Category: News This Week

London Leads Vype Survey of Top UK Vape Cities
UK adults spent close to £7 million on vape products between January and October of 2020, with nearly 3 million adults now vaping. These are just some of the findings of a recently released study by the Vype e-cigarette brand. Vype launched the study to discover which UK cities had embraced vaping the most.
The British American Tobacco-owned brand took a comprehensive look into the vape industry both on and offline, delving into which of the UK’s cities were the biggest buyers of their products, and where is home to the most physical vape shops in the UK.
Vype conducted a survey of 2,000 of the UK’s over 18 population, to explore the nation’s vaping perceptions and who is most open about their habit, according to an article in Retail Times..
London leads cities by sales
It’s no surprise that London leads the charge when it comes to top cities by sales, spending more than double that of Birmingham residents in the same time frame. In fact, purchases made by Londoners make up 40% of Vype’s total UK sales to date in 2020, and 83% of the sales from the top 10 biggest spending cities.
Looking at the offline culture, it may be surprising to learn that Leeds is home to the most bricks-and-mortar vape shops per square mile. The northern city has 18 vape shops per square mile, while London only just features in the top five with only 13 shops per square mile. Rounding out the top five are Edinburgh with 17 shops per sqm, York with 15 shops per sqm, and Sheffield with 14 shops per sqm.
When it comes to the products adults have been buying, the top selling flavours across the UK were consistent across England, Scotland, and Wales. Crisp Mint is currently leading as the best-selling Vype flavour, followed by Blended Tobacco and Dark Cherry. The only region this differs in, is Northern Ireland, where Crushed Mint is their best-selling Vype flavour. With the UK’s Menthol Ban implemented back in May, it isn’t surprising that varieties of mint are the favourites for online buyers this year.
Insight into attitudes around the UK
Around the UK, Vype uncovered a range of cities with positive sentiments towards the vapers of the population. It was discovered that adults in Brighton are the least affected by others vaping around them, with 43% of respondents answering that it doesn’t bother them when this happens.
While in Belfast, Vype found that people would be more likely to allow another person to vape in their home or car, with 23% saying they would – this is more than any other city! Belfast is also home to the largest group of adults who vape as an alternative to smoking (21%), followed by adults in Glasgow (also 21%).
To uncover the cities with residents who feel like their habit is most accepted, Vype also questioned the nation about their feelings of being judged. Almost half of Glaswegians (48%) say they don’t feel judged by others for vaping in public, and they are followed closely by adults in Nottingham (44%) and Liverpool (42%).
Liverpool is also home to adults who have vaped the longest – almost two thirds (58%) of respondents say they have vaped for three years or more. Adults in Liverpool are also the most likely to vape at their place of work, with 33% admitting to doing so.
Nearby in Manchester, over a third of respondents (39%) from the city do already or would consider vaping in the future – that’s more than any other city. With only three vape shops per square mile, it’s no wonder Manchester makes the top ten list for online sales.
Vocal about vaping
Two in five (40%) of the UK’s adult vapers are open about vaping, saying that everyone that knows them knows that they do. Females are more likely to be open about this fact, with 42% saying that everyone knows they vape, compared to only 39% of men saying the same. Of those truly vocal about vaping, the over-55s are the most open, with 78% saying everyone knows that they vape. Only 51% of 45-54-year-olds say the same thing – the next closest age group.
Looking at the cities which are most open about vaping, adults living in Norwich top the list, with 63% saying everyone knows they vape. They are closely followed by Southampton, with 62% of adults in the southern city saying the same thing. Residents in Bristol follow this with 56%, Liverpool close behind on 50% and rounding out the top five is Glasgow with 48% of vapers being open about their pastime.
Vaping gaining acceptance
Just under a third (31%) of survey respondents said it doesn’t bother them if someone vapes near them. In fact, 10% of respondents across the nation who don’t vape said they would still allow someone else to vape inside their home and car. Females are the least likely to be bothered by someone vaping near them – but only just. With 32% of women saying they didn’t mind people vaping around them, there was only 1% in it with 31% of men saying the same.
Looking into the differences between adult age groups, 45-54-year olds are the least bothered by someone vaping near them, with 35% of them saying it doesn’t matter to them. This group is followed by the over 55s at 33%, and the 18-24-year-olds at 31%.
Of all UK adults who would consider vaping as an alternative to smoking, it was the Bristolians who lead the charge, with 6% saying they would consider the option in the future. The same percentage of UK adults who live in Nottingham, don’t currently vape but are most intrigued by the variety of flavours.
