Author: Staff Writer

More Than 60% of Doctors Confused About Vaping Risks
More than 60% of all doctors incorrectly believe all tobacco products are equally harmful, making them less likely to recommend e-cigarettes for people trying to quit smoking, according to a study published in JAMA Network Open.
The study, led by Rutgers University, shows that researchers asked more than 2,000 doctors in the U.S. in 2018 and 2019 about how they would advise patients on using e-cigarettes ask a method of combustible smoking cessation. One in four physicians discouraged all use of e-cigarettes and also were more likely to advise against them if the hypothetical smoker they were counseling were a younger, light smoker compared to an older, heavy smoker.
Credit: Airdone
Although no associations were found between harm-reduction beliefs and being asked about e-cigarettes by patients, the association between physicians’ harm-reduction beliefs and their e-cigarette recommendation practices was significant.
“These findings show it is critical to address physicians’ misperceptions and educate them on e-cigarettes’ efficacy, particularly correcting their misperceptions that all tobacco products are equally harmful, as opposed to the fact that combusted tobacco is by far the most dangerous,” lead author Cristine Delnevo, the director of the Rutgers Center for Tobacco Studies, said in a statement.
The belief that all tobacco products are equally harmful was associated with lower rates of recommending e-cigarettes, the study states, adding that as the evidence base grows for e-cigarette efficacy for smoking cessation, there is need for physician education regarding e-cigarette efficacy.
“As the evidence base grows for e-cigarette efficacy for smoking cessation, physicians’ understanding of e-cigarettes in the context of harm reduction must keep pace with the emerging scientific evidence through effective educational opportunities,” the study’s authors write. “Such opportunities should address e-cigarette safety and efficacy and correct misperceptions that all tobacco products are equally harmful.”
April 19, 2022
Aquios’ Water-Based Vaping Solution Set to Launch Soon
Most traditional vaping devices and e-liquids contain no water at all. E-liquids are primarily produced with with propylene glycol, vegetable glycerin (or a mixture of both), nicotine and flavoring. The low viscosity of water made it unsuitable for use in vaping devices at any meaningful level.
Aquios Labs is setting up to change that technology. The company claims it hopes to integrate water-based vaping into its existing product portfolios. The first generation of the technology, named the AQ30, can support up to 30 percent water content using a combination of specially formulated e-liquid and hardware design.
According to a press release, the first commercially available water-based vaping devices will come to market at the end of April. Aquios says it is already developing the capability to support even higher levels of water content.
Water-based vapes perform differently from their traditional counterparts, according to the release. The water content reduces dehydration and irritation, helps to deliver nicotine more efficiently and produces a more natural flavor. Also, the operating temperature of water-based vaping is much lower than traditional vaping, which greatly enhances the chemical stability of the vaping process.
“We founded Aquios Labs because there’s still a long way to go in terms of improving the vaping experience. We believe that water-based vaping is the new frontier of nicotine delivery and AQ30 is already demonstrating this by drastically reducing the dehydrating effects of vapor while delivering clean flavors,” said Aquios Labs Founder Jack Sanders. “We welcome new and existing vape brands to consider how this technology can be adopted as part of a growing product offering.”
China-based Innokin, a major producer of vaping hardware products, is already placing a significant bet on the future of water-based vapes with plans to integrate Aquios Labs technology into a wide range of their entry-level devices, according to the release. Consumers can expect to see Innokin devices with AQ30 technology debut in the second quarter 2022.
“Innokin has always believed that new technology has the power to eliminate the need for combustible tobacco. When we were introduced to Aquios, our product development team was immediately sold on the unique advantages of water-based vaping,” Innokin Co-Founder George Xia said. “We look forward to hearing feedback about our range of water-based devices when they launch this April.”
