Study detects increase in vapers

The number of vapers more than doubled in key markets between 2013 and 2015, according to an Ernst & Young study.

The report, E-cigarettes: an emerging category, surveyed the vapor business in Italy, France, Germany, Poland, the U.K., Russia and South Korea

Ernst & Young found that the number of vapers in these countries rose from an estimated 2.8 million in 2013 to 5.1 million in 2015, with the U.K. and France registering the highest usage. According to the study, vapers represent 4 percent of the U.K. adult population and 3.5 percent of the French adult population.

In 2015, 37 percent of those who used the devices identified themselves as ex-smokers, compared with 31 percent in 2013.

The size of the vapor market was equivalent to 20 percent of the size of the combustible tobacco market in the U.K. and 12 percent of that in France;

The most common reason cited for using the devices in Germany, Italy and Russia was that they are “less harmful than regular cigarettes.”

Countries with higher cigarette prices reported greater penetration of vapor products.