US-12616236-B2 - Smokeless tobacco product sized, shaped and adapted for oral consumption

US12616236B2US 12616236 B2US12616236 B2US 12616236B2US-12616236-B2

Abstract

A consumable tobacco film strip adapted to dissolve in the oral cavity includes a tobacco component, a binder, a humectant, and optionally a flavorant. The tobacco component can include ground or powdered tobacco and/or a tobacco extract. Tobacco flavoring can be incorporated in the film strip by casting or extruding a mixture or the tobacco component may be added to a film strip after formation of the film. The film strips are adapted to dissolve and provide tobacco satisfaction.

Inventors

Susan E. Wrenn
Maria Carolina Marun

Assignees

PHILIP MORRIS USA INC.

Dates

Publication Date: 20260505
Application Date: 20190819

Claims (13)

1 . A dissolvable smokeless tobacco product comprising: a consumable film including: two or more layers, each layer including a tobacco extract; 3% to 12% by weight of a binder; 20% to 40% by weight of a humectant; and 1% to 6% by weight of a flavorant, the tobacco extract being homogeneously distributed in each of the two or more layers; and a first layer of the two or more layers further including ground or powder tobacco and the remainder layers of the two or more layers excluding the ground or powder tobacco, the dissolvable tobacco product being sized and shaped to be placed within an oral cavity of a consumer and entirely consumed within less than about 60 seconds.
2 . The dissolvable smokeless tobacco product of claim 1 , wherein the binder comprises a pectin, a natural gum, or both a pectin and a natural gum.
3 . The dissolvable smokeless tobacco product of claim 1 , wherein the ground or powdered tobacco consists of a blend of Bright tobacco, Burley tobacco, Oriental tobacco, or any combination thereof without inclusion of reconstituted tobaccos.
4 . The dissolvable smokeless tobacco product of claim 1 , wherein the humectant comprises glycerin.
5 . The dissolvable smokeless tobacco product of claim 1 , further comprising at least one additive, the at least one additive including sweeteners, fragrances, coloring agents, filling agents, preservatives, or any combination thereof.
6 . The dissolvable smokeless tobacco product of claim 1 , wherein the dissolvable smokeless tobacco product is configured to dissolve in the oral cavity in less than about 60 seconds.
7 . The dissolvable smokeless tobacco product of claim 6 , wherein the dissolvable smokeless tobacco product is configured to dissolve in the oral cavity in less than about 30 seconds.
8 . The dissolvable smokeless tobacco product of claim 7 , wherein the dissolvable smokeless tobacco product is configured to dissolve in the oral cavity in less than about 20 seconds.
9 . The dissolvable smokeless tobacco product of claim 1 , wherein the two or more layers include are laminated together.
10 . The dissolvable smokeless tobacco product of claim 9 , wherein the two layers have different rates of dissolution.
11 . The dissolvable smokeless tobacco product of claim 9 , wherein the two layers include different flavorants.
12 . The dissolvable smokeless tobacco product of claim 1 , wherein the two or more layers include three layers.
13 . The dissolvable smokeless tobacco product of claim 1 , wherein the consumable film has a thickness of 50 microns to 500 microns.

Description

This application is a divisional of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/113,540, filed May 23, 2011; which is a divisional of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/802,539, filed May 23, 2007, which claims priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119(e) to U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 60/808,553, filed May 26, 2006, the entire contents of each of which are incorporated herein by reference. BACKGROUND Smokeless tobacco products, such as chewing tobacco and snuff, include an insoluble, residual component in an amount that typically requires disposal. Accordingly, there is an interest in a wholly dissolvable smokeless tobacco products that provide tobacco enjoyment. SUMMARY A dissolvable tobacco film strip is adapted to be consumed orally and comprises a tobacco component, (optionally) a flavorant, a humectant and a binder. A first preferred method of making a tobacco film strip comprises forming a mixture of at least one tobacco component, at least one humectant and at least one binder with one or more optional components. The method can further include casting or extruding the mixture to form a film, drying the film, and cutting the film into film strips. A second preferred method of making a tobacco film strip comprises forming a first mixture of at least one humectant and/or at least one binder, forming a second mixture comprising at least one tobacco component, casting or extruding the first mixture to form a first film, depositing the second mixture on at least one side of the first film, drying the first film, and cutting the film into film strips. The step of depositing the second mixture, which is preferably deposited on a substantially dry film, can comprise printing and/or spray coating. In the alternative, the two mixtures are mixed together prior to casting. The humectant preferably comprises one or more polyhydric alcohol, aliphatic ester of mono-, di- or polycarboxylic acid. Glycerin is a preferred humectant. The binder can comprise pullulan, cellulose ethers, sodium alginate, pectin, gums and mixtures thereof. A preferred gum is a natural gum. The tobacco component preferably comprises a ground or powdered tobacco (e.g., ground or powdered laminae and/or stem) and/or a tobacco extract. The tobacco component is preferably made from a cured tobacco. In one embodiment, the ground or powdered tobacco has an average particle size of between about 100 nm and 1 mm. For example, the tobacco component can have a particle size of about 60 mesh or finer. A preferred particle size is 200 to 400 mesh, more preferably 300 to 400 mesh. In a further embodiment, the ground or powdered tobacco has an average particle size of less than the thickness of the film strip. The tobacco component can be incorporated within the film strip, or disposed along at least one free surface thereof (e.g., as a coating or a pattern) or both. The film strip can comprise one or more optional additives such as flavorants, sweeteners, fragrances, coloring agents, filling agents and preservatives. The film strip can comprise a single film or a two or more layers that are laminated together (e.g., a multi-layer film strip). In an embodiment, a tobacco component is incorporated between at least two of the layers of a multi-layer film strip. A preferred film strip has an average thickness of from about 50 to 500 microns or greater and is adapted to be completely orally dissolved. A preferred film strip is both dissolvable and spitless. A preferred film strip is dried to an oven volatiles content of about 10 to 30% (e.g., 17-18%) and water activity of about 0.1 to 1% (e.g., 0.5%). BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1A is a perspective view of a preferred embodiment. FIG. 1B is a schematic view of an apparatus for casting a dissolvable film strip. FIGS. 2A-2C are perspective views of single-layer dissolvable film strips. FIG. 3 is an exploded view of a multi-layer dissolvable film strip according to a first embodiment. FIG. 4 is an exploded view of a multi-layer dissolvable film strip according to a second embodiment. FIG. 5 is an exploded view of a multi-layer dissolvable film strip according to a third embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Referring to FIG. 1A, an exemplary dissolvable film strip 10 is adapted to be consumed orally and includes a tobacco component, a humectant, a binder and optionally ingredients such as a flavorant and/or other optional component described below. The film strip is adapted to provide tobacco satisfaction. Methods of forming such film strips include casting and extruding. The film strips include a binder which preferably comprises pectin and/or natural gum such as guar gum, xanthan gum, locust bean gum, gum Arabic, sodium alginate, carrageenan gum, tamarind gum and blends thereof. A preferred composition of the film strip 10 comprises about 50 to 80% by weight tobacco component, about 3 to 12% by weight binder and about 20 to 40% by weight humectant. The optional flavorant can be added in