Author: Staff Writer

  • Study: Number of Global Vapers up by 20% From 2020

    Study: Number of Global Vapers up by 20% From 2020

    Illustration: GSTHR

    The number of vapers worldwide increased by 20 percent from 2020 to 2021, according to the latest research by the Global State of Tobacco Harm Reduction (GSTHR), a project from Knowledge Action Change. The organization estimates that there are now 82 million vapers worldwide.

    The updated calculation was made possible by the release of a range of new data, including the 2021 Eurobarometer 506 survey, and is revealed in a new GSTHR briefing paper. The figure is based on 49 countries that have produced viable survey results on vaping prevalence.

    To address the problem of missing data, the GSTHR used an established method of estimating vaper numbers in countries that currently have no information by assuming a similarity with countries in the same region and economic condition for which data points were available.

    This estimate considers three factors—sales regulation status, World Health Organization regions and World Bank income groups—along with the Euromonitor data on vaping product market size from 2015 to 2021.

    This [increase in vapers] is in spite of prohibitive policies in many countries who follow the World Health Organization’s anti-scientific stance against tobacco harm reduction, thanks to Michael Bloomberg’s billions and his personal zeal for a war on nicotine.”

    Gerry Stimson, director, KAC

    “As well as the substantial growth in the number of vapers globally, our research shows there has been rapid uptake of nicotine vaping products in some countries in Europe and in North America,” said Tomasz Jerzynski, data scientist at GSTHR. “This increase is particularly significant, because in most markets, these products have been available for only a decade.”

    Indeed, the rise in the number of global vapers comes despite the GSTHR’s database showing nicotine vaping products are banned in 36 countries, including India, Japan, Egypt, Brazil and Turkey.

    The new data also shows the U.S. is the largest market for vaping at $10.3 billion, followed by Western Europe ($6.6 billion), Asia-Pacific ($4.4 billion) and Eastern Europe ($1.6 billion).

    “As this updated data from the Global State of Tobacco Harm Reduction shows, consumers find nicotine vaping products attractive and are switching to use them in increasing numbers worldwide,” said Gerry Stimson, director of KAC and emeritus professor at Imperial College London. “This is in spite of prohibitive policies in many countries who follow the World Health Organization’s anti-scientific stance against tobacco harm reduction, thanks to Michael Bloomberg’s billions and his personal zeal for a war on nicotine.”

  • Congress May Give FDA Power Over Synthetic Nicotine Soon

    Congress May Give FDA Power Over Synthetic Nicotine Soon

    The regulation of synthetic nicotine has been a recent focus for many U.S. states. If a yet-to-be unveiled budget bill is passed, it is expected to include giving the U.S. Food and Drug Administration new powers to regulate synthetic nicotine, a lawmaker confirmed on Tuesday. The omnibus appropriation bill is slated to be passed in the next few days.

    Language included in the omnibus spending package bill to fund the government through September would give the FDA the authority to regulate products that contain nicotine but aren’t derived from tobacco, such as synthetic nicotine, according to a document obtained by Bloomberg.

    Congress has tried numerous times over the past year to give the FDA authority over synthetic products. The FDA said last year that synthetic nicotine could be considered a component of e-cigarettes, which would allow for the product to be regulated by the agency. Many states have already begun banning synthetic products.

    Sens. Richard Burr, Dick Durbin and Patty Murray, along with Rep. Frank Pallone led the effort to get the language into the omnibus, according to two Senate sources familiar with the discussions. “This is an enormous win for public health and American consumers,” Pallone said in a statement. “I’m grateful to members on both sides of the aisle for working with me to close this loophole in the omnibus.”

    The change will stop “bad actors attempting to evade FDA regulation and hook a new generation of young people into a lifetime of nicotine addiction,” Pallone said.

    Public health groups have been warning that synthetic nicotine e-cigarettes such as Puff Bar have grown in popularity among teens while skirting FDA oversight. The FDA has authority to regulate natural tobacco products, but it’s unclear if that extends to lab-made nicotine.

    More than a quarter of middle and high school e-cigarette users reported using Puff Bar as their usual brand, according to a survey from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Puff Bar didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

    The same survey found brands that use traditionally derived nicotine, such as those sold by Vuse, SMOK, and JUUL Labs Inc., are also popular among teens, even though people under age 21 can’t purchase them legally.

