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Chew, Snuff, Snus... is there really a difference?

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Jitterbugdude

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How wrapped around the axle do you guys get with the definitions of chew, snus, dip and snuff. It appears the stuff I make is probably snus or dip. I basically make a fairly fine shred of tobacco, add flavorings and put in inside my cheek. It never creates so much juice that I have to spit. I call it chew... what say ye?

Randy B
 

Michibacy

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If it's in a pouch I automatically call it snus, if it's oral powder up through small shreds I say dip if it's anything near whole leaf (a single piece is bigger than a US quarter dollar) I call it chew. Don't know if it's right wrong or other wise, but that's how I remember which is which.
 

squeezyjohn

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My take on it is that snus is processed differently from dip using salt as the main preservative and sodium carbonate to freebase the nicotine without fermenting the product. Dip/Snuff is a similar texture but is generally sweetened with something and fermented to release the nicotine. Snus can be loose like a regular can of copenhagen or in bags.

Chew is bigger pieces of leaf - loose, twist or plug and also mainly sweetened with something.

With snus coming to the US - the definitions have become a bit blurred recently though.
 

FmGrowit

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The main reason I try to preserve the proper names is for identity sake. If someone wants to know about making Swedish snuff, a recipe for Redman chew isn't going to work.

The easiest way to understand the difference is

1. Snuff is Swedish Snuff. It a dry powder that is sniffed into the sinus.

2. American snuff is also a dry powder, but a little bit courser and is most often NOT sniffed, but it is dipped.

3. Snuss or wet snuff is what you dip.

4. Chew is a roughly chopped leaf tobacco that is heavily cased and of course chewed.
 

squeezyjohn

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1. - I think you'll find that's English, French, German and almost every other european country's snuff. In England we call Snuff Snuff because you snuff (sniff) it up your nose!

It's so complicated because there are so many things in the middle of all the definitions.

They are all smokeless tobacco though!
 

Whalen

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One of the key distinctions is Snus. Moist oral tobacco loose or in a pouch. What sets it apart is the type of tobacco is selected to be as low in TSNA's as possible, and in Sweden they pasteurize the snus shortly after it is batch fermented. Normally they use steam, but small batch snus can be treated with elevated heat and salt to accomplish this also. This results in a very low risk level.

American dip is becoming noticeably lower in the TSNA content, but it still may reach questionable limits do to continued fermentation due to lack of refrigeration.

Nasal snuff is dry and nasal use tends to be rather harmless, but becomes quite a problem when used orally. American oral snuff is particularly dangerous because of the fire cured tobacco used in most types, much higher cancer risk.

American chew contains sugars and higher levels of TSNA's on average. The sugars can do a lot of damage to teeth by themselves.

So wet snus and wet dip have two very different risk factors, one of the reasons snus users are turning to it.

I personally like the flavor of Copenhagen, best taste by far, but I do not want to have to spit, and the oral cancer risks are far higher than snus.

Gum recession is a problem with all forms of smokeless tobacco, but once again snus is spitless and far more forgiving on the gums and gut.

The modern snus seems to offer the greatest harm reduction, and is one of the reasons that I use it. I ruined my heart smoking, fun while it lasted, and I sure miss it! I still keep a respectable amount of nicotine going with snus, and after 4 years have developed quite a preference for it.

Sorry for the long winded presentation, yet I wanted to distinguish the main differences and preferences between American moist dip and Swedish snus.

I love all types of tobacco, and my wife smokes nothing but whole leaf derived cigarettes. I love to blend tobacco as much as any other hobby I have had. Snus has been banned for Squeesyjohn, and The USA is not far behind, and it still remains one of the safest of the smokeless types, go figure! Smart has nothing to do with how it is being regulated by the EU. American snus such as Camel, is a overly sweet nicotine deprived joke!
 

Jitterbugdude

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so, What would you call the stuff I make? I shred tobacco into a fine cigarette shred, add a sweetener and some flavor. I put a small dime size piece of this in my lower cheek. I such and chew on the juices. There is not enough juice though that I've ever had to spit. Is it.. dipping snus???????
 

Whalen

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Well that would be chew in my book!

It seems that the term Snus is a problematic one, Snus is Swedish for snuff, but it is used in Sweden to denote a very highly regulated and controlled substance. The Swedish government mandated the use of steam or heat pasteurization. It is controlled as a food product and has to contain very low TNSA levels. Sugar is absolutely forbidden in snus. It is kept cold to diminish any further microbial action. The flavor is a result of the fermentation in the base tobacco, plus many other toppings, they just rapidly stop the fermentation to reduce harmful substances from continuing to form. Clear as mud, eh?

I use Swedish moist oral snuff (snus).
American Oral snuff nasally, Rooster.
English, Indian, and German Nasal snuff in my nose.
So if you include Cope, American moist oral snuff, that is two similar moist oral snuffs, two nasal snuffs, each a very different type of processed snuff.

Each has a different level of harm reduction. I am more relaxed about the cope, they are doing a much better job now, but it still causes me heartburn.
 

Jitterbugdude

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Seems odd that they pasteurize it yet refrigerate it too... silly Swiss. It's also odd that have have legally mandated low TSNA's since they had no idea what TSNA's were way back in the day when this stuff was "invented". Most high levels of TSNA's come from 2 things, the cultivar of tobacco and/or a high curing temp. As far as I know fermentation does not produce any harmful substances.

The stuff I make I call chew but it looks exactly like my friends Grizzly stuff that he dips.

And by the way.. I took the family for a 2 hour ride to Antietam battlefield. My wife bought a cool shirt for me with the words "Battle of Sharpsburg 1862".. Pretty cool
 

BarG

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The main reason I try to preserve the proper names is for identity sake. If someone wants to know about making Swedish snuff, a recipe for Redman chew isn't going to work.

The easiest way to understand the difference is

1. Snuff is Swedish Snuff. It a dry powder that is sniffed into the sinus.

2. American snuff is also a dry powder, but a little bit courser and is most often NOT sniffed, but it is dipped.

3. Snuss or wet snuff is what you dip.

4. Chew is a roughly chopped leaf tobacco that is heavily cased and of course chewed.

Heres how I define them not by name but by description.

Anything Powder I used to buy for my great grandma for a dime and dribbles out the corner of your mouth.

A dip between the cheek and gum.

A chaw that gives you an instant buzz but dissapears just as quick and makes you spit to make a loud spittoon sound. kinda like... phoueeght ding!
 

Chicken

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i guess, it's called different things according to your geological location,

here, we caLll snuff; DIP. allthough ive met a guy from west virginia, that called it a RUB,

jitterbug,. id call what your making snuff,

it sounds like you got the same, shred as copenhagen does,

> do people still make thier chewing baccy, where, it's just a cylinder type shape, that you just rip, a good jaw-full off,?
ive never tried my hand at making any chewing baccy, but if i did, i think i would be leaning, on making a plug,
 

Matty

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Ok, I looked it up on wikipedia.

Chew: Large shreds, flavorings, sweeteners and not salty. Plug would be compressed chew.

Dip: Wet snuff for oral consumption, cut size from straight (coffee grounds size) to long cut (small shreds), processing may include fire cure and/or fermenting, flavoring, sweeteners, salts, causes salivation

Snus: Wet powder (moist?), steam pasturized, not fire cured or fermented, no sugar, little to no salivation.

Snuff: Pulverized tobacco taken nasally (sniffed), scented/flavored, very fine to very corse powder (very coarse would be coffee grounds), very dry (termed "toast") to very moist.

Snuff taken orally is called "moist snuff" which is processed similarily to dip. Dip has been known to be called rub.
 
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