Chewing tobacco

Chewing tobacco is a type of smokeless tobacco product that is placed between the cheek and lower gum to draw out its flavor. It consists of coarsely chopped aged tobacco that is flavored and often sweetened; it is not ground fine like dipping tobacco. Unwanted juices are then spat.

Chewing tobacco may be left as loose leaf or compressed into a small rectangular "plug". Nearly all modern chewing tobaccos are produced by a process of leaf curing, cutting, fermentation, and processing, which may include sweetening and flavoring. Historically, many American chewing-tobacco brands popular during the American Civil War era were made with cigar clippings. Chewing tobacco is a source of nicotine.