  • Bantam Vape Receives USPS E-Cig Shipping Exemption

    Bantam Vape Receives USPS E-Cig Shipping Exemption

    E-liquid manufacturer Bantam Vape received an exemption from the United States Postal Service (USPS) that allows the company to ship its e-liquid products to select vape retailers and distributors throughout the United States.

    Bantam e-liquids
    Bantam is seeking marketing orders from FDA for its suite of e-liquid products. Credit: Bantam Vape

    The postal service’s decision comes in response to Bantam’s application for a business purposes exception to the Prevent All Cigarette Trafficking (PACT) Act, which was amended by Congress on December 27, 2020, prohibiting the shipment of e-cigarettes and vapor products through USPS.

    “Bantam’s ability to reengage USPS as a shipper of our high-quality, flavor-filled e-liquids allows us to more effectively serve our trusted retail and distribution partners,” said Bantam spokesperson Anthony Dillon. “Utilizing USPS as an alternative shipping channel provides our business-to-business customers with increased purchase order flexibility and decreased shipping timelines and costs.”

    Bantam provided USPS with the necessary documentation to obtain its exception to the PACT Act prohibition against shipment of vapor products through USPS, according to a press release. This included submission of applicable state and federal permits and licenses for both Bantam and its customers named in the application.

    “We thank USPS for processing our application in a timely manner and in helping us deliver alternatives to combustible cigarettes to our customers across the U.S.,” said Dillon. “As we continue to grow our brand’s customer base, Bantam is committed to adding retailers and distributors to the list of those we can ship to using USPS.”

  • Indiana Bill Would Lower E-cigarette Excise Taxes

    Indiana Bill Would Lower E-cigarette Excise Taxes

    An excise tax on vaping products was set to take effect on July 1 in Indiana. A recently passed bill in the state’s Legislature, however, could lower those taxes before the new law goes into effect.

    Credit: Adobe Stock / Luzitanija

    Both the Indiana House and Senate have approved the measure that would reduce the tax on closed-system vaping products, such as disposable e-cigarettes, from 25 percent of the wholesale price to 15 percent.

    Senate Bill 382 is likely headed to a House-Senate conference committee for minor negotiations, but the bill’s author expects the Legislature to send the bill to the governor. “I don’t anticipate any [significant] change. They approved it in the House; we’ll probably just leave it where it is,” said author Sen. Travis Holdman, told the Indianapolis Business Journal.

    Some lawmakers believe the tax rate for closed-system vaping products was set erroneously high last year; the reduction would match the 15 percent tax rate on the retail price of open-system products, such as refillable vaping pods. Under SB382, that rate would remain unchanged.

    The tax reduction is part of a broader bill filled with minor tax corrections requested by the Indiana Department of Revenue and Gov. Eric Holcomb’s administration. Indiana’s tax on vaping products was created in the biennial budget near the end of last year’s legislative session. Lawmakers rejected a long-debated 50-cents-per-pack increase in the state’s cigarette tax, and in lieu of that, created the vaping-products tax.

    Holdman said he does not know if the governor is on board with the vaping tax reduction’s being added to the Department of Revenue cleanup bill. A spokesperson for Holcomb said the governor will “review every piece of legislation that comes across his desk to make the best determination for all Hoosiers,” but declined to answer further questions about the tax reduction.

  • Smoore and Relx Rank Among Top Patent Applicants

    Smoore and Relx Rank Among Top Patent Applicants

    Photo: Smoore

    Smoore and RELX were among the vaping business’ most prolific patent applicants in 2021, according to the Chinese Enterprise PCT International Patent Application Ranking. Smoore topped the list with 84 international patent applications under the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT), the company announced in a press release. RELX filed 74 international patent applications during the year.

    Based on the number of PCT international patent applications in 2021, the ranking is published by IPRdaily, an intellectual property publication, and incoPat, a global patent database.

    By Dec. 31, 2021, Smoore had more than 3,408 patent applications cumulatively, including 1,674 authorized patent applications. The company’s patent applications relate to atomization and other technologies. In January, the company launched the world’s thinnest ceramic coil vape pod solution. Equipped with a new generation of the Ultra-slim Bionic Film Ceramic Coil, FEELM Air features seven breakthroughs, including in reliability, flavor and interactive experience, according to Smoore.