April 19, 2022
Kaival Grows Bidi Vapor Distribution by 28,000 Stores
Kaival Brands Innovations Group, the distributor of all products manufactured by Bidi Vapor, LLC, today announced the expansion of additional wholesale and retail accounts. The move is expected to bring the Bidi Vapor disposable e-cigarette’s reach to approximately 28,000 additional stores, according to a press release.
“We are encouraged by growing sales volumes in our second fiscal quarter generated by both established wholesalers and retailers selling the BIDI Stick in new stores, as well as new wholesale and retail accounts being added to our distribution network,” Niraj Patel, CEO of Kaival Brands said. “We anticipate the activation of approximately 3,900 new store locations over the next 45 days, including one new major retailer having already placed orders totaling more than $1.1 million.”
Credit: Bidi Vapor
The expansion represents a positive development for the company since the U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued its marketing denial order (MDO) to Bidi Vapor this past September, as it did for about 96 percent of all manufacturers of flavored electronic nicotine-delivery systems (ENDS).
In February 2022, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit granted Bidi Vapor a judicial stay of the MDO, pending the resolution of Bidi Vapor’s ongoing merits-based litigation. In effect, the judicial stay means that the MDO, which covered the non-tobacco flavored BIDI Sticks, is not legally in force.
Accordingly, Kaival Brands anticipates marketing and selling all 11 flavored BIDI Sticks, subject to the FDA’s enforcement discretion, while Bidi Vapor continues with its merits case challenging the legality of the MDO, according to the release.
“This was a significant event not only for Kaival Brands and Bidi Vapor, but the entire industry,” said Patel of the court decision. “The judicial stay granted in February allowed us to resume sale of all 11 flavored products in the BIDI Stick lineup. We are eager to return our flavored products to the shelves of retailers that comply with the Prevent All Cigarette Trafficking Act so adult consumers can enjoy their preferred flavors once again. As a result of the judicial stay, we expect revenues to resume an upward trajectory as renewed distribution ramps up and sales of flavored BIDI® Sticks increase.”
The company states that the FDA’s new authority over products using synthetic nicotine will only bolster Kaival Brands’ market position, as more retailers understand the “nearly insurmountable compliance hurdles facing those manufacturers of non-compliant” synthetic products.
“Products in the vaping industry should be developed and placed in the market under a high degree of supervision, such as the FDA’s PMTA process or the FDA’s drug-approval process,” continued Patel. “We anticipate that as the FDA begins enforcement against illegally marketed and synthetic-nicotine vaping products, there may be an increased demand for compliant and legal vaping products, such as the BIDI Stick.”
April 19, 2022
Juul Labs Settles Louisiana Vape Suit for $10 Million
Credit: Adobe Photo
Juul Labs has agreed to pay $10 million to settle a lawsuit the Louisiana Attorney General’s Office filed for deceptive marketing practices. Juul has settled similar cases in Washington state — agreeing to pay $22.5 million — as well as Arizona and North Carolina.
“This settlement is another step in our ongoing effort to reset our company and we applaud the Attorney General’s plan to deploy resources to combat underage use,” reads a statement form Juul Labs. “We will continue working with federal and state stakeholders to secure a fully regulated, science-based marketplace for vapor products.”
In the Louisiana case, Attorney General Jeff Landry had accused Juul Labs of marketing its e-cigarettes to youth, according to a news report.
In a 76-page filing in November, Attorney General Jeff Landry claimed Juul used marketing tactics that included designing sleek, concealable devices that featured “fun flavors like mango and cool mint” and edgy ad campaigns directed towards youth.
Landry also accused Juul of “deceptive marketing practices” regarding the device’s concentrations of nicotine. Landry’s office had sought to prevent Juul from selling the product to minors and wanted to limit available flavors to tobacco and menthol. Prosecutors also sought financial penalties from Juul.
April 18, 2022
FDA to Give 90-Day PMTA Statuses Starting April 29

