22nd Century to Speak at Global Tobacco & Nicotine Forum

CLARENCE, N.Y.–(BUSINESS WIRE)– 22nd Century Group, Inc. (NYSE American:XXII),
a plant biotechnology company that is focused on tobacco harm reduction,
announced today that officials from the Global Tobacco & Nicotine Forum
(GTNF) have invited the Company’s Chief Executive Officer, Henry
Sicignano, III, to participate on a GTNF panel entitled “Future Next
Generation Products” on September 14, 2017 in New York City.

The Global Tobacco & Nicotine Forum is the world’s foremost exchange of
ideas and information for tobacco technologies and products. Attendees
to the forum include public health advocates, policymakers, scientists,
and international tobacco industry executives. Visit www.gtnf-2017.com
for more on GTNF. Also speaking at this year’s forum are:

Mitch Zeller, Director, US Food and Drug Administration’s Center for
Tobacco Products. Together with FDA Commissioner, Dr. Scott Gottlieb, in
August 2017, Mr. Zeller, released an article entitled, “A
Nicotine-Focused Framework of Public Health.” Published in The
New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM), the article spells out the
FDA’s regulatory authority for mandating non-addictive levels of
nicotine in combustible cigarettes.

Dr. Dorothy Hatsukami, Forster Family Chair in Cancer Prevention;
Associate Director, Masonic Cancer Center; and Professor of Psychiatry,
University of Minnesota. In 2016, together with two other prominent
scientists, Dr. Dorothy Hatsukami wrote in Tobacco
Control that failure to act on the World Health Organization
(WHO) recommendation of mandating nicotine reductions in cigarettes to
non-addictive levels could lead to the loss of millions of lives.

Dr. Michael Cummings, Professor, Medical University of South Carolina
Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences; and Co-Director, Tobacco
Policy and Control Program at Hollings Cancer Center. As an expert in
tobacco policy, Dr. Cummings is often called upon to guide global
tobacco control policy initiatives around the world. Earlier in 2017,
Dr. Cummings gave the keynote address at 22nd Century’s Annual Meeting
of Stockholders.

“Since the FDA announced its intention to mandate that all cigarettes
have very low, non-addictive levels of nicotine, the public health
community has focused much of its attention on 22nd Century,” explained
Henry Sicignano, III, President and Chief Executive Officer of 22nd
Century Group. “We look forward to working together with scientists and
policymakers to make Very Low Nicotine cigarettes a public health
reality in the United States and around the world.”

About 22nd Century Group, Inc.

22nd Century is a plant biotechnology company focused on genetic
engineering and plant breeding which allows the increase or decrease of
the level of nicotine in tobacco plants and the level of cannabinoids in
cannabis plants. The Company’s primary mission in tobacco is to reduce
the harm caused by smoking. The Company’s primary mission in cannabis is
to develop proprietary hemp/cannabis strains for important new medicines
and agricultural crops. Visit www.xxiicentury.com
and www.botanicalgenetics.com
for more information.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements: This
press release contains forward-looking information, including all
statements that are not statements of historical fact regarding the
intent, belief or current expectations of 22nd Century Group, Inc., its
directors or its officers with respect to the contents of this press
release, including but not limited to our future revenue expectations.
The words “may,” “would,” “will,” “expect,” “estimate,” “anticipate,”
“believe,” “intend” and similar expressions and variations thereof are
intended to identify forward-looking statements. We cannot guarantee
future results, levels of activity or performance. You should not place
undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as
of the date that they were made. These cautionary statements should be
considered with any written or oral forward-looking statements that we
may issue in the future. Except as required by applicable law, including
the securities laws of the United States, we do not intend to update any
of the forward-looking statements to conform these statements to reflect
actual results, later events or circumstances, or to reflect the
occurrence of unanticipated events. You should carefully review and
consider the various disclosures made by us in our annual report on Form
10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2016, filed on March 8,
2017, including the section entitled “Risk Factors,” and our other
reports filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission which
attempt to advise interested parties of the risks and factors that may
affect our business, financial condition, results of operation and cash
flows. If one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or if
the underlying assumptions prove incorrect, our actual results may vary
materially from those expected or projected.

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