Registration has opened for the 2022 Coresta Congress Online.
Scheduled for Oct. 10–28, the Coresta Congress Online will comprise 26 sessions and more than 140 presentations.
The daily sessions will focus on a specific topic area, and each prerecorded presentation will be followed by a live Q&A session with the presenters.
Videos will be available for replay after the event, and the presentations will be published on the Coresta website.
The registration deadline is Sept. 25, 2022.
A bill seeking to lower the purchase age for e-cigarettes and heated-tobacco products has lapsed into law in the Philippines, reports ABS-CBN, citing a tweet sent by Presidential Press Secretary Trixie Cruz-Angeles.
The measure moves the regulation of vapes to the Department of Trade and Industry from the Food and Drug Administration. It also lowers the age of sale from 21 to 18.
The proposal was reportedly submitted to the Presidential Palace on June 24, days before then President Rodrigo Duterte stepped down from office.
A bill will lapse into law if the chief executive fails to act on it 30 days after receipt from Congress, according to the Official Gazette.
The vape regulation bill was approved by both the Senate and the House of Representatives of the 18th Congress in January but remained on the Speaker’s table until the final days of the Duterte administration. As a consequence of its delayed transmission to the presidential office, the bill was inherited by President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.
In addition to lowering the purchase age for e-cigarettes and heated-tobacco products, the bill removes a two-flavor limit on the products’ flavors or juices, allows sponsorships beyond industry associations and trade events and allows tobacco companies to conduct corporate social responsibility-related activities.
Anti-vape advocates vowed to contest the new legislation in court.
Malaysia’s Cabinet has approved the Tobacco and Smoking Control Bill, reports The Star.
“I will be sending [the Bill] to Parliament for this session,” Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin told reporters during the presentation of a new drug perception study report on July 14.
Among other provisions, the bill calls for a ban on sales of cigarettes, tobacco and vapor products to those born after 2005.
The proposed law is modeled on legislation in New Zealand, which in December 2021 revealed a plan to phase out smoking by gradually raising the smoking age until it covers the entire population.
Presently, some 40.5 percent of men and 20 percent of women smoke in Malaysia.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on July 13 sent its first warning letters to manufacturers for unlawfully marketing non-tobacco nicotine e-liquid products without the required authorization.
In March, President Joe Biden signed into law a spending bill [the Act] that gives the FDA authority over synthetic nicotine. The provision took effect in April and gave manufacturers until May 14, 2022, to submit premarket tobacco product applications (PMTAs) to the FDA.
Products that did not receive marketing authorization by July 13, 2022, are considered illegal and must be removed from the market.
Since no authorizations have been granted as of today, many industry experts question whether the FDA will use its enforcement discretion to continue reviewing PMTAs.
In a recent op-ed, Tony Abboud, president for Strategic Government Solutions, and executive director of the Vapor Technology Association (VTA), stated that the FDA should use its enforcement discretion for synthetic products that have submitted PMTAs.
“In a series of direct engagements with FDA since the passage, the VTA has provided a complete set of scientific and policy justifications for synthetic nicotine products, and specific recommendations on how FDA should use its enforcement discretion – just as it has in the past – to allow synthetic nicotine products to remain on the market during the PMTA review process,” explained Abboud.
The recipients of the FDA’s first warnings letters, AZ Swagg Sauce and Electric Smoke Vapor House, have listed a combined total of approximately 10,000 products with FDA. Neither company submitted a premarket application for its non-tobacco nicotine products by the deadline, according to the FDA.
In addition, the FDA issued 107 warning letters to retailers in the last two weeks for illegally selling non-tobacco nicotine products, including certain e-cigarette or e-liquid products, to underage purchasers.
“FDA has been fully committed to actively implementing this critical new law regulating non-tobacco nicotine products since its passage, and the warning letters announced today are just the beginning of our compliance and enforcement actions” said Brian King, director of the FDA’s Center for Tobacco Products, in a statement. “In the coming weeks, we will continue to investigate companies that may be marketing, selling, or distributing non-tobacco nicotine products illegally and will pursue action, as appropriate.”
The FDA says it is currently processing applications for approximately 1 million non-tobacco nicotine products submitted by more than 200 manufacturers by the May 14, 2022, deadline.
“FDA is working diligently to process the substantial number of applications submitted and, as always, will make marketing decisions based on the best available science and will pursue compliance and enforcement actions when warranted,” said King. “We remain fully committed to taking whatever steps are necessary to protect the public health and to provide timely updates on our ongoing progress regulating non-tobacco nicotine products.”
