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Tobacco bill snares 'adult' smokes too 

Billy's News and Smoke Shop in downtown Calgary caters to a diverse clientele . . .

This week, five congressmen and a senator wrote U. S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton complaining C-32 "unfairly discriminates against U. S. tobacco growers" representing an "unfair assault" on the economy of tobacco-belt states Kentucky and Tennessee. They also wrote our health, industry and trade ministers, cautioning C-32 could "violate several trade agreements," including NAFTA. American farm, commerce and manufacturing groups are rallying more politicians to protest, while several Canadian counterparts are urging Ottawa to narrow the bill to keep adult-oriented tobacco brands legal, and avert trade trouble.

This may not be what the Conservatives anticipated when they promised to eliminate flavoured smokes. But it's the bitterness of American "burley" tobacco that has caught it in C-32's broad parameters. Burley is used in American Blend cigarettes, such as Marlboro and Camel (Canadian manufacturers primarily use Virginia tobacco), its harsh natural taste softened slightly using a tiny dose of sweetener, often chocolate. The taste may be undetectable and packages don't advertise the sweeteners. "I compare it to lunch meat," says Roger Quarles, head of Kentucky's Burley Tobacco Cooperative. "When you bite it, you taste baloney, not the preservatives." Also, U. S. smokes may be no less healthy than Canadian ones. But in banning "additives that have flavouring properties or that enhance flavours" in cigarettes, Health Canada's bill makes no exceptions. "We know that the addition of flavours and additives makes them more appealing to youth," says ministry spokeswoman Christelle Legault. Americans will have to develop new products if they want into our market, where U. S. brands account for just 1% to 3% of sales.

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