Going smoke-free
The residents of Plymouth have taken up vaping the most lately, with the biggest number of new vapers – fifty percent of respondents from Plymouth have been vaping for less than one year. Plymouth is also home to the greatest number of vapers who only vape once a week too; three quarters (75%) of respondents from Plymouth said they only vape once a week. The next largest group vaping just once a week are living in Sheffield, where. almost a quarter (23%) of residents of this northern city vape once-a-week too.
Cardiff has the most residents that have been vaping for between one and two years (72% have) – way more than any other city. However, they are also the city which spends the least online but buy the most products in each purchase – almost 3 times as many with every online sale this year, compared to other cities. . However, as well as spending the least online, they also only have 1.4 physical vape stores per square mile to rely on too!
On the back of the research, Aftab Saleem, head of e-commerce, UK&I at Vype said: “it’s great to see that the biggest reason adult nicotine consumers are turning to vape products is that they are looking for a smoke-free alternative, followed by the fact they enjoy the taste. That certainly is represented in the UK’s top flavours, with classic flavours coming out on top across the board. We are glad to be giving consumers an alternative to physical shopping too to allow them to continue to choose an alternative nicotine product. Now more than ever we need to help consumers achieve their shopping goals in other ways, whilst some non-essential stores are closed for business”
January 10, 2021
Koi CBD Launches Disposable CBD-Only Vape Bar
Koi CBD has launched its new disposable CBD vape bars. A leading brand since it began in 2015, the company says it new disposable bars offer the same convenience found in the fast-growing disposable nicotine vape bar only in a CBD-only product.
“Customers can find their products in vape and CBD shops across the country. Now they’re taking CBD vaping to a new level of convenience with new disposable vape bars,” a press release states. “Available in Tropical Popsicle, Strawberry Milkshake and Blue Raspberry Dragon Fruit, it’s easy to tell, once again, that unique flavors are at the forefront of Koi’s efforts.”
Each Disposable Vape Bar contains 100 mg of CBD suspended in 1.3 mL of flavored vape juice. Koi estimates that the vape bars will provide up to 300 puffs, based on the 280 mAh battery inside. The product contains no nicotine.
According to koicbd.com, “The Koi CBD Disposable Vape Bar is the perfect way to enjoy the convenience and portability of a pocket device without the worry, hassle, continued maintenance and upkeep.”
Koi testing labs are all “ISO accredited to assure high quality results of full-panel tests. Customers can view detailed phytocannabinoid and terpenoid profiles for every product, ensuring no detectable levels of THC (<0.001%).” Koi also states that their “products pass testing for more than 100 different contaminants including pesticides, solvents, and heavy metals.”
January 10, 2021
TED Input: 84% of Submissions Warn of Higher Vape Tax
On the heels of a recently ended consultation on the update of the Tobacco Excise Directive (TED), the World Vapers’ Alliance (WVA) strongly urges policymakers to stay away from equating smoking tobacco and vaping, especially when it comes to taxation.
Credit: Tabrez Syed
The TED update lays out the European Commission’s intention to tax vaping products similarly to how cigarettes are taxed.
“Making vaping less appealing to smokers by higher prices will discourage current smokers from switching to less harmful alternatives,” said WVA director Michael Landl. “This is certainly not going to be of any public health benefit. Additionally, high taxes on vaping products are particularly harmful to the lower income brackets of the population, which make up the largest proportion of current smokers.”
The consultation ended on 5 January and out of 134 responses from citizens, associations and industry, 113 (84 percent) referenced the positive impacts of vaping and the serious negative impact that taxing it the same as cigarettes would have, according to EUreporter.com.
“I am delighted by the overwhelming number of responses in favour of vaping to this consultation,” Landl said. “It shows that many people know the potential for harm reduction of vaping. What policymakers need now to understand is that tax hikes on vaping will lead to people switching back to smoking, an outcome absolutely nobody wishes for.
“Therefore, for the WVA it is important that non-combustible products are not regulated and taxed the same way combustible tobacco is. Lawmakers need to follow the scientific evidence and abstain from tighter regulation and higher taxation of vaping products.
“If we want to reduce smoking induced burdens on public health, access and affordability to vaping products need to be guaranteed,” Landl concluded.
January 8, 2021
Courts Pave Way for Samsung Vape Battery Explosion Suit

Photo: 정수 이 from Pixabay
A superior court in California has denied a request by Samsung to dismiss a lawsuit about an exploding e-cigarette lithium-ion battery.