Current vaping among U.K. children aged 11-17 was up from 4 percent in 2020 to 7 percent in 2022, according to the annual YouGov youth survey for Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) carried out in March and published on July 7. The proportion of children who admit ever having tried vaping has also risen from 14 percent in 2020 to 16 percent in 2022.
Disposable e-cigarettes are now the most used product among current vapers, up more than seven-fold from 7 percent in 2020 and 8 percent in 2021, to 52 percent in 2022. Elf Bar and Geek Bar are overwhelmingly the most popular, with only 30 percent of current users having tried any other brands.
Over the past year there has been growing concern about the increasing popularity of disposable vapes with young people, but this is the first time national figures have been available to show the scale of the change. ASH said the increase in vaping shown by the survey is a cause for concern, and needs close monitoring. However, 92 percent of under 18s who’ve never smoked, have also never vaped, the organization pointed out—and only 2 percent have vaped more frequently than once or twice.
“Just to give it a try” is still the most common reason given by never smokers for using an e-cigarette (65 percent). For young smokers the most common reason for using an e-cigarette was “because I like the flavors” (21 percent) followed by “I enjoy the experience” (18 percent) then “just to give it a try” (15 percent), but they also said, “because I’m trying to quit smoking” (11 percent) or “I use them instead of smoking” (9 percent). Fruit flavors remain the most popular (57 percent).
Vaping behavior is strongly age related, with 10 percent of 11-15 year olds ever having tried vaping, compared to 29 percent of 16 and 17 year olds (the figures for those currently vaping are 4 percent and 14 percent respectively). And while underage vaping has risen, underage smoking is lower than it was in 2020 (14 percent in 2022 compared to 16 percent in 2020).
For the first time this year the survey asked about awareness of promotion of e-cigarettes. Over half (56 percent) of 11-17 year olds reported being aware of e-cigarette promotion, most frequently in shops, or online, with awareness highest amongst those who’d ever vaped (72 percent). Tik Tok was the most frequently cited source of online promotion (45 percent) followed by Instagram (31 percent).
In response to the survey results, the U.K. Vaping Industry Association (UKVIA) called for a range of get-tough measures to crack down on unscrupulous retailers who sell vapes to young people.
“The UKVIA understands the need for the right balance between supporting adult smokers to quit without encouraging take up amongst under-18s and ‘never-smokers,’” said UKVIA’s Director General John Dunne in a statement.
In a letter to the Department for Health and Social Care, the UKVIA proposed a set of recommendations to come down hard on those who sell vapes to minors while maintaining vaping’s critical role for helping smokers to quit, including fines of £10,000 ($11,897) and a national retail licensing scheme.
Brazil’s national health surveillance agency, Anvisa, decided on July 6 to maintain its ban on the import, advertising and sale of electronic cigarettes in Brazil, according to News Bulletin 24/7. The restriction began in 2009, but marketing continues illegally in the country, so Anvisa also called for increased inspections and educational campaigns to curb the illicit trade in e-cigarettes.
The decision was taken unanimously during a meeting of the body’s collegiate board. According to Anvisa Director Cristiane Rose Jourdan, scientific studies show that the use of electronic smoking devices increases the risk of smoking in young people, the potential for dependence and the likelihood of lung, cardiovascular and neurological health problems.
The Brazilian Medical Association (AMB) applauded Anvisa’s position. ”This is a wise decision, as there is increasing scientific evidence that the use of electronic smoking devices, the DEFs, is not harmless, does not support smoking cessation or is a form of harm reduction, but a product that causes dependence and can cause several diseases, especially cardiovascular, respiratory and cancer,” said Ricardo Meirelles, coordinator of the Commission to Combat Tobacco at AMB.
A survey carried out in the first quarter of 2022 by the Vital Strategies organization and the Federal University of Pelotas, revealed that 19.7 percent of Brazilians aged between 18 and 24 have tried electronic cigarettes.
BAT Brasil (formerly Souza Cruz) said it will assess the regulatory impact analysis of Anvisa’s decision when it is published.
“Dozens of countries have already understood the importance of risk reduction as part of their tobacco control policies and, given this reality, have advanced in the regulation of these devices,” the company said in a statement, citing the examples of United States, the European Union and the United Kingdom, among others.
Japan Tobacco International regretted Anvisa’s decision. “The use of electronic devices in the country is current and supplied exclusively by illicit trade. Legalized companies do not sell the product and the growth in consumption that affects the population comes from the illegal acquisition of devices,” the company said.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has received more than 110,000 comments on the proposed rule that would end the sale of menthol cigarettes and nearly 60,000 comments on the proposed rule that would prohibit characterizing flavors in cigars.
Many wrote to oppose the ban, including business owners who said it would force them to cut jobs.
