Cuba Criticizes Ban on Sale of Cohiba Habanos in Brazil

Cuban Deputy Foreign Minister Rogelio Sierra criticized the decision of Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro to ban the sale of Cuban cigars Cohiba, considered the best in the world.

To be well with the master of the North (United States), in Brazil they prohibit the sale of the best tobacco in the world of the Cuban brand Cohiba and invent gross lies to discredit it, the deputy foreign minister wrote in his Twitter account.

In another message on that social network, Sierra said that the high degree of servility and perversity of the Latin American right was 'outrageous.'

The decision responds to an alleged supposed 'excess of sorbic acid (natural organic compound used as a food preservative in the form of mineral salts)' in the cigars notified by the National Health Surveillance Agency (Anvisa).

This is rejected by the Emporium importer who has been working for 20 years with Cohiba, a leading brand for the quality of its product.

According to local media, Emporium said upon knowing the measure that 'there is no inclusion of any additive, because it is a hundred percent natural product,

Anvisa rejected the request to renew the registration of the Cohiba brand and granted 30 days to collect the product, which means that Cuban cigars were banned in the South American giant.

However, an article published in the Brazilian newspaper O Globo states that under an administrative appeal filed, the Cohiba remains on the shelves until the problem is legally resolved.

The Cohiba brand, created in 1966, is recognized worldwide for the quality of its products.

Its market reaches all countries, except the United States, where its sale is prohibited by the commercial, economic and financial blockade of Cuba.