Tag: china national tobacco corp

  • China’s Revised E-Cigarette Standards Include Flavor Ban

    China’s Revised E-Cigarette Standards Include Flavor Ban

    Credit: Nikolay N. Antonov

    More than three months ago, China’s Tobacco Monopoly Administration started to solicit opinions from the public on regulating e-cigarettes after the vaping industry was brought under tobacco’s supervision last November. On Friday, the Chinese government published a revised draft of standards for the vaping industry that has sent vaping stocks tumbling.

    In the original proposal, it seemed China was set to allow flavors. However, the new draft underlines the importance of reducing the appeal of e-cigarettes to youth, stating: “Flavors other than tobacco taste shall not be offered in products.” To be specific, 21 additives, referring to tastes like plum, rose and orange, are removed from the list.

    As the some U.S. state and European countries already have flavor bans in place, industry experts believe the new regulations may have a greater impact on domestic market rather than exports, according to Li Qian, writing for Shine.cn.

    In an interview with Securities Times, an unnamed industry insider said sales volumes of tobacco-flavored e-cigarettes in the domestic market are dwarfed by other flavors. So it would be “subversive” for the domestic market, he said.

    After the draft was published, shares of RLX Technology, China’s leading e-cigarette maker listed on the New York Stock Exchange, dropped more than 36 percent and closed at $1.49 on Friday.

    The draft is now available on the administration’s website. The administration is asking for public feedback until March 17. If the current draft rule is passed, there will be an end to flavored vaping products in China.

  • Cullip: China Could Revolutionize Harm Reduction

    Cullip: China Could Revolutionize Harm Reduction

    Martin Cullip (Photo: Tobacco Reporter archive)

    China has the potential to revolutionize global tobacco harm reduction now that its government has asserted authority over e-cigarettes, according to consumer advocate Martin Cullip.

    On Nov. 26, China’s State Council on Nov. 26 amended the country’s tobacco monopoly law to include vapor products, which means that vaping products and their manufacturers will be regulated by the Chinese government under the same process as cigarettes.

    The announcement triggered feverish speculation about the impact of the new rules, with some commentators fretting that tobacco rules would put vapor companies out of business and others welcoming the prospect of enhanced product safety and quality.

    Writing in Filter, Cullip points not only to the vapor industry’s economic significance to China, but also to the potential domestic health benefits of sensible regulation. China, argues Cullip, has a lot to gain from financially from domestic harm reduction, when the country’s high smoking prevalence in an aging population creates heavy costs in health care and lost productivity.

    Cullip is also encouraged by China’s willingness and ability to stand up the World Health Organization, which remains ideologically opposed to tobacco harm reduction.

    While the government would seem to have much to gain from blocking the growth of safer alternatives such as e-cigarettes and tobacco-heating products—the state-owned CNTC sells more than 40 percent of the world’s cigarettes—there are many incentives for the government to push things in an entirely different direction, according to Cullip.

    China manufactures the vast majority of the world’s vape products. More than 170,000 businesses engage in e-cigarette production and the supply chain, employing around 3 million people. The CNTC is also the world’s biggest holder of tobacco harm reduction patents, owning almost 27 percent of all related patent publications.

    “It is difficult to imagine the government strangling the market—even if this is motivated more by profit than by its citizens’ health,” writes Cullip.

  • E-Cigarette Leaders Welcome China Tobacco Regulation

    E-Cigarette Leaders Welcome China Tobacco Regulation

    China’s recently announced regulatory framework for e-cigarettes should secure the vapor industry’s future in that country, according to leading players in the business.

    On Nov. 26, China’s state council amended the tobacco monopoly law to include vapor products, meaning that, going forward, e-cigarettes will be managed like combustible cigarettes.

    With more than 300 million smokers—27 percent of adults—China is the world’s largest tobacco market. It also produces about 90 percent of the world’s e-cigarettes, primarily in the technology manufacturing hub Shenzhen.

    The government and the tobacco industry are, essentially, one entity in China, with the State Tobacco Monopoly Administration regulating the industry and China National Tobacco manufacturing tobacco products.

    To date, the vapor industry in China has operated in a legal grey area. Regulation had been widely anticipated, but many feared that it would wipe out the sector. The Nov. 26 announcement, however, was welcomed by leading players in the business. Industry representatives say it removes uncertainty and will weed out bad actors.

    In background article on the recent news from China, Filter cited Smoore global PR manager Frankie Chen, who expects national mandatory standards to significantly improve product safety and provide global vapers with better products.

    “Since the standards set higher requirements for vaping manufacturing, it is expected that only the responsible manufacturer with comprehensive safety management can be compliant,” Chen was quoted as saying.

    RLX Technology, too, welcomed the new regulatory framework. “We believe the sector will enter a new era of development—an era marked by enhanced product safety and quality, augmented social responsibilities, and improved intellectual property protection,” said RLX Technology chairperson and CEO Ying Wang at the presentation of the company’s third quarter results.

    RLX Technology Chief Financial Officer Chao Lu said the company is well prepared for the new operating environment. “The investments we made in products, talents, research, and compliance in the third quarter and beyond will place us in advantageous positions under the new regulatory paradigm,” he said.

    Photo: Timothy S. Donahue
  • New Report Explores China’s Heated Tobacco Market

    New Report Explores China’s Heated Tobacco Market

    Photo: David Mark from Pixabay

    Research and Markets has published a new report on the world’s largest potential market for heat-not-burn (HNB) products, China.

    The report provides an overview of China National Tobacco Corp. (CNTC) subsidiaries’ HNB marketing activities from 2017 to 2020.

    The report reviews all HNB products that were officially released in domestic and foreign markets as well as cooperation ties in the Chinese HNB market.

    China Tobacco has a market of 300 million smokers with a significant part active HNB users. The domestic HNB sector is dominated by CNTC. It has launched HNB products in Sichuan, Yunnan, Guangdong, Anhui, Hubei, Heilongjiang and other provinces, and has been actively engaged in overseas markets. CNTC HNB brands are presented in many foreign markets, mostly in Asia countries and eastern Europe.

    Most HNB devices are promoted with dedicated consumables. HNB devices are either produced at own facilities of CNTC subsidiaries or are OEM versions developed by third-party manufacturers. The CNTC subsidiaries with the largest number of HNB devices in the domestic market are based in Sichuan, Yunnan and Guangdong.

    The report includes a brief review of HNB electronic devices produced in cooperation with major Chinese hardware manufacturers. There is also a brief description of companies engaged in the Chinese HNB market, and a complete list of HNB products with release dates and corresponding references in domestic and foreign markets, a map of presence of CNTC HNB brands in foreign markets and a timeline of CNTC HNB products by release date.