“If implemented, this proposal could hurt retailers and wholesalers in the U.S. and directly impact my bottom line,” wrote a tobacco retailer in Florida. “This ban targets a significant portion of my revenue; menthol cigarettes alone make up 36 percent of all cigarette sales in the United States. Additionally, adult customers who purchase menthol cigarettes also purchase gas, food and other items that my store depends on.”
Thousands of letters submitted online came from menthol cigarette smokers who perceived the proposed restrictions as an unfair attack on personal liberty.
“This regulation far beyond overreaches the authority that the government should have over the American people,” wrote one respondent. “We have age restrictions for a reason, and once you reach that age you should be able to make the choice to use any legal product that you wish.”
Others supported the proposal, saying removing menthol and other flavors would improve health and help rectify racial injustices.
“The ban on menthol in cigarettes is a necessary step toward health equity and health promotion,” wrote Kaelor Gordon. “This substance unjustly and unfortunately places the burden of tobacco use and death on Black individuals and communities of color at higher and disproportionate rates, so to ban menthol would be in tune with the anti-racist and health equitable culture we are strongly cultivating today.”
The FDA recently extended the comment period from July 5 to Aug. 2, 2022.
Geekvape shared its expertise in computational fluid dynamics (CDF) at the 14th International Conference on Computer Modeling and Simulation, hosted June 24-26 by the Chongqing University of Posts and Telecommunications.
Geekvape has used CFD to structurally optimize ceramic atomizers. In designing electrically heated atomizers, the heat and mass transfer phenomenon is essential for maximizing the product’s performance. The company’s engineering team developed patented product designs with higher heat efficiency and better atomization performance.
“This invitation is a great honor for Geekvape to communicate with many international experts and scholars in related research fields, to discuss the latest technological progress and share our most recent findings,” said Jiadong Zang, who represents Geekvape’s advanced technology and application research institute, in a statement.
“This has profound implications for the future development of the global e-cigarette industry, as well as for the improvement of scientific and technological innovation to facilitate the industry’s high-quality development.”
RELX International and SABA IP recently trained officials from the Abu Dhabi Customs Authority and Department of Economic Development to help them combat the illegal trade in vapor products.
The session covered topics such as distinguishing legal products from illegal ones, raising awareness about the consequences of the illegal e-cigarette trade and sharing research and intelligence. The program also discussed product authentication, tracking and tracing technologies.
According to RELX, contraband and counterfeit e-cigarettes are produced in unregulated facilities and pose a serious health risk to legal age consumers and minors. Counterfeit e-cigarettes often use inferior e-liquid formulas; capsules frequently leak and provide misleading information about the nicotine dosage in the capsules.
“The training sessions for the Abu Dhabi Customs Authority, Department of Economic Development and Ras Al Khaimah Customs Authority showcase RELX International’s commitment, as a responsible company, to working with local authorities, investigation firms and e-commerce platforms to identify and remove contraband and counterfeit e-cigarette products from the market, as part of the RELX Pledge,” said Robert Naouss, external affairs director, MENA and Europe at RELX International, in a statement.
In 2019, RELX International established the Golden Shield Program to prevent the production and sale of illicit goods. Since its inauguration, the program has helped remove more than 550,000 fake products from the market, plus over 77,000 websites.
Additional training sessions are planned in countries across the Middle East, including in Egypt and Jordan. Earlier this year, RELX concluded a training session with customs officials in Saudi Arabia.
Smoore, the world’s largest vapor product manufacturer, today announced it has launched the first real-time monitoring research project on nicotine addiction.
In partnership with the Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Smoore’s new research project aims to explore how best to minimize the nicotine strength in vaping products and ultimately to bring it to below the levels that cause addiction.
The research will look at the secretion and metabolism of dopamine in animal brains, and will use this data to simulate the human brain when ingesting nicotine. As part of the project, the Shenzhen Neher Neural Plasticity Laboratory will conduct controlled trials by exposing subjects to the aerosol environments created by the atomization of Smoore’s Feelm vaping device and the aerosol environment created by combustible tobacco.
In addition providing a better understanding of nicotine absorption through different organs, the research will aid Smoore in improving the design of vape devices, including through changes to heating elements and atomizers, to enhance the vaping experience through increased efficiency of delivery.
“The atomization process between an e-cigarette and a combustible cigarette is very different, hence the physical and chemical properties derived from atomization and tobacco combustion also varies distinctively,” said Xiong Yuming, deputy dean of Smoore Shenzhen Fundamental Research Institute, in a statement.
“Focusing on the underlying mechanism of atomization and tobacco combustion, our research aims to explore nicotine delivery and absorption, so as to reduce the health impacts of these products.”
Supported by Southwest University in Chongqing, the researchers expected to release a stage report in the second half of 2022.