The U.S. government will present its long-awaited plan Thursday to ban menthol cigarettes.

Robert Califf, Food and Drug Administration Commissioner, previewed the announcement during congressional testimony. He stated that the proposal would lower disease and death through helping smokers quit and making it harder for younger people to start.

Menthol makes up more than one third of the cigarettes that are sold in the United States. The mint flavor is highly favored by young Black smokers.

The FDA tried several times to eliminate menthol, but was met with resistance from Big Tobacco and members of Congress.

Following a lawsuit by civil and anti-smoking organizations, FDA has had to issue a ruling. The FDA was accused of “unreasonably delay” in granting earlier requests for menthol bans. Menthol’s cooling effects have been proven to reduce the harshness in the throat, making it more difficult to quit.

FDA will also ban menthol as well as many other overly sweet or fruity flavours from small cigars. This is especially important for Black teens.

Initial drafts of the agency’s proposed regulations on cigars and cigarettes will be available. FDA welcomes comments prior to issuing final rules. This could lead to years of litigation from the tobacco industry.

Menthol was the only flavour that wasn’t prohibited by the FDA’s authority in 2009 over tobacco products. This exemption was negotiated and negotiated with industry lobbyists. But, it did direct the FDA to continue to consider a ban.

Biden’s administration announced in April that it would ban menthol for one year. It was responding to African American groups, which claim that menthol is responsible for lower rates of quit and greater death rates among Black people. Menthols have been used by over 85% Black smokers.

Phillip Gardiner from the African American Tobacco Control Leadership Council said that stroke, heart disease, and lung cancer are more common in Black people. “Menthol cigarettes, flavored cigars and tobacco smoke are main sources of these diseases in Black and Brown communities and have been for some time.”

Gardiner and other groups sued the FDA in 2020 for a ban.

Although the FDA tried to eliminate menthol in both Obama’s and Trump’s administrations, it has not yet released any formal plan.

Mitch Zeller, who retired recently after leading FDA’s tobacco center for nine years, said that this is the first instance of support by an administration. If these rules become finalized, it is illegal to make menthol cigarettes nor flavored cigars.

In recent weeks, dozens of interest groups — for and against the ban — met with Biden administration officials to try and influence the proposed rule, which would wipe out billions in tobacco sales.

Tobacco companies have focused for decades on menthol marketing and promotion in Black communities. They sponsor music festivals and other neighborhood events. According to litigation documents, menthol cigarettes were a popular “starter product”, as they are more appealing to teenagers.

Tobacco companies including Marlboro-maker would suffer a major blow if Menthol were to be eliminated AltriaReynolds American is the distributor of Kool and Newport menthol brands. Tobacco companies are diversifying their product lines, such as electronic cigarettes or tobacco pouches, in response to the gradual decline of smoking. These ventures account for only a small percentage of the industry’s sales.

Smoking cigarettes is a major problem in America, accounting for more than 12%.