The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) had proposed a ban on the sale of flavoured cigars and menthol cigarettes back in 2022, and now a filing by the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, a White House agency, showed the proposal has been “withdrawn”, reports Reuters.


The FDA sent their final version of the regulation to the White House’s Office of Management and Budget in October 2023, which then awaited a sign off from the Biden administration. However, the White House continued to delay the matter, missing deadlines to issue a final rule on the ban, according to Reuters.

“It is deeply disappointing that a final rule was not issued in a timely manner … it is more critical than ever that states and cities step up their efforts to end the sale of menthol cigarettes and other flavoured tobacco products,” said Yolonda Richardson, CEO of Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids.

A spokesperson for Reynolds American, BATS’ U.S. subsidiary, on the other had, said a menthol ban would boost the illicit market.

“A menthol ban would fuel yet another extensive illicit market for unregulated and potentially more dangerous products in the U.S., similar to the thriving illicit market of disposable vapor products that FDA has struggled to enforce.”