Tobacco Advocates Fuming Over Canadian Legislation

A spokeswoman for Canada's health department, Christelle Legault, said the bill has no restrictions on burley, but instead is aimed at making cigarettes less accessible and appealing to youths.

Legault cited statistics from a 2007 study, the most recent available, showing 25 percent of Canadian youths aged 15 to 17 reported having tried a little cigar, also known as a cigarillo. And 42 percent of youths aged 18 to 19 had tried the small cigars, which are often flavored.

The bill has drawn criticism from Canadian tobacco company Rothmans, Benson & Hedges Inc., an affiliate of Philip Morris International. RBH imports burley to make such American-blend cigarettes as Rooftop, Carreras, Gitanes and Gauloises, which represent a small but important part of its production. The company said in a statement that flavorings added to burley "have nothing to do with enticing minors to smoke."

RBH president John Barnett said the bill could seriously curtail production at the company's factory in Quebec, which employs 300 people.

About 80 percent of U.S. burley is exported, and the prospect of losing a vast market has inflamed farm groups and their political allies from tobacco-producing states.