As Ireland seeks to become the first country in Europe and the second country in the world to require that all tobacco products come in plain packaging, nine European Union member countries have filed an objection to the plan.

Italy filed a last-minute objection to become the ninth country in opposition, joining Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Greece, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia and Spain, who had filed earlier this week.

According to the Irish Times, countries are able to file objections to a member country’s proposed laws when they believe those regulations “may create obstacles to the free movement of goods, the freedom to provide services or the freedom of establishment of services operators within the internal market”.

The deadline for a country to file an objection was Sept. 18. Ireland’s Department of Health has said that it will respond to the objections in “due course.”

Australia has required plain packaging for tobacco products since Dec. 1, 2012, a requirement that has been met with opposition from Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Honduras, Indonesia and Ukraine.

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Patrick Lagreid

I strive to capture the essence of a cigar and the people behind them in my work – every cigar you light up is the culmination of the work of countless people and often represents generations of struggle and stories. For me, it’s about so much more than the cigar – it’s about the story behind it, the experience of enjoying the work of artisans and the way that a good cigar can bring people together. In addition to my work with halfwheel, I’m the public address announcer for the Colorado Rockies and Arizona Diamondbacks during spring training, as well as for the Salt River Rafters of the Arizona Fall League, the WNBA's Phoenix Mercury and previously the Arizona Rattlers of the Indoor Football League. I also work in a number of roles for MLB.com, plus I'm a voice over artist. Prior to joining halfwheel, I covered the Phoenix and national cigar scene for Examiner.com, and was an editor for Cigar Snob magazine.