Reynolds rolling out pivotal Tobaccoville production transition to meet nicotine pouches demand

Reynolds American Inc. is making room in several ways for a historic product-mix transition at its mammoth manufacturing plant in Tobaccoville.

The Winston-Salem tobacco manufacturer is in the early stages of nearly doubling its local workforce from 2,200 to 4,200 by 2030, foremost to accommodate surging adult consumer demand for its synthetic Velo Plus nicotine pouches.

Hiring has exceeded 300 over the past five months. Reynolds said the 2,000-job pledge represents direct and indirect jobs at the plant.

Currently, traditional cigarettes comprise about 60% of the production workforce.

However, by the end of 2027, the workforce is projected to be split evenly with a tilt likely toward smokeless products.

David Waterfield, Reynolds' president and chief executive, said in February the manufacturer plans to spend at least $3.36 billion on capital investments over the next four years.

Much of that is being spent on equipment and facility upgrades to accommodate smokeless products, while some traditional cigarette production and warehouse space is being transitioned to producing a tobacco-derived version of nicotine pouches that will be sourced from farmers in North Carolina and the Southeast.

Waterfield said almost 16 million adult nicotine consumers used nicotine pouches during 2025, which represented a 63% increase from 2023.

"By 2030, we expect nicotine pouches to become the second-largest adult nicotine consumer pool in the U.S., approaching 25 million adult consumers," he said.

Since Velo Plus debuted in the fall of 2024, the number of production lines in Tobaccoville has jumped from three to 10. Each line represents five employees for each of the three 24/5 shifts.

Unlike traditional cigarettes legally sold in just tobacco and menthol flavorings, Velo Plus is sold in 36 different versions with nine flavors with mint, wild berry and wintergreen the top choices among adult consumers.

Reynolds said the production shift is part of parent company British American Tobacco Plc's "A Better Tomorrow" marketing campaign focused on smokeless products, as well as the U.S. reaching a record low 9.9% adult smoking rate in 2024.

"Our investments are rooted in North Carolina and focused on the long term," said Borgia Walker, Reynolds' chief people officer.

"This state has been central to our story for generations, and we're committed to growing our workforce while strengthening our partnerships with farmers, universities and community organizations."

Reynolds recently offered a rare look at its Tobaccoville facilities to elected officials and media outlets as part of the N.C. Chamber's promotional campaign of advanced manufacturing.

"Manufacturing is a cornerstone of North Carolina's economy, and it is critical that we continue to elevate the visibility of this industry and the opportunities it creates," NC Chamber president and chief executive Gary Salamido said.

"Reynolds American's long-term investment in people and operations drive opportunity for workers, communities and businesses across North Carolina."

True to its 150-year legacy for product innovations and reading the tobacco leaves of the industry, Reynolds is embracing synthetic nicotine pouches as adult consumer demand has surged over the past three years.

Although traditional cigarettes still represent nearly 80% of Reynolds' annual revenue at just under $13 billion in fiscal 2025, the manufacturer is shifting more production space to smokeless products that had $3.18 billion in sales last year.

Zyn nicotine pouches of Philip Morris International subsidiary Swedish March holds 62.7% of the U.S. market share, while Reynolds' Velo Plus is gaining ground at 16.3%.

"Cigarettes were the past and are the present, but we see a vision where cigarettes are no longer in the public place," said Tyler Burr, Reynolds' vice president of State Government Relations.

Reynolds has "a portfolio of smokeless products (electronic cigarettes, nicotine pouches, moist snuff and snus) that satisfy the most adult consumers that compete at the highest levels in the U.S.,' Burr said.

Reynolds and Forsyth Technical Community College rolled out in October a workforce training initiative called the Future-Ready Workforce Alliance. Hiring and training began in March.

The alliance is a collaborative effort uniting education, business and community partners to tackle one of the region's most urgent challenges - the shortage of skilled workers.

Forsyth Tech said nearly half of adults ages 25 to 44 in Forsyth and Stokes counties lack a degree or credential, which limits their access to higher-wage jobs and impacting the ability of local employers to grow.

The alliance will address the gap "by offering fast, targeted training programs aligned with the needs of the region's most critical industries, including health sciences, transportation and logistics, advanced manufacturing and technology.

"Through the Alliance, students, jobseekers and current employees will have access to customized, flexible education pathways that combine classroom learning with real-world experience," according to Forsyth Tech marketing material.

"This approach allows participants to start working quickly, continue their education while employed and advance their careers over time.

"Employers benefit by developing and retaining a skilled, reliable workforce - a solution designed to meet the evolving needs of business and industry."

"We're investing in the next generation of leaders from within our own workforce," Reynolds said.

"Selected production associates who consistently display our company values and demonstrate the dedication and ambition to grow will be invited to take part in the yearlong development program."

Reynolds has not had a major international sales presence since March 1999 when it agreed to sell the international rights to its cigarette brands to Japan Tobacco Inc. for $8 billion.

That move reduced Reynolds' debt at that time from $6.5 billion to $1 billion, enough to allow it move forward on steadier ground as an independent corporation.

However, as part of BAT ownership, Reynolds is making traditional cigarette products for vendors in nine different countries - foremost in Japan, but also in Taiwan, Mauritius, Colombia, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Panama. It also makes products that are sold in a select number of international airports.

Interestingly, several of those cigarette packages contain graphic warning labels that Reynolds, ITG Brands LLC and Philip Morris USA have fought in legal cases all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Approved Food and Drug Administration regulations require that each pack of cigarettes have one of 11 images of health issues caused by smoking. Among those images are diseased lungs, a man with stitches from heart or lung surgery, a child with an oxygen mask and warnings of erectile dysfunction.

In November 2024, the U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear an appeal from Reynolds and ITG, which claimed the labels would be misleading to consumers based on the First Amendment.

In December 2024, Philip Morris sued the federal government in an attempt to block new graphic labels that will be required on all cigarette packaging and advertising. Those labels were to begin being used on Dec. 12, 2025.

The Trump administration's FDA so far has not advanced implementing the graphic labels.

Waterfield told investors the U.S. nicotine market represents about one-third of the global value pool.

As such, Waterfield said the United States "is at the forefront of industry transformation, making it the ideal market for BAT's mission to build a smokeless world."

"The combination of BAT's global expertise and innovation capabilities with Reynolds' massive U.S. scale, precision execution, deep trade relationships, strong operations footprint, and expanding digital capabilities creates a unique position to drive growth and capture outsized value in the U.S. market.

"Combined, these strengths power the broadest multi-category portfolio in the U.S. - a portfolio fully aligned to where adult nicotine consumers are heading."

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This story was originally published May 4, 2026 at 4:14 AM.