Tag: news

RJ Reynolds Asks SCOTUS to Stop California Flavor Ban

Credit: Sean Pavone Photo
R.J. Reynolds and other vaping and tobacco companies filed a request Tuesday asking the Supreme Court of the United States to impose an emergency order to stop California from enforcing a ban on flavored vaping and other tobacco products.
The ban was overwhelmingly approved by voters earlier this month.
First passed by the state legislature two years ago, the ban never took effect after tobacco companies gathered enough signatures to put it on the ballot, according to media reports.
However, after nearly two-thirds of voters approved of banning the sale of everything from cotton-candy flavored e-liquid to menthol cigarettes. The law is set to go into effect by Dec. 21.
Supporters of the ban say the law was necessary to put a stop to a staggering rise in teen smoking.
Several companies filed suit over filed a lawsuit against California in federal court over the state’s ban on flavored products one day after voters backed the ban in a Nov. 8 referendum. However, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Tuesday denied the company’s emergency motion to block the law pending appeal.
The companies suing California argue that the authority to ban flavored products rests in federal law. The Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act gives the FDA the authority to regulate tobacco.
In the filing, the companies said they would suffer “irreparable harm” from not being able to sell the products in one of the nation’s largest markets.
The companies argued that small retailers will face laying off employees and possibly closing. Among those filing for the order is the Neighborhood Market Association, a group of San Diego retailers that include vape shops.
November 30, 2022
‘Future’ is new Name for FEELM’s Sustainable Vapes

Environmentally safer vapes are becoming popular as concerns over e-waste from vaping products grows. FEELM, the atomization technology platform belonging to Smoore, the world’s largest vape manufacturer, announced its new sustainable product series will be called FUTURE.
“FUTURE has been well-received in recent vaping exhibitions across Europe, and it demonstrates FEELM’s commitment to providing an environmentally friendly vaping solution,” a press release states.
FEELM uses a “product as the package” design that integrates FUTURE’s body and packaging, and uses recyclable paper rather than plastic. The device itself mostly contains post-consumer recycled (PCR) material or bio-based materials instead of its traditional counterparts This reducing plastic use by 60 percent and carbon emissions by 52 percent to 58 percent, according to FEELM.
FUTURE is designed to be disassembled and recycled with ease. Users can separate the internal components of the device, such as the battery core, plastic, and e-liquid tank, and recycle them separately, according to Totom Lu,director of FEELM’s design team.
“The series is our latest sustainable design concept, aiming to make it easier for consumers to dismantle and dispose of products responsibly, whilst solving the environmental problems caused by littering,” said Lu.
Environmental responsibility has become an industry priority in recent years. A study by Material Focus has shown that as many as 1.3 million devices using up to 10 tons of lithium are discarded each week. This is the equivalent to the battery use of 1,200 electric cars, according to Material Focus.
“Creating a solution to this is therefore vital, particularly as battery disposal regulations look set to change in the coming years,” the release states. “In the EU for example, disposable vapes will need to have removable and interchangeable batteries by 2025 at the earliest, according to the recently approved draft battery regulation.”
FEELM states that countries need to improve the collection and recycling of electronic equipment, and to make it easier for consumers to properly dispose of their vapes, regardless of manufacturer or brand. It would welcome any initiative that could standardize the free collection of disposable vapes at the point of sale, as well as awareness initiatives to educate consumers on the importance of recycling their devices properly.
“FEELM’s ESG team conducted a full life cycle analysis (LCA) of disposable vapes and established a product carbon footprint analysis model to identify the major sources of carbon emissions relating to disposable vapes, allowing for further carbon reduction,” the release states.
FEELM recently won the “Best Innovation Award” and was commended in the “Sustainable Vaping Award” category at the UK Vaping Industry Association’s recent conference. Smoore has been ranked as the global leader in the vaping industry by Sustainalytics and the MSCI.

November 29, 2022
Report Finds Vape Sector Boosts UK Economy

Photo: VPZ
The vape industry has had a considerable positive impact on the UK economy, according to a new report compiled by the Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR) on behalf of the UK Vaping Industry Association (UKVIA).
Valued at £2.8 billion ($3.36 billion) in 2021, the UK vape sectors supports almost 18,000 full time-equivalent jobs in retail, manufacturing and supply chain. What’s more, smokers abandoning cigarettes in favor of less-harmful e-cigarettes has saved the National Health Service (NHS) more than £300 million in 2019 alone, according to the report.
Even as many businesses suffered in recent years, vape retail stores have bucked the trend and represent one of the biggest growing sectors since the first decade of the 21st century when they started to appear for the first time.
From 2017 to 2021, the UK vape sector’s turnover grew by 23.4 percent to £1.33 billion last year alone. When indirect economic benefits such as supply chain support and the spending power of vape sector workers is factored in the economic impact more than doubles.
In 2021, the vaping industry paid £310 million in taxes to the British exchequer.
CEBR estimates that the vaping sector saved the UK £322 million in smoking-related healthcare costs in 2019. The research organization reckons that if 50 percent of smokers switched to vaping, the potential healthcare savings would have been £698 million in 2020.
Meanwhile, the gain in economic productivity associated with smokers switching to using vaping products was estimated to be £1.3 billion in 2019. If 50 percent of remaining UK smokers switched to vaping, this would increase to £3.33 billion, according to the study,

