Category: Packaging

Oregon Court Strikes Down Vape Packaging Law

Image: Alexander Berdyugin
The Oregon Court of Appeals on Oct. 16 struck down a law restricting the packaging of vape and cannabis products on the grounds that the legislation unconstitutionally restricts free speech, reports Keller & Heckman.
The contested law prohibited an “inhalant delivery system” from being packaged “in a manner that is attractive to minors.” Subsequently, the Oregon Health Authority banned the use of cartoons, celebrities and other representations that are likely to appeal to minors.
It also restricted descriptive words for flavors that are likely to appeal to minors, such as tart, tangy or sweet. In addition to a comprehensive list of items explicitly prohibited from packaging, the rule includes a general catch-all restriction to include any presentation, shape, graphic, coloring or writing that is likely to appeal to minors.
Plaintiffs Paul Bates and No Moke Daddy argued that the packaging restrictions were overly broad and unconstitutionally vague and infringed on their right to free speech by prohibiting truthful, non-misleading communication.
the Oregon Court of Appeals reversed a lower court’s dismissal of the challenge, noting that the law violates free speech as outlined in the Oregon Constitution.
The Court of Appeals explained that selling products is a form of communicative behavior that may involve protected speech. The court stated that the law restricting “attractive” packaging is reasonably interpreted to refer to the communicative aspects of the packaging and not its functionality. Thus, the packaging restrictions are a direct restriction on expressive speech.
October 24, 2024
Study: Vapes Lack Health Labels on Social Media

Photo: Nattakorn
Many synthetic nicotine brands on social media lack the required health labels, according to a Boston University study published in JAMA Network Open.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration passed a requirement in 2022 that says health warnings need to take up 20 percent of the advertising and appear in the upper portion of the advertisement for e-cigarettes that contain synthetic nicotine.
“When synthetic nicotine started appearing in products, we really wanted to know how it was being received and how it was being promoted,” says Traci Hong, a Boston University College of Communication professor of media studies.
The researchers studied more than 2,000 Instagram posts from 25 different synthetic nicotine brands, identified whether an image posted on Instagram included the required health warning and, if it did, whether it took up the right amount of space.
The Instagram posts were analyzed using a custom-built AI algorithm, which uses computer vision to detect if health warnings follow the FDA rules. The team found that only 13 percent of the analyzed posts complied with FDA health warning requirements.
They also discovered that the posts with health warnings received fewer likes and comments than posts without the warnings. According to the paper, the larger the warning label, the less comments the posts received. According to the paper’s authors, this suggests that having health warning labels could reduce how many social media users, especially young adults, are seeing and engaging with this content.
“These are brands that I think have a legitimate responsibility to inform their potential consumers that there are health risks and you need to be aware of them,” said Hong in a statement.
September 16, 2024
Vapor Makers Urged to Implement Graphic Warnings

Image: natatravel
The Philippines’s Department of Health (DOH) is urging businesses, distributors and importers to start printing graphic health warnings (GHW) on vaporized products, reports Tribune.
The first set of GHW templates for vape products is set to take effect on May 12.
Under Republic Act No. 11900, also known as the Vape Law,
Operators who fail to comply with the new rules risk fines of between PHP2 million and PHP5 million and imprisonment of up to six years.
Manufacturers, importers, distributors and sellers may also face revocation or cancellation of permits and licenses as well as immediate recall, ban, or confiscation of products at the direction of the Bureau of Internal Revenue.
In addition, foreign individuals found in violation risk deportation.
April 26, 2024
Australia Extends Graphic Warnings to Vape Devices

Potential new graphic health warnings as envisioned by Australia’s Department of Health and Aged Care
Australia will extend the requirement for manufacturers to print graphic health warnings on tobacco products to e-cigarettes, according to reports by CityNews and News. Manufacturers have until April 1, 2024, to roll out “repulsive” new health warnings on cigarette and vape packets. Retailers will be given a further three months to update their stock as new warning labels are gradually rolled out.
On Dec. 7, the country’s federal parliament passed a law with measures to discourage smoking and vaping. Among other provisions, the legislation updates the health warnings on cigarette packages, standardizes the design and appearance of cigarette filters and applies tobacco advertising restrictions to vapor products.
Earlier, Australia had announced a ban on single-use vapes that will take effect at the start of 2024. Starting in March, it will also be illegal to import or supply vapes that don’t comply with standards from the medical regulator. Doctors and nurses would still be able to prescribe therapeutic vapes as a tool to help smokers quit.
Health Minister Mark Butler said the new smoking laws would save lives.
“Tobacco has caused immeasurable harm and cost us countless lives in this country,” he told parliament. “We can’t stand by and allow another generation of people to be lured into addiction and suffer the enormous health, economic and social consequences.”
About 20 percent of Australian 18-year-olds to 24-year-olds vape while about one in seven 14-year-olds to 17-year-olds use the product.
December 7, 2023
Lawmakers in the Netherlands Want ‘Boring’ Vapes

