005?
Nuñez: As President, I will rely on the people who are already in place to be more involved in production so that I can spend more time in the field interacting with customers (retailers) and consumers. I am looking forward to this, to being more proactively involved with our customers.
Tobacco treating cancer:
A new study from the Thomas Jefferson University, an academic health center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania indicated that antibodies produced by tobacco plants can “target and hunt down cancer cells.”
Tobacco fighting cancer, how about that!
The study involved inserting DNA coding for colorectal cancer into tobacco plants, which resulted in the plant manufacturing monoclonal antibodies to fight the intruding disease. Then, research mice were grafted with human colorectal cancer cells and later injected with antibodies produced by the tobacco plant.
The results showed that tumor growth “was inhibited in a similar manner to that of mammalian-made monoclonal antibodies.”
This makes plant-derived antibodies a useful alternative to using animals for mass production, since tobacco plants can be planted quite densely and grow quickly.
Montana Budget Director hoping for more smoking:
The lust for money continues unabated in Montana amid disappointing news: tobacco tax receipts are down.
The state’s voters socked smokers with a $1 per pack tax last November and now forecasted revenues are down by nearly 18% from the projected $16.2 million hoped to be collected during the first six months of 2005.
The money is slated to pay for Medicaid, children’s health insurance, prescription drugs for the elderly and to help small businesses afford health insurance. If the projected funds are not available, the programs will have to be rolled back.
As staff writer Alison Farrell wrote in the Billings Gazette last week, “all these programs depend on Montanans’ continued purchase of tobacco.”
Not to worry, though. State budget director David Ewer said he expects tobacco revenues to rebound in the next few months.
Maybe. Interestingly, the story said nothing about reducing smoking, or whether the state government had any idea whether consumption was down, or whether Montanans were still buying cigarettes at the same rate, but from non-taxed Indian sellers or by mail-order or Internet from outside the state.
We’re no more than oxen, pulling the cart that supports medical care for the rest of society. Hail to you, smoker! The health of the nation depends on you!
~ Rich Perelman
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