Philip Morris Says It Will Sell Cigarette With Lower Health Risks by 2017

Tobacco giant Philip Morris International announced it will sell a new type of cigarette with lower health risks by 2017, Bloomberg News reports.

The company says it is developing three new cigarettes that would be sold under existing brands, such as Marlboro. One is a cigarette that heats tobacco, instead of burning it, the article notes. Tobacco companies have tried to develop a safer cigarette for many years. In 1988, a heated-tobacco smokeless cigarette called Premier was introduced, but was on the market for only one year.

Philip Morris Chief Operating Officer Andre Calantzopoulos said the company’s new heated-tobacco cigarette is ready for clinical testing. The company predicts it will start manufacturing the product in three to four years. A second cigarette the company is working on would be lit with a normal lighter. A third uses a chemical reaction to make an aerosol containing nicotine.