Industry Analysis of Herbal Cigarettes

Industry Analysis
Herbal cigarettes provide what consumers may believe to be a safe alternative to typical tobacco products. There are a wide range of consumable ingredients found in these alternative cigarettes such as corn silk, mint, and cinnamon. Other producers of Herbal Cigarettes manufacture these products with rose petals, lemongrass, or cloverleaves, and the list goes on. First sold in the 1990’s, tobacco users looked to herbal cigarette as a new trend that is safer than you average tobacco product. However, some consumers will not choose this alternative for various reasons. The market for herbal cigarettes is not stable even though they are sold worldwide. This could be for a number of reasons; brand loyalty plays a huge role in the elasticity of what the consumer will choose to purchase. It is also is said that Herbal cigarettes may be more harmful to ones health versus traditional smoking tobacco. Herbal cigarettes are tobacco-free and nicotine-free, but not risk-free. It seems as if young adults are smoking herbal cigarettes for their exotic taste and trendy packaging. Whether herbal cigarettes are just a trend to most is inevitable, but do these same consumers believe that this is a suitable substitute for tobacco consumption?
When it comes to the FDA, they do regulate herbs and supplements whether they are swallowed, applied to the skin, or inhaled, so any company selling them must allocate with the FDA. Though the FDA has not labeled the herbal cigarettes as unsafe, herbal cigarette packs are indeed required to label them as hazardous, just like one will see one all tobacco products. Do these statements and facts sway the mind of the consumer?

Hypothesis

With the product presented and all facts given will smoking consumers prefer herbal cigarettes or standard tobacco products?