WASHINGTON – The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has lodged a formal complaint with the European Commission ahead of Ireland’s proposal to move to plain packaging for tobacco products, the Irish Examiner reports. In addition, 71 organizations signed a letter outlining similar protests, which was given last week to Irish Trade Minister Charlie Flanagan during a meeting in the United States.

The complaint alleged that moving to plain packaging would significantly impact Ireland’s economy if the proposal did not “safeguard intellectual property rights through the improper destruction of registered marks.”

The U.S. businesses claimed that the Irish prohibition would also trigger unforeseen consequences, such as “the dangers of increased smoking rates due to competition through pricing in the legal market and an influx of illicit and counterfeit tobacco products as described above.”

Irish Health Minister Leo Varadkar has been under pressure to jettison the previous minister’s plan to eliminate branding on cigarette packs and tobacco products. Dozens of letters from companies and organizations both supporting and opposing the ban have been sent to his office. At this time, the Irish Parliament continues to discuss the packaging proposal, while the European Commission and World Trade Organization review the new laws for approval.

Last month, France announced its plans for plain packaging rules for cigarettes in part of its effort to curb smoking. France has one of the highest smoking rates among major European nations.