The Cigar Association of America (CAA) is asking the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to revoke the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s Flavored Cigar Products Standard (FCPS) banning the addition of flavors in cigars, which the association says will cost the cigar industry nearly $4 billion. sales, accounting for 47% of industry sales and destroying 16,000 jobs.
"We submitted evidence to OMB that FDA's proposed flavored cigar ban clearly does not meet the standards required for a ban under the Tobacco Control Act," CAA President David Ozgo said in a statement after a Nov. 6 meeting with OMB officials. There is little benefit to public health and a devastating economic impact on the industry.”
The FDA claims that the product standard will reduce cigar use among teenagers and that banning flavored cigars will address health disparities in a small subgroup of adults. Government data provided to OMB by CAA shows that neither statement is true. "
In order for the FDA to enforce a flavored cigar ban through the FCPS, the agency is required by law to consider: whether the potential product standard is appropriate for public health, taking into account scientific evidence regarding the risks and benefits to the population as a whole; and existing users of tobacco products to discontinue use of such tobacco products. products; and, those who do not use tobacco products are more or less likely to start using such products.
"FDA's standards for flavored cigar products fail in all three areas," Ozgo charged. "Cigar use among young people, especially flavored cigars, is at an all-time low, and this low use reflects a stable and ongoing trend."
The 2022 National Youth Tobacco Survey (NYTS) shows that the past 30-day youth cigar use rate is 1.85%, and the past 30-day youth flavored cigar use rate is 0.83%. Recently released 2023 New York Times data shows teen cigar use dropped to 1.6% in the past 30 days. While usage data for flavored cigars has not yet been released, usage is expected to be less than 1%.
Other government surveys reflect similar trends. In fact, the most recent Population Assessment Survey on Tobacco and Health (PATH) showed that past 30-day cigar use among teens was only 0.7%, and past 30-day flavored cigar use among teens was only 0.14%.
In addition to claims about youth smoking that are not supported by evidence, the CAA argued that the FDA has not demonstrated that health disparities in adult subpopulations are related to flavored cigar use, nor that a ban on flavored cigars would remedy these disparities among blacks and non-Hispanic Americans. The CAA did this despite the fact that the FDA based its decision not on the impact on a subpopulation, but on the population as a whole.
"Separate from the FDA's statement, the use patterns of these products do not raise public health concerns and warrant the elimination of an entire category of products while denying adult consumers the right to choose these products," Ozgo said.
While the public health case does not exist, the FDA's proposal would have huge negative economic consequences. A recent study by the Policy Navigation Group showed that a ban on flavored cigars would reduce retail sales by nearly $4 billion, or 47% of industry sales, and result in approximately 16,000 job losses.
The CAA and other industry groups recently persuaded courts to reject the agency's efforts to regulate "premium" cigars. More specifically, the judge in the case ruled against the FDA on the grounds that the agency ignored scientific evidence. The proposed FCPS similarly ignores scientific evidence.
"Just like in 2016 and 2019, we urge the Office of Management and Budget to once again reject the FDA's flavored cigar proposal," Ozgo said. "The proposed FCPS would have few public health benefits but would have huge negative economic consequences. This is a public Policy at its worst. Ultimately, the FDA's proposal is a solution to a problem."
