Until the 1990s, the Cuban government provided a generous ration of nationally made cigarettes to all adults despite its stated commitment to public health and despite knowledge that smoking—especially cigarettes—causes cancer. Eventually this was phased out, allegedly because Cubans who did not smoke but got cheap packs of cigarettes from the ration, bartered them to local smokers on the black market or sold them directly to foreigners for a pittance of what the state’s official hard-currency brands cost. Although they have no additives and are made from the stems rather than the leaves of the island’s superior native tobacco, Cuban cigarettes are highly addictive. The state also still faces the conundrum of promoting its health-first policies, especially to foreign visitors, while trying to sell them cancer-producing cigarettes to smoke at will. This pack reflects the Cuban paradox in its unique warning label: Your health depends on you. DO NOT SMOKE! Matanzas, June 2016.