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration will be required to give premarket tobacco product application (PMTA) status reports every 90 days. The first reports are due on April 29, according to a revised order from District Judge Paul Grimm for the United States District Court for the District of Maryland.
US Judge Paul Grimm
The revised order, signed on April 15, granted a motion filed by American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and other plaintiffs that requires the FDA to “forecast the percentages of such products for which it expects to have taken ‘action’ by June 2022 and quarterly thereafter.” Subsequent reports will also be required to state any revisions to prior estimates.
The order states that “covered applications” means all applications for newly deemed tobacco products “sold under the brand names Juul, Vuse, NJoy, Logic, Blu, Smok, Suorin or Puff Bar.” Additionally, any product with a reach of 2 percent of more (vaping product brands deemed to have the greatest public health impact) in “Retail & Sales” in Nielsen’s “Total E-cig Market & Players” or “Disposable E-Cig Market & Players.” The FDA has already approved some products from Vuse and Logic. Also, the agency has denied applications for Blu’s Myblu products.
The decision was not unexpected by the vaping industry. Azim Chowdhury, a partner with Keller and Heckman LLP, speaking during the firm’s annual E-Vapor and Tobacco Law Symposium held Feb. 2–3, said the FDA had appeared to concede to the requested requirement to submit status reports on many of the remaining submissions under review, adding that the updated requirements requested by the anti-vaping groups appeared to be even broader than the original.
Azim Chowdhury
It’s been more than eight months since the 12-month continued compliance policy for products subject to timely submitted PMTAs ended, but the agency is still sitting on some 88,000 reviews, including some of the vaping products with the highest market shares as measured by Nielsen.
Requiring the FDA to provide the status reports comes with some controversy. Chowdhury says that it wouldn’t be appropriate for the protection of public health (APPH) or positive for the vaping industry if a requirement for status updates forced the regulatory agency to make PMTA decisions only to appease the anti-vaping groups or politicians.
“These status reports could be used as a tool to pressure FDA to act—i.e., deny— applications quickly,” Chowdhury told Vapor Voice. “Rather, we want FDA to review the science carefully and take the time it needs to determine whether a particular product is APPH.”
In November 2021, the anti-vaping organizations whose lawsuit brought forward the deadline for filing premarket tobacco product applications (PMTAs) asked U.S. District Judge Paul Grimm to reopen the case. The plaintiffs asked him to require the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to regularly report on the status of the applications for the 10 bestselling vapor brands according to Nielsen rankings.
April 16, 2022
Juul Ends Washington State Marketing Suit for $22.5 Million
Juul Labs has reached another settlement in its youth marketing lawsuits. The vaping manufacturer has agreed to pay $22.5 million in a settlement with Washington state over claims that it unlawfully targeted underage consumers with deceptive advertisements.
“Juul put profits before people,” Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson said Wednesday in a statement. “The company fueled a staggering rise in vaping among teens.”
The settlement comes after North Carolina last year struck a $40 million deal with Juul over how it markets products to underage users. The e-cigarette maker agreed to stop all marketing aimed at young people as part of that deal announced in June.
Juul didn’t clearly state that its products contained nicotine and for more than 20 months, from August 2016 until April 2018, “unlawfully sold hundreds of thousands of vaping products to Washington consumers,” according to Washington’s lawsuit filed in 2020, according to Bloomb e rg.
The company committed to reforms including stopping all its advertising that appeals to youth and ending most social media promotion in the settlement, according to the statement. Juul must also check Washington stores 25 times a month with secret shoppers to keep its products away from youth.
Juul said the settlement terms are consistent with its present practices and past agreements to help combat underage use.
“This settlement is another step in our ongoing effort to reset our company and resolve issues from the past,” the company said in a statement. “We support the Washington State Attorney General’s plan to deploy resources to address underage use, such as future monitoring and enforcement.”
Juul Labs continues to face similar suits from several states, including New York and California.
April 14, 2022
30-Day Countdown for Synthetic Vape PMTAs Begins
Credit: Brian Jackson
On May 14, premarket tobacco product applications (PMTAs) are due for all non-tobacco nicotine products. The legislation enacted on March 15 makes clear that U.S. Food and Drug Administration can regulate tobacco products containing nicotine from any source, according to an FDA statement.
Additionally, no new non-tobacco nicotine, such as synthetic nicotine products, can be entered into the market beginning today, as some portions of the law take effect. Electronic nicotine-delivery system (ENDS) products must ensure compliance with applicable requirements under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FD&C Act) resulting from this law, such as:

