How Cigarettes Are Made

 Tobacco

Cigarettes start with the harvest of both tobacco leaves and stems. These leaves and stems are then dried and cured using the combination of oxygen and direct heat. Once the product has fully cured, the leaves are broken up and mixed with paper pulp. The paper pulp is added to help the tobacco burn easier.

Masking

The stem used to be taken out during the cigarette process due to its bitter flavor; however, since the discovery that the stem contains more nicotine than the leaf itself, the stem is now used as well. To mask the bitter taste, sugar is added to the pulp and tobacco mixture.

Ammonia

Since some of the nicotine in tobacco is trapped in salt form, ammonia is added to the tobacco mixture to help release the additional nicotine. The chemical reaction between the salt and the ammonia unlocks the nicotine and allows more of the substance to be absorbed by the body when inhaled. Nicotine in salt form can still enter the bloodstream, but not to the extent that freed nicotine can.

Rolling

Once the tobacco has been fully treated, the finished product is rolled into long, tightly packed paper tube shapes and glued shut. The tubes are then cut into equal lengths the size of a cigarette. Filtered cigarettes also have a filter that is glued to one end of the cigarette. Once the finished cigarette is rolled, it is placed in a pack and plastic wrapped for shipping.