Tag: flavor ban

  • Registration Open for US FDA Tobacco Strategic Plan

    Registration Open for US FDA Tobacco Strategic Plan

    Registration is open for the virtual listening session on the development of the Center for Tobacco Products’ (CTP) five-year strategic plan, which will take place on Aug. 22 beginning at 10 a.m. EDT.

    The virtual listening session is an opportunity to verbally provide open public comment on the development of the new strategic plan, including proposed strategic goals. After introductions, the center will begin the listening session with an overview of the process used to develop the CTP’s strategic plan, including proposed goal areas.

    Registered speakers will then have approximately four minutes each to verbally share their comments on any topics related to the strategic plan. Submit a request to verbally provide open public comment by Aug. 14 at 11:59 p.m. EDT.

    Registration also includes a “listen-only” option for those who want to attend the session but do not request to speak. Listen-only registration slots are unlimited, but registration is required. There is no deadline to register for listen-only slots.

    In addition to this listening session, the public can submit electronic or written comments to the Federal Register notice. Electronic comments must be submitted, and written comments must be postmarked, by Aug. 29.

  • Quebec Flavor Ban Begins at End of October

    Quebec Flavor Ban Begins at End of October

    Quebec’s flavor ban will take effect Oct. 31, according to Vaping360.

    The ban will include vaping products with flavors other than tobacco and will prohibit e-liquid sold in bottles with a capacity greater than 30 mL and prefilled devices with a capacity greater than 2 mL.

    The flavor ban was announced in a draft published in April. More than 30,000 citizens of Quebec commented on the proposed ban, according to the Quebec Vaping Rights Coalition, but the health ministry reportedly didn’t make any changes to the rules in response.   

    Quebec is the largest province in Canada to pass a flavor ban. Four other provinces and territories have flavor bans in place, and one has passed a ban but has not set an effective date yet. Three other provinces restrict flavored products to adult-only stores.

  • Biden Opposed to Limiting FDA Power to Regulate Flavors

    Biden Opposed to Limiting FDA Power to Regulate Flavors

    Credit: Lux Blue

    The Biden administration has published a Statement of Administration Policy outlining its opposition to parts of a proposed funding bill that would limit the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s ability to ban flavored cigars and menthol cigarettes, reports Halfwheel.

    The proposed bill would prevent the FDA from receiving funding if it introduced bans on flavored cigars and menthol cigarettes or introduced rules limiting the amount of nicotine a product can have.

    The policy statement does not mention nicotine limits, although the FDA has proposed limiting nicotine.

    The Statement of Administration Policy is not binding.

    A new study has found that smokers who get help picking flavored e-cigarettes and receive supportive text messages are more likely to quit smoking.

    Last month, the FDA gave the Center for Tobacco Research at The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center a $3.9 million grant to evaluate the effects of e-cigarette flavors on smoking behaviors of current adult smokers.

  • Kazakhstan Readies to Enact Ban on Vape Products

    Kazakhstan Readies to Enact Ban on Vape Products

    Photo: natatravel

    Lawmakers in Kazakhstan voted on July 29 to ban the sale, import, export and production of e-cigarettes and liquids, reports Atlas News.

    “The harm of vapes is undeniable,” said Deputy Nurgul Tau. “That is why the Ministry of Health has been sharply raising the issue of introducing a ban on the circulation of vapes since 2021. In my request, I proposed a complete ban on the sale of vapes.”

    The legislation has been in the works since May 10 following a ban of the use of e-cigarettes in public spaces. The ban was triggered by concern about increased vaping among minors.

  • Hong Kong Begins Consultation on Generational Ban

    Hong Kong Begins Consultation on Generational Ban

    Junk boat in Victoria Harbor, Hong Kong (Credit: Kamonrat)

    Hong Kong has started a public health consultation held that includes a proposal for a generational ban on vaping and other tobacco products. Generational Bans are often referred to as “tobacco endgame” strategies.

    Last year, Hong Kong’s Council on Smoking and Health proposed a generational ban to begin in 2027 that would outlaw vaping and other tobacco product sales to anyone born from 2009.

    The public consultation consists of a nationwide survey which started last Wednesday and ends on September 30th.

    Health minister Lo Chung-Mau said that the consultation is based on four anti-smoking strategies, among which a lifetime ban on cigarettes for locals born after a set date.

    Hong Kong’s government has set a goal of reducing the percentage of adults who smoke from 9.5 percent in 2021 to 7.8 percent by 2025. To do so, it is exploring four strategies:

    • Regulate Supply, Suppress Demand
    • Ban Promotion, Reduce Attractiveness
    • Expand No Smoking Areas, Mitigate Harm,
    • Enhance Education, Support Cessation

    The first two strategies mentioned for reducing tobacco use are increasing taxes and introducing new age restrictions.

    “With the efforts on education and publicity over the years, the smoking prevalence of youth in Hong Kong has dropped to a low level,” said the document, though the government also believes that increasing the minimum age to purchase tobacco from its current requirement of 18-years-old to 21-years-old wouldn’t be effective, according to media reports. So instead, it’s considering what’s known as a generational tobacco ban.

    New Zealand passed a generational ban late last year and recent efforts have been made to introduce additional bans in other countries, including bills in California, Hawaii and Nevada. Malaysia is also considering a generational ban.

    The generational ban is just one of a litany of strategies mentioned in the document. Other regulations being considered include plain packaging, restrictions on retailers displaying products, nicotine limits and higher tobacco taxes.

  • Golden, Colorado Passes Ban on Flavored Nicotine

    Golden, Colorado Passes Ban on Flavored Nicotine

    Welcome to Golden sign along Washington street in Golden, Colorado (Credit: PaBrady63)

    Council members in the city of Golden, Colorado, this week voted 6-0 to approve an amended ordinance to ban the sale of flavored vaping and other tobacco products.