Dutch parliamentarians want e-cigarettes and other vaping products to have a boring and uniform appearance.
According to the D66, which will submit the proposal in parliament today, the new rules will make vaping less attractive to teenagers. A majority in parliament supports the plan, RTL Nieuws reports.
“Young people now think it’s cool to have such an accessory with glitter while vaping is extremely unhealthy,” D66 parliamentarian Jeanet van der Laan told the broadcaster. “The vapes resemble a lip gloss or a marker. They are often colorful, and there are vapes full of glitter. Parents often have no idea exactly what the young people are carrying. Super worrying.”
There are even e-cigarettes in circulations that look like airpods, Van der Laan said. “That makes it look like a glamor accessory, while it is just smoking and therefore harmful to health. And young people are tempted by all those frills to start smoking.”
“E-cigarettes should look as neutral and uniform as possible. Preferably they should resemble regular cigarettes. Or else just white or black. Because it’s just smoking,” the D66 MP said. She believes a more boring appearance will make vaping less attractive to young people.
The Tweede Kamer, the lower house of the Dutch parliament, is discussing smoking on Wednesday. The D66 will submit its proposal during that debate. It seems to have majority support, according to RTL.
The Netherlands previously banned flavored e-liquids for vaping products.
March 8, 2023
Australia to Weigh Tougher Shipping, Packaging Rules
Credit: Ymgerman
Australia’s government says it will consider key changes including tightening importation rules and toughing up labelling laws for e-cigarettes in an effort to prevent youth use.
Australia’s drugs regulator, the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA), will begin public consultation in four areas:
changes to importation and border control laws required to stop illegal products entering Australia;
pre-market assessments of vapes to create a regulated source of products for pharmacists and doctors to prescribe;
labelling, advertising and flavoring of vapes that make them attractive to children;
and stronger identification and regulation of nicotine-containing products.
Additionally, Health Minister Mark Butler announced menthol cigarettes will be banned, along with other cigarette flavors and additives, according to media reports.
The public consultation on vaping reforms will be open until Jan. 16. Butler will meet that same month with state and territory health ministers to discuss how a response to vaping can be coordinated nationally.
New graphic warnings for tobacco will be created, Butler said, and for the first time the government will look at requiring warnings like “smoking kills” on every individual cigarette, and changing the colors of cigarettes to be more unappealing.
He said the appealing names of products will also be tackled, health promotion inserts will be put into every cigarette packet and advertising regulations will be updated to include vaping products.
Tobacco control expert and member of the Australian Council On Smoking and Health, Maurice Swanson, said Butler had contributed to a “major step forward for public health and tobacco control in Australia”. But on vaping, he said Butler must “urgently” make the importation of all e-cigarettes prohibited, regardless of whether they contained nicotine.
“This regulation will empower Border Force to seize all e-cigs unless they are accompanied by a doctor’s prescription required by the TGA regulations,” he said.
November 30, 2022
Calls for Australia to Adopt Plain Package for Vapes

Credit: Von ifeelstock
Anti-vape advocates are calling for e-cigarette packaging to be under the same rules as tobacco packing, including warnings that include the dangers involved with using the product.
In December 2012, Australia became the first country to require tobacco companies to sell their products in drab olive-brown boxes stripped of branding but featuring large pictures of smoking-related diseases.
Tobacco companies challenged the move in various courts, saying it not only breached trademark laws and intellectual property rights but would also boost black market sales. Libertarians characterized plain packaging as a “nanny state” measure.
Now, 20 countries, including the U.K., Turkey, France, Sweden, Belgium, the Netherlands and Ukraine, have brought in their own versions of plain packaging legislation.
Mal Washer, told 6PR Mornings that what worked best in the past was by making smoking anti-social.
“You looked like a half wit if you smoked, and that did more than any medical advice as people tend to ignore that but vaping has now become a big problem,”
“The biggest thing in my opinion is making vaping anti-social and to make people realize this product is dangerous.”
November 21, 2022
Philippines: Graphic Warnings for Vapor and Heated Tobacco

Photo: Manfred Schindler from Pixabay
The Philippine government has ordered manufacturers, importers and sellers of vapor products and heated-tobacco products (HTPs) to print graphic health warnings on their packaging within 18 months, reports Business World. Sale of these products is now limited to those over the age of 21.
The implementation of the graphic warnings is part of the country’s “sin tax” laws.
The Department of Health will issue templates for the warnings, including for inserts and other advertising, outside packaging and labeling, and other packaging from domestic and overseas manufacturers.
The Department of Health and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will act as the regulating agencies for manufacturers, importers and sellers of vapor products and HTPs, with authority over packaging, advertising and distribution. The FDA will also conduct scientific studies on the health impact of these products.
The Department of Budget and Management will determine how the tax funds from these products will be allocated and released to tobacco-producing provinces.
The Department of Finance and the Bureau of Internal Revenue will determine the rules for setting floor prices.
December 2, 2020
Hoffmann Webinar on Cannabis Packaging

Illustration: Hoffmann Neopac
Hoffmann Neopac will host a webinar exploring best packaging practices for the burgeoning North American cannabis market. Scheduled for Sept. 29 at 2 pm EST, the hour-long webinar will feature executive-level Hoffmann Neopac presenters well-versed in the cannabis packaging landscape.
The presentation will feature customer case studies, in which cannabis manufacturers who have partnered with Hoffmann Neopac share insight on differentiating brands in an increasingly competitive marketplace via child-resistant, sustainable packaging solutions.
Those attending will receive an in-depth overview on the state-by-state U.S. medicinal and recreational regulations, and on business trends for various cannabis formats—including edibles, flowers, pre-rolls, tobacco and creams—on which marijuana is leaving its mark. Presenters will also provide an update on the sector’s strength as it emerges from the Covid-19 pandemic.
The webinar will also highlight Hoffmann Neopac’s dual packaging specialties—tins and tubes—and how they can be employed to meet child-resistance requirements and sustainability demands while providing exemplary product protection and on-shelf aesthetics.

September 21, 2020