How World War II Transformed the Cigarette Market in Canada

The Industry at War’s Dawn (1939)

On the eve of World War II, Canada’s tobacco industry was already a significant economic force. According to the Dominion Bureau of Statistics, the output of the Canadian tobacco manufacturing industry in 1939 was valued at $90.6 million, with the raw leaf crop returning $19.4 million to growers [citation:2].

📊 Granby’s Tobacco Empire

The Imperial Tobacco factory in Granby, Quebec, was a powerhouse of wartime production. By 1930, the factory employed 700 workers, making it the second-largest factory in the city [citation:4]. The plant specialized in chewing tobacco and pipe tobacco under brands like Royal Oak, Old Fox, Empire, and Rosebud — names that were known across Canada [citation:4].

“The Gift of Wartime Cigarettes”

Historian Daniel Robinson calls this phenomenon the “gift of wartime cigarettes” — a powerful cultural force that helped legitimize cigarette smoking in Canadian society [citation:1]. Canadians on the home front were encouraged to send cigarettes to soldiers overseas as patriotic acts.

📬 Christmas Greetings with Cigarettes (1942)

A Christmas postcard from 1942 illustrates the practice perfectly: the front of the card shows Santa Claus standing beside a military tank and warships. On Santa’s bag is printed: “Smokes for our Fighters Overseas and Prisoners of War” [citation:9]. The reverse explains:

📦 Department Stores Join the Effort

Canadian department stores actively participated in sending cigarettes to troops. Dupuis Frères, a Montreal department store, sent gifts of cigarettes to former employees serving in the military throughout the war [citation:10]. The Tobacco Depot serving the army postal service, conveniently located in Montréal, handled countless packages destined for soldiers overseas [citation:10].

Special Duty-Free Cigarettes for Troops

During World War II, a special duty-free variant of the Macdonald Gold Standard (which would become Export A) was made for Canadian troops to boost morale during their battles. On the slide cover was printed: “GIFT to Canadian troops on active service, not for re-sale. These cigarettes have not borne United Kingdom Customs Duty” [citation:6].

🚬 Export A’s Wartime Role

Export A cigarettes, introduced in 1928, became a staple for Canadian soldiers. The brand was adorned with the portrait of a Scottish woman (the “Scottish Lassie” painted by Rex Woods), which remained on packages for decades [citation:6]. During the war, these specially marked packages were distributed to troops, creating lifelong brand loyalty among returning servicemen.

The Rationing Debate (1944)

On February 28, 1944, the House of Commons debated the cigarette situation for Canadian troops. Liberal MP James Sinclair raised concerns about rationing:

• 📦 Pilferage problem: Sinclair noted “considerable loss both on convoy and by pilfering” of cigarette shipments
• 🔒 Solution: Every cigarette package was registered and checked when opened by unit orderlies
• ⏱️ Delay issue: While there were delays in delivery, parcel post was deemed less important than letters
• 🎁 Inequality: Some soldiers were “more fortunate than others in having more friends to send cigarettes to them”

🤝 Service Clubs to the Rescue

Sinclair paid tribute to “service clubs, labour unions and various other organizations throughout the country who have contributed so heavily to provide cigarettes free for almost every Canadian overseas” [citation:3]. He also noted a post-war problem: teaching soldiers “to buy their own cigarettes again after getting cigarettes free for so long” [citation:3].

Post-War Consumption Boom

The wartime experience had lasting effects on Canadian smoking habits.

📊 The Granby Factory’s Decline

Paradoxically, while cigarette consumption soared, the Granby factory that produced chewing and pipe tobacco suffered. After World War II, the company lost business because society evolved to become “more focused on cigarettes than chewing tobacco or pipe tobacco” [citation:4]. Since it was too costly to adapt the plant to cigarette production, the company made layoffs and reduced production. In 1971, due to insufficient demand, the factory closed — ending Granby’s tobacco industry [citation:4].

• 📈 Post-war shift: Canadians switched en masse from chewing tobacco and pipes to cigarettes
• 🏭 Industrial change: Older factories that couldn’t adapt closed; new cigarette-focused plants opened
• 🚬 Brand loyalty: Soldiers returned home with strong preferences for brands like Export A, du Maurier, and Player’s

Women’s Increased Economic Participation

The war years saw women enter the workforce in unprecedented numbers — including in the tobacco industry. The Canadian Cigar and Tobacco Journal from the 1940s reflects “women’s increased economic participation during the war years” [citation:5].

• 👩‍🏭 Factory workers: Women replaced men who had gone overseas, keeping tobacco factories running at full capacity
• 🚬 Smoking rates: With women working and earning wages, and smoking increasingly depicted as glamorous in films and magazines, female smoking rates began to rise
• 📢 Targeted marketing: Tobacco companies began developing advertising campaigns specifically aimed at women

The Cultural Transformation of Smoking

The war elevated cigarettes to symbols of heroism, sacrifice, and national pride.

🎖️ Heroic Smokers

Winston Churchill — cigar and cigarette smoker — became the embodiment of British resolve. The Canadian Cigar and Tobacco Journal celebrated “Winston Churchill and other heroic smokers” who became global icons of wartime defiance [citation:5].

🎬 Hollywood’s Role

Hollywood films during the war showed heroes — and heroines — lighting up, further normalizing smoking for both men and women. The cigarette became a prop of sophistication, courage, and glamour.

📜 The Trade Journal’s Portrait

The Canadian Cigar and Tobacco Journal (1943-1949) provides a “vivid portrait” of wartime smoking culture, including “neighbourhood tobacconists, travelling salesman, wholesalers and factory workers, homemakers and entrepreneurs” [citation:5]. It also documented the dangers of the retail trade, such as armed robberies, alongside the dangers of war [citation:5].

The Post-War Legacy: A Nation of Smokers

By war’s end, cigarette smoking was more entrenched in Canadian culture than ever before.

• 🚬 Returning soldiers: Millions of veterans returned home with entrenched smoking habits, having often received free cigarettes throughout their service [citation:3]
• 📈 Production growth: Cigarette production continued to expand in the post-war decades
• 🏭 Industry consolidation: Imperial Tobacco, Rothmans, and JTI-Macdonald (successor to Macdonald Tobacco) would dominate the Canadian market for decades
• ⚠️ Health consequences: The wartime smoking boom would have long-term public health implications, contributing to the lung cancer epidemic of the 1950s and beyond [citation:1]

From WWII to Today: Native Cigarettes

The war transformed Canada’s smoking culture, creating a mass market that corporations like Imperial Tobacco dominated for decades. Today, native cigarettes from Cigstore.ca offer an alternative:

• 🏭 Independent alternative: While the post-war era saw corporate consolidation, today’s native cigarette market offers Indigenous-owned options
• 💰 Affordable prices: At $29-55 per carton, native cigarettes are 70-80% cheaper than commercial brands
• 🪶 Indigenous-owned: Continuing a tradition of independent tobacco commerce
• 📦 Legal and available: Native cigarettes remain available — a true alternative to the corporate-dominated market that emerged from the war