Tory Tobacco Bill Holds Match to Brittle Trade Bond with U.S.

(Sheldon Alberts — Canwest News Service)

American cigarettes won’t be allowed in Canada: congressmen

Add American cigarettes to the growing list of products getting caught up in the increasingly testy trade relationship between Canada and the United States.

Tobacco growers in Kentucky have launched a protest against the Harper government over a new anti-smoking bill they argue will lead to a ban on the vast majority of U.S. cigarette exports to Canada.

Two U.S. congressmen have taken up the cause of 8,100 Kentucky farmers who grow “burley tobacco” — used in popular American-style cigarettes such as Camel and Winston — and have warned International Trade Minister Stockwell Day that Canada’s legislation violates NAFTA and other trade agreements.

The U.S. grievance was sparked by the introduction last month of Bill C-32, an amendment to the Tobacco Act that would ban the addition of certain flavours and additives to cigarettes and cigarillos that the federal government says are marketed at children and teenagers. Read more here.