Sydney, Australia – Cigarettes may contain traces of pig’s blood, an Australian academic says with a warning that religious groups could find its undisclosed presence “very offensive”.
Subscribe to our Daily Roundup Email
University of Sydney Professor Simon Chapman points to recent Dutch research which identified 185 different industrial uses of a pig – including the use of its haemoglobin in cigarette filters.
Prof Chapman said the research offered an insight into the otherwise secretive world of cigarette manufacture, and it was likely to raise concerns for devout Muslims and Jews.
“I think that there would be some particularly devout groups who would find the idea that there were pig products in cigarettes to be very offensive,” Prof Chapman told AAP.
“The Jewish community certainly takes these matters extremely seriously and the Islamic community certainly do as well, as would many vegetarians.
“It just puts into hard relief the problem that the tobacco industry is not required to declare the ingredients of cigarettes … they say `that’s our business` and a trade secret.”
The Dutch research found pig haemoglobin – a blood protein – was being used to make cigarette filters more effective at trapping harmful chemicals before they could enter a smoker’s lungs.
Prof Chapman said while tobacco companies had moved voluntarily list the contents of their products on their websites, they also noted undisclosed “processing aids … that are not significantly present in, and do not functionally affect, the finished product”.
This catch-all term hid from public view an array of chemicals and other substances used in the making of tobacco products, he said.
At least one cigarette brand sold in Greece was confirmed as using pig haemoglobin in its processes, Prof Chapman said, and the status of smokes sold was unknown.
“If you’re a smoker and you’re of Islamic or Jewish faith then you’d probably would want to know and there is no way of finding out,” Prof Chapman said.
The Sydney office of British American Tobacco Australia was contacted by AAP.
A spokeswoman said a comment would be provided although it was not immediately available.
Even if he were right, and its not clear his information is accurate, the chazer blood would not be in edible format (“unfit to be eaten by a dog”) so there is no kashruth issue except perhaps for mehadrim
This is silly…chazir is assur beachilah…not to smoke…and even to eat it is batul…for Muslims, though, they are really strict and avoid ALL contact,they have a problem
#’s 1 & 2 you must be smokers. I always said smokers are pigs. They don’t take into account non smokers who suffer from passive smoking which is worse than actually smoking. And even if it would be butel in whatever way, why would you not feel fareckelled knowing your smoking pig contents, and who knows what else it contains. The answer: Ti’s time to give up smoking.
I suspect that this man is being paid off by Time ciggarettes in Israel, or some Hechsher company, top convince jews that cigarettes should need a hechsher to be kosher. What a windfall of profit that would be if a hecsher was needed on cigarettes. That brand would not only sell more to jews, but muslims would probably prefer it as well since the kosher symbol would guarentee no pig product was used. I think that people should be very weary of this article until more information is available.
Dont get it. The pig derivative is not added to the flavor, but to the filter. Cant I use pig derivatives as long as I do not eat it?
oh, and you die of cancer! Seems kind of ridiculous to argue about the halachik status of trace pigs blood when people are dying
Go ahead and smoke the Pigarettes,if yiu must. as long as you dont harm us.
cigarettes should be assur gamur – I see so many people DIE from the side effects of smoking. Certainly not worth it. It is reality – deal with it…
A concerned doctor
Why should anyone care? Cigarettes are already treif and anyone who smokes them is killing themselves. It’s already Assur D’oreisa, what’s a little pigs blood on top of that?
Here’s my humble opinion about smoking. Never mind kashrus….. that’s not even the issue here. All of you who smoke, are selfish pigs. You have family to worry about. What about the father who has a family….How will they support themselves after he’s gone due to cancer. The young kids smoke because they see the older men smoking… This should be the main issure here, not whether it’s kosher or not.
look at the rav yaakov emdens mor u’ketzia, #511 , where he says even chametz gamor in tobacco is mutar on pesach, because it’s not reuy l’achilas kelev. he says his father, the chacham tzvi used to laugh at those yidden who would buy special kosher l’pesach tobacco. how much more so with damo shel beheima tameia? mutar mutar mutar!