TAAT, a producer of a CBD-containing, nicotine-free cigarettes has engineered a variation of its Beyond Tobacco™ base material for international markets where hemp-based formulation remain illegal.
In response to growing global demand for its tobacco-free cigarettes, Canadian company TAAT has filed an expedited patent application in the United States for a refinement process of the cigarette’s base material containing zero CBD, allowing the company to expand into countries and regions where hemp remains illegal.
The cigarette alternative produces a tobacco-free smoking experience resembling that of a traditional cigarette. The base material is Beyond Tobacco™, a proprietary blend which undergoes a patent-pending refinement technique causing its scent and taste to resemble tobacco. The new variation uses reconstituted biomass with zero hemp.
TAAT Founder Joe Deighan commented: “Although hemp and various cannabinoids are fundamental to the TAAT and Beyond Tobacco™ vision with respect to the benefits they provide to adult tobacco smokers who are looking to leave nicotine behind, the use of hemp material inherently limits the global markets in which TAAT can be sold.
“We are eager to enter regions such as Asia and the Middle East, where there is evident demand for a nicotine-free and tobacco-free alternative that is better than tobacco cigarettes. However, even in markets where legalisation of hemp appears to be imminent at some point in the future, it can take a matter of years to actually happen.”
In addition to its new base material, the patent covers proprietary integrations with smartphones and wearable technologies to assist current smokers with switching to TAAT, offering empirical data captured with artificial intelligence.
TAAT was launched first in the United States in 2020 under executive leadership with “big tobacco” pedigree. Its CEO Setti Coscarella previously worked at tabacco company Phillip Morris where he worked to develop IQOS, which heats rather than burns tobacco resulting in less exposure to harmful chemicals.
While cannabis is currently permitted in several global markets, it remains illegal in most others including the majority of Asian nations. Currently, TAAT cigarettes cannot be sold in these markets due to the presence of cannabidiol (CBD) and negligible tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) content. As TAAT® sets out to capture a greater market share in the USD $812 billion global tobacco industry, the company is working to develop a nicotine-free and tobacco-free product available in a broader range of nations around the world.
The company has experimented with numerous non-hemp plant materials, identifying specific biomass types that can be consistently sourced at a commercial scale for potential distribution in new global markets. TAAT has also identified numerous benefits that are specific to these materials, which TAAT® believes could enhance the value proposition of its zero-hemp formulations.
Deighan added: “Instead of waiting around, we have spent the past several months developing a formulation of Beyond Tobacco™ using materials other than hemp that still provide a user experience nearly identical to that of smoking a tobacco cigarette. This can enable us to launch TAAT virtually anywhere in the world, as we continue to pursue market share in the USD $812 billion global tobacco industry.”
