Do Cigarettes Expire?
You might be wondering whether cigarettes expire and which are the stale ones. While cigarettes themselves do not expire, the cigarettes you smoke do get stale after some time. That’s because cigarettes get exposed to air. It takes two days for an opened pack of commercial cigarettes to go stale. The moisture in the tobacco paper is forced out by oxygen, which changes the way it burns.
Illicit cigarettes go stale faster
The illicit tobacco trade has a number of features, which are more harmful to health than the legal ones. Despite the high tax rates, BAT has remained a dominant player in the tobacco market, contributing the most money to the fiscus in South Africa. The company has also been found to lobbied heavily against the illegal cigarette trade and engaged in surveillance activities. Many illicit tobacco companies are also owned by high-level political figures.
To understand illicit cigarette smuggling practices, the researchers conducted interviews with tobacco smugglers, representatives of tobacco companies, and law enforcement officials. They also reviewed academic papers and media reports on the topic. They also consulted court cases related to the illicit trade. The researchers found that illicit cigarettes go stale faster than their legal counterparts.
The illicit tobacco trade is highly regionalized, and a single country cannot completely eliminate it. In southern Africa, the biggest cigarette producers and consumer markets are in South Africa and Zimbabwe. The region is regionally decentralized, and illicit tobacco smuggling routes can switch from country to country depending on the enforcement regime.
They grow mold
If you’ve ever wondered whether cigarettes can grow mold, you’re not alone. Most smokers wonder the same thing. Some cigarettes even show signs of mold before they expire. To find out whether your cigarettes have a chance of growing mold, check the leaves. Look for white spots or blotches. These are a sign that the tobacco is ripe. Some farmers pick the leaves before they reach this stage; others wait until the leaves are fully mature. The leaves may also have mold on the stem. This is normal, but if you notice it too much, simply cut off the stems and discard them.
Many investigators have expressed concern about the presence of microbial spores and mold on cured tobacco. In 1968, Wood, a scientist with the British American Tobacco Company, wrote a 37-page report that addressed the possibility that tobacco-associated mold could be a health hazard. Other studies have pointed to the presence of toxic fungi in tobacco.
They taste stale
The tobacco used in cigarettes has a limited shelf life. The tobacco usually burns out in two to three days, but fresher packs may remain fresh for as long as a week. To make sure your cigarettes remain fresh, you can store them in the refrigerator or freezer. This method traps moisture within the tobacco plant’s matter, which helps preserve the freshness of the cigarettes longer. However, if you have to thaw cigarettes after they have been frozen, the moisture can leach out and cause the cigarettes to smell and taste stale. In addition, moisture loss can make the paper wrapping on cigarettes fragile and cause them to burn unevenly.
The stale taste of cigarettes is one of the most glaring signs that they’re past their prime. Cigarettes that have gone stale are harder to smoke. They have a more musky flavor than fresh cigarettes and they may be difficult to inhale and exhale.
They are toxic
Cigarettes are a toxic product made of finely cut tobacco leaves wrapped in thin paper. According to the American Lung Association, cigarette smoke contains more than 7,000 chemicals, including several that cause cancer. To make matters worse, many of these chemicals are also found in other products. While consumer products that contain a lot of toxic chemicals are labelled with warnings, tobacco smoke does not.
There is no definite answer to whether cigarettes expire, but there are a few things that you should know about the shelf life of cigarettes. Tobacco does not expire, but cigarettes do lose moisture when exposed to air. This causes them to burn faster and change their taste. After two days, commercial cigarettes may start to taste stale.