| Definition |
Tobacco and tobacco products such as cured leaf tobacco, unmanufactured tobacco, fine-cut tobacco, pre-treated tobacco, reconstituted tobacco, tobacco refuse; fine-cut smoking articles, etc.
For products in individual packs see specific card for ‘Retail packages’. |
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| Recommended minimum quantity for each sample |
The size and composition of the sample should be appropriate to the type of product and the type of consignment.
- Tobacco in ‘hands’: approx. 0.5 kg.
- Leaves not tied together: fifteen leaves.
- Stemmed or threshed tobacco: approx. 0.5 kg.
- Fine-cut tobacco, smoking tobacco, chewing tobacco, snuff: approx. 0.5 kg.
- Commercial packages of fine-cut tobacco products (smoking articles):
- Smoking tobacco (cigarette, pipe or water pipe tobacco): approx. 0.3 kg;
- Cigarettes: one whole carton (box) or 200 pieces of cigarettes;
- Cigars or pseudo-cigars: one retail package or at least 20 pieces of cigars;
- Other tobacco articles e.g. chewing tobacco, snuff: approx. 50 g of product two or more whole retail packages containing about 0.1 kg of product; see the sampling card ‘Retail packages’ for more details.
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| EN/ISO standards and regulations specific to tobacco |
- ISO 4874 Tobacco — Sampling of batches of raw material — General principles.
- ISO 15592-1 Fine-cut tobacco and smoking articles made from it — Methods of sampling, conditioning and analysis — Part 1 Sampling.
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Legislation (technical standards or specifications): please refer to your national legislation and national guidelines regarding sampling.
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| Suggested sampling tool depending on the method used |
Sampling tools must not alter the physical characteristics: leaf dimension, particle size distribution, etc. and must not affect any subsequent determinations.
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| Containers to be used for the sampling |
- Plastic bags, different designs and sizes (P00)
- Paper bags, different sizes (R00)
- Plastic bottles, wide mouth opening, size 500-1 000 ml (P03/P04), preferably not transparent.
- Cardboard boxes, cartons (R01)
- Air-tight bottles for moisture content determination.
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| Safety precautions and risk assessment |
Please refer to your national legislation and guidelines on health and safety.
- Products can be dusty or infested with agents that are dangerous for human health.
- Products can contain larvae of tobacco beetle (Lasioderma serricorne), which cause tobacco damage.
- Suitable clothing, approved under your national health and safety legislation, must be worn, including gloves, a face shield or respiratory protection, special eyewear or goggles, a protective mask, a helmet, working footwear.
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| Type of consignment |
Description |
| Bulk products |
- In the case of bulk products transported in the unpacked state, equal quantities of incremental samples are taken from three or more positions throughout the bulk consignment by random selection or systematically.
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| Bulk products in packages |
- Tobacco or pressed tobacco in bales, wood, paper or cardboard boxes, baskets, and jute pouches: you must ensure that the goods being checked consist of a single consignment. If there are several consignments, they should be identified separately. An aggregate sample may be formed only from packages from the same lot contained in the same consignment.
- Equal quantities of incremental samples are taken from different transport packages found at different positions in the transport vehicle or in the storage facility by random selection or systematically.
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| Leaf tobacco in ‘hands’ |
- Three ‘hands’ are taken from different positions throughout the consignment by random selection or systematically. One ‘hand’ may be about 80 cm long, about 25 cm in diameter at the bottom and about 8 cm at the place where the ‘hand’ is held. The weight of one ‘hand’ is approx. 0.2 kg.
- In case of single tobacco leaves, one aggregate samples is created by at least about 15 pieces of tobacco leaves
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| Tobacco and tobacco products in retail packages |
- A suitable number of units must be chosen entirely at random from the consignment.
For more information please refer to the sampling card ‘Retail Sale Packages’.
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| Sampling procedure |
- Sampling equipment and sample containers must be clean (without any dust) and dry and must not change the sample characteristics, such as the dimensions of the goods, the particle size distribution or the organoleptic properties.
- The sampling procedure must not affect any subsequent laboratory testing.
- Each incremental samples is drawn at random from the consignment in such a manner that each incremental sample has the same probability of being selected.
- If the tobacco is damaged and therefore unsuitable for an assessment of its characteristics, samples are not to be taken from that particular sampling unit.
- If heterogeneity is of interest as well as mean values it may be preferable not to mix incremental samples.
- Dividing the sample: If the size of an aggregated sample is too large, it must be reduced to obtain the final samples. Please refer to the sample division scheme. The homogenisation of an aggregate sample must be carried out carefully in order to guarantee the integrity and characteristics of the sample. The procedure of placing of incremental samples on plastic foil pad with the subsequent raising of foil corners and careful shaking; or placement of sample into plastic bags and careful shaking, can be used.
- Packing the samples: Final samples must be packed securely with adequate protection against damage (mechanical damage, severe changes in humidity, temperature, etc.). Containers must be fully filled. Samples which are to be tested for the moisture content must be packed in moisture-tight containers or bags with an air-tight closure.
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| Sampling form |
- Fill in the sampling form. One copy should be attached to the samples and one copy should be kept for the record.
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| Transport |
- Ensure quick carriage, samples are prone to mould.
- Make sure that the transport conditions guarantee the integrity and characteristics of the sample transported.
- Ensure that appropriate transport conditions for the goods are maintained to protect the product from humidity, mechanical damage, contamination, microbial growth, infestation or other situations which would affect the organoleptic properties of the samples (e.g. odour).
- Samples of food and chemical products must be transported separately (cargo holds, packing boxes, etc.) on the transport vehicle in order to prevent any possibility of cross-contamination.
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| Storage |
- Samples must be stored in a clean, dry, dark, cool, sufficiently ventilated and odour-free place.
- Ensure that the appropriate storage conditions for the goods are maintained to protect them from humidity, contamination, microbial growth, infestation or other situations which would affect the organoleptic properties of the samples (e.g. odour).
- If samples are stored for more than 3 months, it is recommended to freeze them and store bellow -16 °C. Products can contain larvae of tobacco beetle (Lasioderma serricorne), which are eliminated by low temperature. Infested tobacco must be disposed by incineration and storages where such tobacco was placed must be decontaminated chemically (by gas treatment).
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