In April, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced its intention to begin regulating a variety of tobacco products, including premium cigars. These proposed regulations represent the most serious change to how cigars are sold and consumed in the U.S. ever, at the very least, since the Cuban embargo.

Under one scenario, as much as half of the handmade cigars currently on the market could be extinct within two years according to FDA’s own estimates. In addition, prices would rise, new cigars would become a thing of the past and people would lose their jobs. Retailers would likely close, representatives laid off, factory workers consolidated and the writers of this website would likely have to find new work.

There’s a very real risk that under the strictest version of the proposed rules a website like HALFWHEEL would become neither financially, nor editorially viable. Simply put, there might be nothing to write about besides companies going out of business.

Part of the rulemaking process requires FDA to solicit the public’s response. The FDA has asked for comment regarding a variety of topics, including whether it should exempt “premium cigars” from its regulation and how to define such “premium cigars.”

That comment period will close at 11:59 PM (EDT) tonight. If you have not yet submitted a comment, we cannot stress the importance of doing so. To learn more about the FDA’s threat to premium cigars, please visit halfwheel.com/fda.

To proceed to the regular homepage, please click here.