Cigar Beat

Just like that 500 people will be jobless and will not be able to support families in Florida.  Altadis USA announced Tuesday that it is shutting down its Hav-A-Tampa plant in Tampa Florida due to higher cigar taxes and decreasing demands. In a letter to the state, USA said it plans to terminate 492 positions by Aug. 24.

Rick McKenzie, the company’s vice president of human resources, says business has been hurt by rising taxes. A new federal tobacco tax SCHIP went into effect in April and will help pay for a health insurance program for low-income children. Cigars will continue to be produced at a plant in Puerto Rico.

I would like to thank President Obama for going after rich, bad, bad tobacco companies that are making me smoke. I’m sure we will have some new kids using SCHIP from the almost 500 that will be jobless now.

R.I.P.
1902 – 2009

From www.cigaraficionado.com

Oettinger Davidoff Group, the owner of the Davidoff and Avo cigar brands, has acquired Cusano Cigars, the midsize cigar company from Bradenton, Florida, that sells Cusano, Cuvée and other cigars. The deal was announced to employees of the company on Monday. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

This is the second acquisition of a well-known cigarmaker by Davidoff in eight months—in October, the company acquired the Camacho brand.

The Washington Post:
President Obama today signed legislation giving the federal government sweeping new power to regulate the manufacturing, advertising and marketing of cigarettes and other tobacco products.

The law will bring sterner warnings of the risks of smoking on cigarette packs, and possible changes to the formulations of cigarettes and cigars. The law also bans most cigarette flavorings and orders the FDA to study the issue of whether menthol should also be banned, on the theory that the flavorings mask the harsh taste of tobacco and make it easier for first-time smokers to get hooked.

The law will also require manufacturers to disclose the ingredients in cigarettes and other tobacco products, as well as institute severe limitations on how they are advertised and promoted. The government could also issue new rules on nicotine content, flavorings, and other product features. The bill, however, stops short of allowing the FDA to prohibit tobacco or to eliminate nicotine, the addictive element.

Here is the whole story