Tobacco retailers and manufacturers have had mixed views on Zeller’s tenure. On one hand, industry groups such as NATO have cited the CTP director’s willingness to engage with retailers.
“The FDA’s Center for Tobacco Products and Director Mitch Zeller have encouraged tobacco industry members to ‘have a seat at the table,’ ” said Thomas Briant, executive director of Lakeville, Minn.-based NATO, in 2016. He also pointed out that Zeller had appeared at numerous NATO Shows. “Zeller appreciates the opportunity to reach out to all stakeholders on both sides of tobacco issues and obtain as much input as possible in drafting tobacco regulations.”
Others have decried the director’s actions, specifically the 2016 deeming rule.
“This is not regulation,” American Vaping Association President Gregory Conley said in response to the rule. “It is prohibition that will cost lives, kill jobs and further entrench America’s largest cigarette companies.”