According to the complaint, the plaintiff had purchased the Samsung batteries on the recommendation of an e-cig retailer, and used them without issue until April 14, 2018, when the Samsung battery exploded in his pocket, inflicting second- and third-degree burns on his left leg and genitalia, requiring skin-graft surgery, and leaving him with permanent scarring, discoloration and hyper-sensitivity.
According to the lawsuit, Samsung had known since at least January 2016 that individual consumers were purchasing and using Samsung batteries for use in electronic cigarettes—a use that Samsung allegedly knew would subject consumers to potential harm. Instead of taking meaningful action to limit the risk or remove its batteries from the marketplace, Samsung ignored the problem, resulting in at least 88 cases filed against Samsung for similar battery explosion issues.
Samsung filed a motion for summary judgment/adjudication attempting to dismiss the case, including a request to dismiss claims for punitive damages. The Court denied Samsung’s motion in its entirety, leaving it to the trier of fact to determine not only Samsung’s liability for the harm caused by its batteries, but Samsung’s culpability for punitive damages as well.
“Samsung has known for years that its batteries were being used in e-cigarette products,” said Greg Bentley of Bentley & More, the law firm representing the plaintiff, in a statement. “Instead of getting them off the market, Samsung has taken the greedy path putting profit over safety, evidenced by the huge uptick in sales of just this one model alone—from 14.1 million sales in 2015 to 63.7 million in 2017, and many millions more over the last three years. Enough is enough. We look forward to the jury seeing the evidence and holding Samsung accountable.”
It is believed that this is the first of its kind ruling regarding punitive damages claimed against Samsung involving injuries suffered as a result of an e-cigarette battery explosion.
January 8, 2021
Chicago Suburb Wants to Ban Sales of ENDS Products
A suburb of Chicago is considering a temporary ban on the sale of vaping products. The board for the Village of Vernon Hills voted Monday to draft a moratorium that, depending on the formal language approved, could limit the types of flavored tobacco and vape products businesses can apply to sell for in town.
Credit: Vaporesso

The decision was part of a broader discussion to possibly ban the sale of such products within the village, according to a story in the Chicago Tribune. Board members opted to put that discussion on the back burner until the board and residents can meet in person to hear out both sides of the issue, choosing a moratorium as a stopgap until the discussion could take place.
At the meeting, village staff presented information that broke down what businesses would be impacted if such an ordinance were passed. Village Manager Mark Fleischhauer reported that 15 businesses within town are licensed to sell tobacco and vaping products.
About half those businesses sell flavored products, with one business in particular, Artisan’s Vaping, selling it as their main focal point, Fleischhauer said. While nothing is formal on any ban, trustees kicked around the idea of a grandfather clause if such a thing materialized.
As for the moratorium, officials said there are a few potential ways the ordinance can be written. The range of potential products that could be impacted includes flavored tobacco, flavored vaping or e-cigarettes, to vaping products as a whole, officials at the meeting said.
Trustees will discuss the options at their next committee of the whole meeting, with an eye on passing the moratorium at the board meeting that follows.
The discussion to potentially ban flavored tobacco products was sparked at the village’s last meeting in December, where they received a presentation from a resident that cited the harms and risks associated with using said products, particularly with youth.
During the meeting Monday, Trustee James Schultz took issue with the possibility of a ban, saying the product is legal in the state. He added that the village has done a good job of not allowing flavored and vaping products to be sold to minors.
“Does that mean we shouldn’t be issuing liquor licenses because more people die and start drinking at a young age?” Schultz said. “This is a bridge too far for me.”
The board also received a comment on the matter from a resident. The comment stated it was unfair for a discussion of a potential ban to be taking place without those who sell vape products knowing or having a chance to give their thoughts.
The City of Chicago attempted to ban all flavors of vaping products except tobacco and menthol. It has been sent back to committee. The cities of Beverly Hills and Manhattan Beach, California were the first two cities in the U.S. to ban the sale of vapor products.
January 7, 2021
Vaporesso Working With Shops to Provide Relief in France
Through its CARE initiative, Vaporesso continues to give back to the communities it serves. On Christmas Eve last month, the China-based vapor company teamed with 17 participating vape shops around France to distribute relief supplies of food to their local communities. With more to come in the New Year, the supplies are intended to help support needy people affected by the fallout of Covid-19.
Credit: Vaporesso
“As Vaporesso grows in size and influence as an international brand, its capacity to influence positive change around the world expands. This growing ability contrasted with the Covid-19 outbreak resulted in the company ramping up corporate social responsibility initiatives throughout 2020,” a press release states. “Through a global network of international partners, Vaporesso has been donating time, money, and energy to giving.”
