Rizla Flavour Infusions Cards Menthol Chill Full Box of 25…

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The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has announced it will ban both menthol cigarettes and flavored cigars. “Banning menthol — the last allowable flavor — in cigarettes and banning all flavors in cigars will help save lives, particularly among those disproportionately affected by these deadly products,” Dr. Can you buy menthol cigarettes in UK? European Network for Smoking and Tobacco Prevention, Ban on Menthol Cigarettes, ENSP factsheet, 2020 Public Health Law Center, Supplement to Menthol Citizen Petition: Prohibit Menthol as a Characterizing Flavoring of Cigarettes and Cigarette Smoke, March 2021, accessed May 2022 Euromonitor International, Market sizes: cigarettes retail volume 2018, accessed March 2020 (paywall)

Menthol cigarettes and tobacco products are yet to be banned US-wide. This is despite the Tobacco Control Act of 2009 making the issue of menthol in cigarettes an FDA priority, an FDA report detailing menthol’s harms in 2011, and efforts by health organisations and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) to push the FDA to ban menthol cigarettes. 6 Flavour and Menthol Bans in Place in the US The World Health Organisation (WHO)’s Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, the world’s first global public health treaty, recommends banning menthol tobacco products. Numerous countries, including Brazil and Canada, have done so. EU legislation prohibits menthol as a characterising flavour but not as an ingredient in cigarettes, roll-your-own tobacco, papers or filters, and this ban does not extend to cigars, cigarillos or other accessories such as flavour infusion cards. Canadian legislation, for example, is more comprehensive, prohibiting menthol as an ingredient in cigarettes, most cigars, papers and filters. b) results from an additive or a combination of additives, including, but not limited to, fruit, spice, herbs, alcohol, candy, menthol or vanilla”The ITC figures are supported by 2018 Euromonitor data, which show that the combined market share of menthol and capsules was generally higher in northern European countries, with the highest in Poland, at over 25%, followed by the UK, at over 20% . 11 The UK market

We implore the FDA to move swiftly to remove these harmful products from the market once and for all and keep them out of the hands of our nation’s youth — their health and well-being must be the first priority,” he said. In April 2021, the FDA announced that it was “working towards” a full menthol and flavour ban in cigarettes and cigars, stating that: a b European Commission, Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan: Commission proposes to prohibit flavoured heated tobacco products, press release, 29 June 2022, accessed October 2023There is greater risk of progression to regular smoking and nicotine dependence for those who start smoking menthol cigarettes compared to those starting with non-menthol cigarettes. a b c European Commission, Directive 2014/40/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 3 April 2014, accessed March 2020 The Irish Times reported that JTI were selling a “green” version of their Silk Cut cigarette brand. JTI argued that this product complied with the ban, even though the company admitted that it used menthol flavouring in its manufacture. 64 According to the newspaper, JTI stated that they: “conduct robust internal testing processes to determine that the use of flavourings in our products does not produce a clearly noticeable smell or taste other than one of tobacco.” 64 BAT accused JTI of using the same tactic in France, with new versions of its Camel and Winston brands, to which JTI issued a similar denial. 65 And because the flavor masks the taste of tobacco, it makes cigarettes more attractive to new smokers, especially children who are more likely to get hooked for life. To be efficient, bans on flavoured tobacco products should prohibit menthol and other ingredients with flavour properties, as ingredients. Consequently, authorities are not placed in a position to prove whether a flavour is characterising. Banning menthol as an ingredient will also end tobacco companies’ use of menthol for its pharmacological effects. Internal tobacco industry documents reveal that even subliminal levels of menthol may decrease the harshness of tobacco smoking by making the smoke more ‘smooth’ 22 and that these properties appeal to novice smokers. 23 Other ingredients that have the potential to mask the irritating effect of tobacco smoke, such as ingredients that produce a cooling effect, should also be banned. Moreover, legislation should encompass all tobacco products to avoid the substitution of one product with another. To be comprehensive, the legislation should also prohibit flavoured tobacco accessories and filter modifications which may enable tobacco companies to circumvent the flavour ban. These recommendations should be considered in the revision of the EU TPD. The revised TPD should at least make it clear that member states may go beyond the directive provisions to protect public health.