22nd Century Group (Nasdaq: XXII) to Ring the Nasdaq Stock Market Closing Bell

Celebrates the Launch and Accelerated Expansion of VLN®, the Only Combustible Cigarettes Authorized by the FDA That “Helps You Smoke Less”

VLN® 95% Less Nicotine Cigarette Pilot in Chicago Exceeded Expectations, Will Hit Shelves in Colorado Next

BUFFALO, N.Y., Aug. 22, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- 22nd Century Group, Inc. (Nasdaq: ), a leading agricultural biotechnology company dedicated to improving human health with reduced nicotine tobacco, hemp/cannabis, and hops advanced plant technologies, today announced that it will ring the Nasdaq Closing Bell on Friday, August 26, 2022, celebrating the launch of VLN®, the only combustible cigarette authorized by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that “Helps You Smoke Less”. The Company’s 95% reduce nicotine content cigarette pilot in Chicago has exceeded expectations, leading the Company to accelerate and expand its launch plans to the state of Colorado.

“We are thrilled to offer the first and only reduced nicotine content cigarette that truly helps adult smokers smoke less – a statement that the FDA even includes as part of our product label. Our VLN® pilot program in Chicago has confirmed the market’s interest in VLN® as adult smokers look for new tools to help them smoke less, an important step to improving overall public health. Based on the better-than-expected results of our pilot, we are accelerating our launch plans and commencing sales in the state of Colorado through multiple partners committed to helping us offer adult smokers a real choice, a product that can help them smoke less,” said John J. Miller, President of 22nd Century’s Tobacco Business.

About 22nd Century Group, Inc.

22nd Century Group, Inc. (Nasdaq: ) is a leading agricultural biotechnology company focused on tobacco harm reduction, reduced nicotine tobacco and improving health and wellness through plant science. With dozens of patents allowing it to control nicotine biosynthesis in the tobacco plant, the Company has developed proprietary reduced nicotine content (RNC) tobacco plants and cigarettes, which have become the cornerstone of the  to address the widespread death and disease caused by smoking. The Company received the first and only FDA MRTP authorization of a combustible cigarette in December 2021. In tobacco, hemp/cannabis, and hop plants, 22nd Century uses modern plant breeding technologies, including genetic engineering, gene-editing, and molecular breeding to deliver solutions for the life science and consumer products industries by creating new, proprietary plants with optimized alkaloid and flavonoid profiles as well as improved yields and valuable agronomic traits.

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Learn more about VLN^® at .

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

Except for historical information, all of the statements, expectations, and assumptions contained in this press release are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements typically contain terms such as “anticipate,” “believe,” “consider,” “continue,” “could,” “estimate,” “expect,” “explore,” “foresee,” “goal,” “guidance,” “intend,” “likely,” “may,” “plan,” “potential,” “predict,” “preliminary,” “probable,” “project,” “promising,” “seek,” “should,” “will,” “would,” and similar expressions. Actual results might differ materially from those explicit or implicit in forward-looking statements. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially are set forth in “Risk Factors” in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K filed on March 1, 2022, and in the Company’s Quarterly Report filed on August 9, 2022. All information provided in this release is as of the date hereof, and the Company assumes no obligation to and does not intend to update these forward-looking statements, except as required by law.

Investor Relations & Media Contact

Mei Kuo

22nd Century Group, Inc.

Director, Communications & Investor Relations

Darrow Associates Investor Relations

Matt Kreps

T: 214-597-8200