In France, Vaporesso CARE specifically chose the Christmas holiday as a time to give back. With Covid-19 still raging throughout the country and much of the rest of the world, many people were unable to spend time with their loved ones during the festive season. This, coupled with financial pressures meant that many people were in desperate need of support, according to the release.
Understanding this, Vaporesso CARE connected with local vape shops to give away free supplies, helping needy people throughout the holiday season. The food supplies have also been donated to a number of charity organizations with the intention of giving to an even wider range of people.
Vaporesso’s Global Marketing Director, Niki Zhang, said “At Vaporesso, we take being a positive corporate citizen very seriously. Doing what we can to give back to the community is part of our global mission to make the world a better place.”
The Vaporesso CARE program is dedicated to charity and positive action projects. Initially put together to help international partners cope with the pandemic, it has since grown to represent much more than the fight against Covid-19. Vaporesso CARE is now dedicated to supporting communities around the world through working together with local vape shops and institutions and is set to continue to grow into the future, according to the release.
January 7, 2021
Group Says Feds Making it Harder to Quit Smoking
In late December of last year, the Government of Canada announced a proposal to lower the allowable levels of nicotine in vaping products from 66 milligrams per millilitre to 20 mg/ml in an effort to curb youth vaping. The public consultation period would be in effect for 75 days, closing on Mar. 4, 2021.
Credit: Toptop54
The proposed reduction is a move vaping advocates say will minimize their value to adult smokers looking to transition away from cigarettes, according to the Morinville News.
However, the Canada-based Vaping Industry Trade Association (VITA) says smokers having access to sufficient nicotine levels in an alternate product is essential to the effectiveness of vaping as a harm reduction product. “A limit of 20mg/mL is simply too low for many smokers,” Allan Rewak executive director of VITA stated in a media release. “Adult smokers need access to higher nicotine vapor products at the beginning of their journey from smoking to vaping. Lowering this limit is just going to keep more smokers smoking.”
The Canadian government is following a move by Nova Scotia, who in April of this year, instituted a 20mg/mL nicotine cap as well as a flavor ban. VITA says that change in the rules saw a 25 percent increase in legal cigarette sales increase, an increase four times higher than surrounding provinces. The regulations also resulted in half of the province’s specialty vape shops closing their doors.
“Considering the disparity of harm between vaping and smoking, we don’t understand why the federal government would be using Health Canada resources during a global pandemic to explore making it harder for adult smokers to switch to a reduced risk product,” said VITA president Daniel David.
Enforcement the real problem
The Government of Canada has previously put some measures in place to address youth vaping. Those changes include public education campaigns and banning the advertising of vaping products in public spaces if the ads can be seen or heard by youth.
Thomas Kirsop, owner of Alternatives & Options, a vape store in Morinville and St. Albert said he believes the government is taking the wrong approach with the nicotine reduction to handle the rise in youth vaping.
“A 60 percent reduction in commercially available nicotine concentration will impede my ability to assist the heaviest smokers,” Kirsop said. “It is a federal offence to knowingly sell vapor products to minors or for members of the adult population to provide these products to underaged consumers. In practice, however, I find this law poorly enforced. I think enforcing the current law would yield more significant gains than destroying the efficacy of a less harmful solution.”
Health Canada says restricting flavors in vaping products, and requiring the vaping industry to provide information about their vaping products, including sales, ingredients, and research and development activities are under consideration.
January 7, 2021
VDX Distro Launches Four Seasons E-Liquid Brand
VDX Distro announced today the launch of its e-liquid brand, Four Seasons Fine Tobacco. The brand was founded to give smokers a more authentic and pleasing replacement for traditional cigarettes, according to a press release.
Credit: Four Seasons
“Four Seasons’ e-liquids are designed to withstand flavor bans by being what they are and no more – pure, authentic tobacco flavors. Its flavors are all made from naturally extracted tobacco, with no artificial flavors, colors, additives, or sweeteners, giving consumers that pure tobacco taste,” the release states. “Each flavor is carefully crafted to emulate those of the most widely appreciated cigarette brands, resulting in a vaping experience that most closely resembles the mouth feel, throat hit, and taste.”
Four Seasons’ products have received an acceptance letter from the U.S. Food and Drug Administartion (FDA) for its premarket tobacco product application (PMTA) accepted, according to the release.
“At Four Seasons we seek to bring you a satisfying vaping experience that will give you the tools you need to make the switch away from combustible tobacco for good,” said Four Seasons CEO and Founder Ryan Chalmé. “Our mission from day one remains the same as it does today, helping adults discover an alternative to traditional tobacco.”
