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| Formerly |
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| Company type | Subsidiary |
| ISIN | US02209S1033 |
| Industry | Tobacco |
| Founded | 1822; 203 years ago (1822) inPittsburgh,Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Founder | George Weyman |
| Headquarters | Richmond, Virginia ,U.S. |
Areas served | Worldwide |
Key people | |
| Products | Snuff,chewing tobacco,dipping tobacco, andsnus |
| Brands | Copenhagen,Skoal, Red Seal and Husky |
| Parent | Altria Group |
| Website | www |
| Footnotes / references Carcinogenicity:IARC group 1 | |
U.S. Smokeless Tobacco Company (formerlyUnited States Tobacco Company) is an American company that manufacturessmokeless tobacco products, notablydipping tobacco, as well aschewing tobacco,snus, anddry snuff. The company is asubsidiary ofAltria.
Its corporate headquarters are located inRichmond,Virginia, and it maintains factories inClarksville andNashville,Tennessee,[1]Franklin Park,Illinois, andHopkinsville,Kentucky.
Copenhagen andSkoal are the company's best selling brands, and each represents more than $1 billion per year in retail sales. It also sells similar products under the brand namesRed Seal and Husky. It also produced Rooster until 2009, when Philip Morris decided to discontinue it. The company also produces several varieties of dry snuff.[2]
Skoal was one of the first moist tobacco manufacturers to offer dipping tobacco in pouches. Skoal Bandits, released in 1983, were marketed in theUK in the 1980s, but thecarcinogenic tobacco pouches were banned amid public protest.[3] The product has a small amount of tobacco in a pouch with a thin outer membrane that resembles a tinytea bag.[4] Skoal Bandits were invented by UST's marketing division, the manufacturing process was conceived by Gene Paules of UST, and the process was automated by David Westerman of the Automation Center, Inc.,Nashville,Tennessee. Since then, Skoal has kept the Skoal Bandits products, but has also released regular-sized pouches, as well as snus, and offers pouches under the Copenhagen brand, as well.
Parent companyUST was purchased byAltria Group,[5] which now includes Philip Morris USA,[6] John Middleton Company,[7] and US Smokeless Tobacco.
During the 19th century, chewing tobacco was distributed throughout theUnited States by George Weyman. Weyman was the inventor ofCopenhagen Snuff,[8] and after his death, Weyman & Bros was acquired by the American Tobacco Company.[9] It is today known as the U.S. Smokeless Tobacco Company.[10]
George Weyman was the father of two sons, William and Buckworth. After their father regained control of the tobacco company in the 1860s, he gave it to his two sons, when it was named Weyman & Sons Tobacco. Following their father's death, the brothers officially adopted the name Weyman & Bros Tobacco in the 1870s.