How Big Tobacco’s Snack Attack Changed Our Food Landscape Forever

Did you know that some of the same companies that hooked people on cigarettes also transformed the American food industry? Yep, in the 1980s and '90s, Big Tobacco saw the writing on the wall: public health pressure was putting their cigarette business at risk. So, they turned to food. And not just any food—hyper-palatable, addictive, engineered-to-make-you-eat-more food. Let's unpack how that happened and why it still matters today.

Big Tobacco's Food Takeover Begins

Back when tobacco sales started to decline, companies like Philip Morris and R.J. Reynolds began snatching up major food brands. Philip Morris paid $5.6 billion for General Foods in 1985 and $12.9 billion for Kraft in 1988. By 1989, they owned the world’s biggest food company. R.J. Reynolds wasn’t far behind, buying Nabisco for $4.9 billion in 1985. Suddenly, the same guys who perfected addicting people to cigarettes were running our snack shelves.

Engineering Crave-Worthy Snacks

These tobacco giants knew how to get people hooked, and they applied that same science to food. Research shows that foods produced under Big Tobacco were way more likely to be hyper-palatable, with dangerous combos of fat, sugar, and sodium. It's no coincidence that these foods keep you reaching for more, just like the addictive nature of cigarettes.

Some jaw-dropping stats:

Tobacco-linked foods were 29% more likely to be loaded with addictive levels of fat and sodium.
They had an 80% higher chance of being ultra-high in carbs and salt, compared to non-tobacco-owned foods.

Health Impacts We Still Feel Today

Even though Big Tobacco left the food business in the early 2000s, their legacy continues to haunt our diets. The hyper-palatable foods they engineered didn’t disappear—instead, their addictive recipes became the gold standard across the food industry. While we’ve become more conscious of what we eat, there are still no federal regulations to prevent these engineered foods from dominating our plates.

Although tobacco companies divested from the U.S. food system in the early 2000s, their influence remains. These hyper-palatable foods are still staples in the American diet. A key reason they thrive without sufficient regulation is the power of large multinational corporations. Many of these companies, including those with historical ties to tobacco, wield strong lobbying forces to block stricter food regulations. Unlike tobacco, which faces intense scrutiny, food products often escape the same level of oversight despite their potential health risks. This systemic issue makes implementing sweeping regulatory changes much more difficult.

What's the Takeaway?

We can't ignore that our food landscape—like our waistlines—has been shaped by companies more focused on profit than public health. And while seed oils often get the blame for our obesity crisis, the real culprit is the high-tech food engineering pioneered by Big Tobacco. It's a sobering reminder: sometimes the biggest threats to our health aren't what we expect.

If you're interested in learning more about the role of our sedentary lifestyles in driving obesity rates, check out my June post Stop Blaming Seed Oils: The Real Culprit Behind the Obesity Epidemic. It dives deep into the inactivity epidemic and how it's just as crucial to address as the food we eat.

So, how do we move forward? Be mindful of what’s in your food and push for transparency in the industry. The more we know, the better choices we can make for our health!