The FDA requires a product to have been on the market prior to Aug. 8, 2016 and have filed a PMTA in order to remain on the market after Sept. 9, 2020. There was no mention if Four Seasons was on the market prior to Aug. 8, 2016.
January 6, 2021
Montana City Wants to Extend Flavored Vape Ban to County
In late November, the City of Missoula, Montana banned flavored vaping products and not flavored combustible tobacco products. Now, Missoula County is considering using its extraterritorial powers to extend the city’s ban on the sale of flavored vapes and their display five miles outside city limits next week.
If approved, it would be the first time Missoula County applied its extraterritorial powers in four years. The last time it did was related to the city’s smoking ordinance.
“This initially started with the health board adopting a resolution and asking both the commission and City Council to do something to stop the epidemic of youth tobacco, especially using vape products,” said Shannon Therriault, county director of environmental health. “We were seeing a giant increase in the number of kids becoming addicted to nicotine, and a lot of that traces back to flavored tobacco products.”
The city ordinance goes into effect this month.
The city ordinance bans the display of self-service tobacco products of any kind, except where children aren’t permitted. It also banned the sale of all flavored electronic tobacco products, and made it illegal to sell tobacco to anyone under the age of 18.
“The health board reviewed it and approved. Now, it’s coming to the commissioners to review and approve,” said Therriault, according to the Missoula Current. “If approved, it can be applied five miles outside the city limits. It’s great, because it takes in a large amount of the area – the urban area.”
The original city ordinance included a ban on all flavored tobacco, which had the support of health officials but was opposed by dozens of businesses and tobacco users.
January 6, 2021
Agrafiotis: Vape Shops Suffer From Misinformation, Covid-19
By Dimitris Agrafiotis
The COVID-19 pandemic has changed the conventional wisdom about many things, and upended the world and our economy in ways we could not have imagined in January. The proliferation of misleading, conflicting and sometimes outright false information, coupled with the constantly changing norms brought on by the pandemic, have hit business owners particularly hard.
Dimitris Agrafiotis Credit: TSFA
The Tennessee Smoke Free Association is an advocacy group and trade organization with a focus on tobacco harm reduction through the use of personal vaporizers (electronic cigarettes) and other smokeless tobacco products shown to reduce the morbidity and mortality associated with smoking. While our primary focus is the prevention of tobacco harm, we are also a group of small business owners trying to stay afloat in these uncertain times.
In the summer and fall of 2019, mysterious lung injuries were making headlines in the United States. By October, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention had taken notice and given it a name: EVALI, which stands for e-cigarette, or vaping, product use-associated lung injury. They began issuing warnings about vaping devices, and guidelines were issued on treating it. And then, in early November 2019, the CDC reversed course and issued a report naming the actual culprit as tainted vitamin E acetate cartridges in illicit marijuana vaporizers — not the vaporizers themselves.
However, the damage to our industry was already done, and stigma of the original incorrect conclusions persists. Standard vaporizers contain varying levels of nicotine (which can be controlled by the user) but don’t have many of the harmful carcinogens found in cigarettes. We are still fighting the battle of misinformation and working to get our message out that e-cigarettes and vape devices can be used by adults addicted to cigarettes in a responsible way that improves their health.
And then, in the wake of the confusion and misinformation surrounding EVALI, the pandemic hit. Cities and counties began shutting the economy down, separating businesses into categories of “essential” and “non-essential.” In many places, vape shops were designated non-essential and forced to close, while gas stations, grocery stores and convenience stores — all of which sell cigarettes — were permitted to stay open.
We were able to advocate for ourselves, and many cities and counties reversed course and allowed us to reopen with curbside services, which almost all of our members did, following strict safety protocols. We continue to be grateful to the elected officials who responded to our hardship and worked with us so we could operate in a responsible manner.
Prior to discovering vaping, I was a longtime heavy smoker with a family history of poor health and even death because of smoking cigarettes. I feel that e-cigarettes saved my life, and many members of the TSFA have had similar experiences. We are knowledgeable and honest about our products and are small-businesses owners who contribute to our communities.
However, as small-business owners, though, we are still struggling with the aftereffects of the EVALI fallout, which were compounded by the pandemic. At the Tennessee Smoke Free Association, we will continue our work to put out critical scientific information and bust myths surrounding the use of e-cigarettes.
Dimitris Agrafiotis is the executive director of the Tennessee Smoke Free Association. This article first appeared on Knoxnews.com.
January 5, 2021