a method of producing soft packets of cigarettes , whereby an inner packet , as it is fed along a packing path , is mated with a sheet of packing material withdrawn in a direction tangential with respect to the packing path ; the sheet of packing material being folded into a u about the inner packet , so that a first end portion of the sheet of packing material contacts a minor lateral surface of the inner packet , and being further folded to form a tubular package which is subsequently closed at the end ; the tubular package being closed laterally by detaching the first end portion from the relative minor lateral surface , and inserting , beneath the first end portion , a second end portion , an outer surface of which has been gummed beforehand .