    To date, the company has hired 1,500 R&D experts from different scientific backgrounds and established 10 centers for cross-disciplinary research. Five additional centers are under construction.

    The company says it’s committed to protecting its intellectual property. In October 2021, Smoore filed a complaint to the United States International Trade Commission against 38 American and Canadian enterprises and individuals for copying certain features of its oil-vaping cartridges and components technologies.

  • More States Set Sights on Synthetic Nicotine Sales

    More States Set Sights on Synthetic Nicotine Sales

    Georgia, Maryland and Mississippi legislators recently introduced bills in their respective states that would only allow the sale of vapor products that are authorized by or pending authorization from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, according to a Filter article.

    Credit: Billion Photos

    The pieces of legislation would also establish directories to inventory authorized vapor products, which would eventually be made public. On the surface, these bills look like they are reiterating what the FDA is already doing through its premarket tobacco product application (PMTA) process, through which the FDA has denied millions of products. However, many have noted that the bills serve as a roundabout way to ban synthetic nicotine.

    Many manufacturers have turned to synthetic nicotine as a way to continue selling their products since synthetic nicotine is not currently regulated.  

    “The elected officials sponsoring these bills may be under the mistaken impression that their proposals are only targeted at illicit and counterfeit dealers,” Greg Conley, president of the American Vaping Association, told Filter. “The reality is that these bills would shut down licensed small businesses that are operating in full compliance with federal, state and local laws.”

    The Republican lawmakers who introduced the bills—Maryland State Senator JB Jennings, Georgia State Senator Jeff Mullis and Mississippi Representative Nick Bain—have all received campaign funds ranging from $500 to $4,800 from Juul Labs, according to Filter. Some feel that Juul and other large companies want to see synthetic nicotine (and competition) diminished.

    “To preserve the harm reduction opportunity for adult smokers, Juul Labs supports a fully regulated, science-based marketplace,” a Juul spokesperson said. “Illegally marketed and illicit products and products designed to evade federal and state oversight undermine harm reduction and a responsible e-vapor category.”

  • Experts: Embracing THR Goals Reduces Smoking Rates

    Experts: Embracing THR Goals Reduces Smoking Rates

    The Asia Harm Reduction Forum 2021 attended by the leading experts in technology, public health policy and science met to discuss the tobacco harm reduction (THR) strategies deployed in various countries, according to a press release from the Canadian Vaping Association.

    “We have known the risks from smoking for many decades. We have known that it is the smoke, not the nicotine, that is responsible. We also know that we can deliver nicotine in ways that have minimal risk,” said David Sweanor, chair of the Center for Health Law, Policy and Ethics and an adjunct professor of law at the University of Ottawa. “As a result, Sweden’s rates of tobacco-related illness and death are by far the lowest that you can see in the European Union. Their smoking rates are now low enough that many people would call it a smoke-free society. When Norway allowed snus products to be more widely available, cigarette smoking fell by half in just 10 years. When Iceland allowed both vaping products and snus into the market, smoking fell by about 40 percent in just three years.”

    For decades, Canada has tried to curb smoking through education and taxation with limited success. Reductions in smoking prevalence had generally slowed, with modest annual declines prior to more mainstream adoption of vaping by smokers. Vaping experienced peak adoption in 2019, which lead to a 7.5 percent decline in cigarette sales.

    “Harm reduction is one of the four pillars of Canada’s drug and substances policy. Policy that makes vaping less appealing to smokers, like flavor restrictions and taxation, is out of step with this policy. In effect, Canada has embraced harm reduction in name but not substance,” said Darryl Tempest, Government Relations Council to the Canadian Vaping Association.

  • Sweden Proposes Ban on Flavored Vaping Products

    Sweden Proposes Ban on Flavored Vaping Products

    The Swedish government has proposed a ban on nontobacco-flavored vapes, including menthol, according to Vaping360.

    Credit: Luzitanija

    The proposed law includes nicotine and non-nicotine e-liquid and regulates all synthetic nicotine products, setting the purchase age to 18. If the law is passed, the sale of flavored vape products will be banned effective Jan. 1, 2023.