    Councilors listened to nearly an hour and a half of public comment before voting on the proposed ordinance, according to media reports.

    Ordinance No. 2216 amends the city’s municipal code to revise business regulations and licensing requirements for nicotine and tobacco product retailers, prohibiting the sale of flavored tobacco products within city limits.

    The new ordinance originally had an effective date of Sept. 1, 2023. The council decided to amend that date to Jan. 1, 2024.

  • Bill Banning Flavored Vaping Products in Maine Dies

    Bill Banning Flavored Vaping Products in Maine Dies

    Maine State House (Credit: Jovannig)

    The Maine Legislature has tabled a bill to end the sale of flavored tobacco products statewide. In the U.S., when a bill is tabled it is no longer up for debate for the current term.

    It’s been a hot topic in Maine with some health advocacy groups claiming flavored vaping and other tobacco products are marketed toward children while many business owners say banning it would be a big blow, according to media reports.

    The bill sought to make statewide prohibitions that are already in place in Portland, South Portland, Brunswick, Bangor and Bar Harbor.

    A similar statewide effort failed last year when lawmakers adjourned without taking up the bill.

    The bill could be taken up again next year.

  • FDA Warns 3 Major Flavored Disposable Distributors

    FDA Warns 3 Major Flavored Disposable Distributors

    The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today issued warning letters to three distributors for selling and/or distributing multiple brands of unauthorized e-cigarette products.

    The illegal products listed in the warning letters sent to ABS Distribution Inc., EC Supply, Inc. and Easy Wholesale, LLC include the popular and youth-appealing e-cigarette products Elf Bar/EB Design, Esco Bars, and Puff Max (Puff Bars).

    “FDA is committed to keeping a finger on the pulse of the rapidly evolving e-cigarette landscape, including through a variety of scientific assets equipped to quickly identify products with high youth appeal,” said Brian King, director of FDA’s Center for Tobacco Products (CTP). “We will continue to use this data-driven approach to inform actions across the entire supply chain, including against those who distribute illegal products between manufacturers and the point of sale.”

    The distributors receiving warning letters sell and/or distribute e-cigarettes in the United States that lack authorization from FDA, which is a prohibited act under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, according to an FDA release.

    All of the brands cited in these warning letters have been identified as being among the most popular e-cigarettes among U.S. youth.

    “Warning letters are generally the first step once an inspection reveals a violation of the law,” said Ann Simoneau, director of the Office of Compliance and Enforcement within CTP. “We will monitor to ensure these violations are corrected, and if they are not, the recipient is at risk of further actions such as civil money penalties, seizures, and injunctions.”

    The FDA has stepped up enforcement of flavored disposable products after several lawmakers complained the agency wasn’t fulfilling its duties.

    Credit: Pastel Cartel
  • Retailers: More Work Needed to Curb Black Market

    Retailers: More Work Needed to Curb Black Market

    Credit: Steheap

    After New York City moved to ban flavored vape products three years ago, Sheriff Edgar Domenech says some distributors continue to sell illegal products.

    “This is organized criminal activity at the forefront,” he said.

    More needs to be done to address the sale of illegal flavored vape products in the state, according to retailers and former law enforcement officials.

    Earlier this month, New York City Mayor Eric Adams moved to sue four vape distributors he alleges are illegally targeting minors by continuing to sell the now-banned products.

    The suit against the four distributors was praised by Domench as a potential path forward for addressing the issue.

    “It’s a model that other states should basically replicate to go after these distributors who are selling counterfeit vape products that are endangering the lives of our children,” Domenech said.

    The proliferation of illegal vape products can be damaging to small businesses that are following the law, he added, according to Spectrum News.

    “Mom-and-pop operators want to do it the right way,” he said. “They are paying the tax on the tobacco products. They’re only selling a legitimate product.”

    New York Association of Convenience Stores President Kent Sopris says the lack of enforcement has hurt business owners.

    “You don’t want folks to go to another store, but you especially don’t want folks going to another store because they’re selling the illegal products you can’t sell,” he said.

    But more work is needed to address existing laws for flavored vape products in New York, Sopris said. The push comes as New York is working to crack down on the sale of unlicensed marijuana as the legal marketplace has struggled to get off the ground.

    “What it takes is some coordination,” Sopris said. “The infrastructure is there. The will, the funding and the coordination have to be provided.”

  • Study: Support with Flavors Helps Smokers Quit

    Study: Support with Flavors Helps Smokers Quit

    no smoking
    Image: Tobacco Reporter archive

    A new study has found that smokers who get help picking flavored e-cigarettes and receive supportive text messages are more likely to quit smoking, reports The Guardian.

    The study was led by London South Bank University (LSBU), and it explored in what settings vapes could help smokers quit. After three months, about 25 percent had quit and a further 13 percent reduced cigarette consumption by more than half.

    Those who received help choosing a vape flavor and got supportive texts were 55 percent more likely to quit smoking in three months.

    “Smoking kills approximately 8 million people worldwide every year, and even some of the often most effective treatments have little effect on reducing the number of smokers,” said Lynne Dawkins, professor of nicotine and tobacco studies at LSBU. “From this treatment, 24.5 percent were smoke-free after three months and a further 13 percent had reduced their cigarette consumption by more than 50 percent.

    “The simplicity of tailored support through flavor advice and supportive messages could have a huge impact in helping people lead smoke-free lives.”

    The research examined: tailored advice on which product, nicotine strength or flavor to buy; brief information on vaping harms relative to smoking; and text message support. Some people received all of these, others received none and some received some but not all.