The state's tobacco watchdogs are puzzled and alarmed that the nation's largest cigarette company has chosen Salt Lake City as one of three test markets for a new product line.

Philip Morris USA will market its Marlboro UltraSmooth in Atlanta, Salt Lake City and Tampa, Fla., in the coming weeks, introducing a filter that contains carbon.

While two of its other brands also have carbon-containing filters, tobacco critics worry that using the popular Marlboro name to push the product may draw in smokers who otherwise might quit.

"It is particularly significant since they control 40 percent of the market if not more," said Joel Ferre, the state's tobacco litigation specialist in the Attorney General's Office.

"It is not a huge surprise they are marketing a new cigarette," he added. "The big surprise is that they are marketing it in Salt Lake City. Maybe they feel if they can sell it here, they can sell it anywhere."

Philip Morris USA spokeswoman Peggy Roberts said Monday she could not say why Salt Lake City was chosen as a test market area because it would reveal marketing strategies to competitors.

A letter sent by the company's senior vice president to the National Association of Attorneys General said the marketing is being done "to test the acceptability of the taste of the new brand style among adult smokers."

What is puzzling to tobacco critics here is that Utah has the most smoke-free population of any state in the country, with just under 12 percent of the population that lights up, said Lena Dibble, spokeswoman for the health department's tobacco prevention and control program.

Dibble said officials are concerned Utah consumers may buy into the perception that a carbon-containing filter is somehow more safe, despite the lack of studies to back that idea.

"People will think they can switch to this product and save themselves from health risks, while we would simply encourage people to quit."

The concern comes despite the manufacturer's assurances it will place warning labels on the product that say "there is no such thing as a safe cigarette, including this one."

Smokers are also warned that mild, medium or light cigarettes should not be assumed to be less harmful than cigarettes that are full-flavored.

Ferre will join a number of other state representatives from offices of attorneys general throughout the country who will closely monitor the company's marketing strategy for the new line.

A lawsuit filed by the states against big tobacco manufacturers resulted in a settlement agreement that contains provisions prohibiting the companies from misrepresenting facts about the health risks of tobacco.

"We will be looking to see if their claims violate those provisions contained in the agreement," he said.

"We are concerned there may be an implication that the filter is not letting harmful products through. While they will claim that is not their intent, the average consumer will be led to believe otherwise."

---

E-mail: amyjoi@desnews.com