    The bill is currently being reviewed by the Council on Legislation, which considers the legal validity of proposed bills before they are considered by legislators. Parliament will vote on the bill as early as March 22.

    If the bill is passed, Sweden will be the eighth European country to prohibit flavors, following Estonia, Finland, Hungary, Ukraine, Denmark, Lithuania and the Netherlands.

  • Massachusetts Reports Rise in Illicit E-Cig Smuggling

    Massachusetts Reports Rise in Illicit E-Cig Smuggling

    Massachusetts law enforcement officials have reported seizing a sizable amount of banned and untaxed vaping products linked to cross-border smuggling last year. According to a new report by the Multi-Agency Illegal Tobacco Task Force, more than 213,000 electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) products were seized by state police and members of the task force in 2021.

    “Inspectors and investigators are routinely encountering or seizing menthol cigarettes, originally purchased in surrounding states, and flavored electronic nicotine delivery products and cigars purchased from unlicensed distributors operating both within and outside the commonwealth,” the report states.

    The seizures of vaping products dwarfed those of untaxed cigarettes, cigars and smokeless tobacco products by law enforcement agencies, according to news reports. Massachusetts banned the sale of flavored cigarettes and vaping products more than two years ago, but those products are still getting into the state through the blackmarket. The law imposed a 75 percent excise tax the wholesale cost of vaping products.

    Credit: Yurii Kibalnik

    The task force, which is overseen by the Department of Revenue, has partnered with federal officials to dismantle major cross-border smuggling operations and recover millions of dollars in unpaid tobacco and vaping product excise taxes. Under the new law, anyone caught bringing untaxed e-cigarettes or vaping products into the state can be fined $5,000 for a first offense and up to $25,000 for multiple violations.

    The provisions also allow police to seize untaxed vaping products as well as vehicles, boats and airplanes. The state collected more than $370 million in cigarette taxes alone in its last budget year, a 23 percent decline over the previous fiscal year, according to the Department of Revenue. The stae collected more than $13 million in taxes on vaping products.

    While many anti-nicotine groups have praised Massachusetts’ ban of flavored tobacco products, the ban is not the success its proponents make it out to be, according to Ulrik Boesen of the Tax Foundation. While a study published in JAMA Internal Medicine found that the sale of flavored tobacco in Massachusetts decreased more than in 27 control states in the wake of the state ban, the authors failed to consider the impact of cross-border trade.

    According to Boesen, increased sales in neighboring New Hampshire and Rhode Island almost completely made up for the decrease in Massachusetts. “The end result of the ban, in fact, is that Massachusetts is stuck with the societal costs associated with consumption, while the revenue from taxing flavored tobacco products is being raised in neighboring states,” Boesen wrote on the Tax Foundation’s website.

  • Santa Ana, Calif. Bans Flavors for Vaping, Tobacco Products

    Santa Ana, Calif. Bans Flavors for Vaping, Tobacco Products

    Credit: Argus

    The Santa Ana City Council on Tuesday voted in favor (7-0) of an ordinance that would ban the sale of flavored vaping and other tobacco products, including hookah. A second reading of the ordinance has not yet been scheduled.

    “Santa Ana displayed courageous leadership to save Black lives and put the health of our kids ahead of the profits of Big Tobacco. Of special note is the inclusion of flavored cigars because the abundance of cheap flavored cigars is a big problem in our community,” stated African American Tobacco Control Leadership Council (AATCLC) co-chair Carol McGruder in an email. “We applaud Mayor Sarmiento, Mayor Pro Tem Bacerra, and Councilwoman Mendoza for their leadership in passing this bill.”

    A trade group representing business owners in the hookah industry asked the council to reconsider its inclusion of hookah in the ordinance. They said that one way to balance the interests of lawmakers in protecting youth from flavored tobacco products, while preserving the hookah’s rich cultural tradition, would be actions similar to the California state bill SB 793, which bans flavored tobacco products but exempts hookah tobacco, loose leaf tobacco, and premium cigars.

    The statewide measure also limits hookah tobacco sales to adults only and no minor can enter an establishment that sells it. The referendum is on the ballot in California on November 8, 2022.