Not selling these products to persons under 21 years of age (both in-person and online);

Not marketing these products as modified risk tobacco products without FDA’s authorization; and

Not distributing free samples of these products.

Additionally, the owners and operators of establishments engaged in the manufacture, preparation, compounding, or processing of NTN products must register with the FDA and list all these tobacco products that they manufacture, prepare, compound, or process for commercial distribution.
The May 14 PMTA is the deadline for only those using the recommended FDA’s electronic submission process. An application submitted in hard copy must be received by FDA no later than 4:00 p.m. EDT on Friday, May 13, according to the agency.
April 14, 2022
Summer Frein Joins Turning Point Brands as CMO

Turning Point Brands has hired former Cronos executive, Summer Frein, as its Chief Marketing Officer. Effective immediately, Frein is responsible for driving Turning Point Brands’ marketing strategy across the company’s extensive brand portfolio.
Yavor Efremov, president and CEO of Turning Point Brands
“As Turning Point Brands continues to transform into a more diversified consumer packaged goods company, Summer’s vast experience leading the planning, strategic development and execution for notable consumer brands will be extremely valuable,” said Yavor Efremov, president and CEO of Turning Point Brands. “I look forward to working closely with Summer as she helps our team to improve our differentiated, world-class brands’ profile and consumer acceptance.”
Frein previously served as general manager at Cronos Group where she designed and implemented the company’s sales and marketing strategy, according to a press release. Frein also previously led Cronos Group’s U.S. brand sales operations, including building and managing brand and retail partnerships for the Lord Jones and Happy Dance brands.
Prior to joining Cronos Group, Frein held a variety of senior leadership roles at Altria Group, Inc., across sales, digital and brand marketing, strategy and business development. Notably, in 2018, she led Altria’s cannabis research investment initiative as part of Altria’s strategy and business development group.

Credit Momius
“Over the course of my 15-year career, I have worked with leading adult-use consumer brands on many different sides of the business and watched Turning Point Brands evolve into the leading Company that it is today,” said Frein. “This new opportunity will allow me to work with the dynamic team at Turning Point Brands to develop a long-term marketing strategy and help to fully unlock the value of the Company’s iconic Zig-Zag and Stoker’s brands.”
April 13, 2022
Brazil Drug Agency Starts Consultation on E-Cigarettes

Photo: Brenda Blossom
Brazil’s national drug agency, Anvisa, has opened a consultation on e-cigarettes, reports Portal Rondonia. The agency is seeking technical and scientific information to help it craft regulations for the product category.
The import, sale and advertising of e-cigarettes is banned in Brazil, but the products are said to be widely available anyway.
Brazil’s Pulmonology Society has already expressed its opposition to e-cigarettes, claiming they are a threat to public health.
Pulmonologist Paulo Corrêa, coordinator of the institution’s smoking commission, explained there is a false belief among users that the smoke is not harmful, as it is only water vapor. He also warned that electronic cigarettes have a great appeal among young people, raising the number of new smokers in Brazil.
On April 11, Brazil’s research foundation Fiocruz, which runs a center for studies on tobacco and health, launched a campaign on the risks of the use and release of electronic smoking devices in Brazil. Besides informative material on social media, the campaign includes an online petition encouraging people to oppose the legalization of e-cigarettes in Brazil.
Stakeholders can submit information to Anvisa until May 11.
April 13, 2022
China Releases Technical Standards for Vaping Products
China’s market regulator today unveiled technical standards for e-cigarettes which will go into effect starting Oct 1.
In a public document, the State Administration for Market Regulation listed the requirements for design, chemical compounds, and the mechanics for e-cigarettes that domestic manufacturers must meet in order to sell their products, according to Channel News Asia.
In March, Chinese tobacco authorities issued a finalized version of rules that stipulate other requirements for e-cigarette companies in China.
Most notably, the rules state that e-cigarette companies may only sell their products through authorized channels, and also bar vendors from selling e-cigarette flavors other than tobacco.
Also, the design of the product should not induce minors. The e-cigarette set and cartridges should be sealed to prevent refilling and e-cigarette sets should have a protection to prevent the device to be turned on by a child or by accident, according to the rules.
“The official release of the national standards for e-cigarettes means that there is a threshold for market access and a national mandatory standard for the quality of e-cigarettes, which is of great significance in protecting the rights and interests of minors and consumers,” said Ao Weino, Secretary-General of the Electronic Cigarette Industry Committee of the China Electronics Chamber of Commerce, Chinese media outlet Yicai reported on Tuesday.
Additionally, Chen Zhong, a senior expert on the e-cigarette industry, said that the era of regulation of e-cigarettes has come and it is an important milestone in the development of e-cigarettes in China.
“From now on, all [e-cigarette] products will be developed according to open and transparent rules, and the whole industry chain will adopt the same standards,” Chen was quoted in a report by the Securities Times.
The Beijing Business Today has revealed that many flavored vape products have seen prices increase by up to 20-30 yuan ($3.14-$4.72). Market research firm Forward Industrial Research Institute, has recently reported that in China there are approximately 1,500 vape manufacturers and brand enterprises, and over 100,000 e-cigarette supply chains and related service enterprises, providing employment to an estimated 5.5 million people.
The research firm also found that in 2021, the domestic e-cigarette sales totaled about 19.7 billion yuan ($3 billion), with an annual growth of 36 percent.
This story will be updated as more information becomes available.
April 12, 2022