In little over a decade vaping in the U.K. has grown from very much a ‘cottage industry’ to one of the fastest growing sectors in not just retail, but the whole economy.
John Dunne, director general, UKVIA
“The findings of the vaping industry’s first ever economic impact report demonstrates its significant success as a fast-growing disruptive sector,” says Owen Good, head of economic advisory at CEBR.
“Whilst many high street retailers have suffered in recent years, the vaping sector has bucked the trend, with significant growth both in-store and online. Even the effects of the pandemic have not significantly hampered the sector’s growth.
“The sector’s growth has been hugely beneficial to the U.K. economy; businesses and their employees directly involved in the industry and those running operations across the wider supply chain; and the NHS which has seen a massive cost saving with increasing numbers of smokers switching to vaping in order to quit their habits.”
“In little over a decade vaping in the U.K. has grown from very much a ‘cottage industry’ to one of the fastest growing sectors in not just retail, but the whole economy,” said UKVIA Director General John Dunne in a statement.
“More people than ever are vaping and by all measures this is a true British success story, creating employment and wealth, generating precious revenue for the government through taxation while at the same time saving the NHS more than £300 million a year through people switching from smoking to vaping.
November 29, 2022
Consumer Group Denounces EU Vape Tax Proposal

The World Vapers’ Alliance (WVA) has denounced the EU’s leaked plan to increase vaping taxes, according to the U.K. Vaping Industry Association.
“The [EU] Commission claims that higher taxes will improve public health, but the reality is the exact opposite,” said WVA Director Michael Landl. “A less harmful alternative, such as vaping, must be affordable for ordinary smokers trying to quit cigarettes. If the commission wants to reduce the burden of smoking on public health, they must make vaping more affordable and accessible, not less.
“High taxes hit the least advantaged people most. In times of multiple crises and people struggling to make ends meet, making vaping more expensive is the opposite of what we need. Policymakers must understand that tax increases on vaping will force people back to smoking or the black market, a scenario nobody wants. In times of crisis, people shouldn’t be further punished by an unscientific and ideological fight against vaping. This must be stopped,” said Landl.
“Rather than fighting vaping, the EU finally must embrace tobacco harm reduction. What we need is risk-based regulation. Vaping is 95 percent less harmful than smoking and, therefore, must not be treated the same way as conventional smoking,” added Landl.
November 29, 2022
Gallup: Fewer Young Americans Smoking Cigarettes

The smoking rate among young Americans has fallen from 35 percent to 12 percent over the past 20 years, reports The Hill, citing to a new Gallup poll.
Data shows that the decline among those aged 18 to 29 was more than double any other age group measured, meaning young adults are the second least likely group to smoke following those aged 65 and older.
Between 2001 and 2012, the rate of young adult smokers was higher than any other age group.
Between 2019 and 2022, 7 percent of U.S. adults reported smoking e-cigarettes, and 19 percent of young adults reported e-cigarette use.
“Given these differences, young adults are more likely to vape than to smoke cigarettes while among older age groups, cigarette smoking prevails,” the report states.
It is unclear how e-cigarette use has grown in this age group in recent years as Gallup only started polling e-cigarette use in 2019. Data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows an increase in youth e-cigarette use between 2011 and 2018, however.
“These data suggest that much of the decline in cigarette smoking among young adults may have been offset by vaping, indicating that young adults are still smoking products containing nicotine but through different means,” the Gallup report states.
November 29, 2022
Hong Kong Wants to Allow Shipping of Illegal Vapes

Credit: Kal’vān
China’s government in Hong Kong said on Monday that it wants to allow shipments of illegal vaping products through Hong Kong. A move it says will help the city keep its status as an international logistics hub.
The Transport and Logistics Bureau told a Legislative Council (Legco) panel that there has been a significant downturn in air cargo volumes since the ban on the import, sale and manufacture of e-cigarettes and heated tobacco products took effect in April.
During the meeting, Deputy Secretary for Transport and Logistics Pamela Lam said authorities want to exempt sea-to-air shipments of the vaping products from the ban, according to media reports.
“Our transshipment of air cargo has dropped from May to October this year by about 18 percent compared to the same period last year. If this trend continues, Hong Kong’s status as an international logistics hub will be seriously undermined,” Lam said. “So whilst we want to ensure the ban on importation of alternative smoking products, we would like to keep our status as an international logistics hub.”
Lawmaker Frankie Yick, who represents the logistics sector, said the authorities should go further and also allow illegal vaping products to be brought to Hong Kong by land.
“People in the trade would like to have the land-air transshipment to be allowed as well, this is very important because most of the products are made in Dongguan area. It’s more convenient and cheaper to transport that via land to Hong Kong International Airport,” he told reporters.
Another lawmaker, Jeffrey Lam, questioned why the authorities hadn’t realized sooner how logistics companies would be affected by the ban.
“When you drew up this piece of legislation, you should have taken all these into account,” he said. “Why did you not think about this long ago? You shouldn’t be talking about this only at this moment,” he said.
A bill amending the law to allow the sea-to-air shipments is expected to be tabled to Legco early next year.
November 28, 2022
ELFBAR Investigation: Warnings About Fake Vapes

Credit: Elfbar
Potentially dangerous counterfeit disposable vaping products are flooding into the UK market, according to an investigation by ELFBAR, a Chinese manufacturer. Retailers and consumers are being warned that the illegal products are being produced in “squalid Chinese factories with no license for manufacturing and regard for product safety,” according to a press release.
Since the launch of counterfeiting action by ELFBAR in June 2021, it has cracked down on more than 120 counterfeit production and sales targets, including factories, warehouses, logistics, and foreign trade companies, seizure of more than 2 million finished counterfeit ELFBAR products, millions of packaging boxes, anti-counterfeit codes, semi-finished vaping pipes and other accessories.
Victor Xiao, the Chief Executive of ELFBAR, said consumers would be horrified if they saw the conditions in which these products are made. “The criminals behind these counterfeit products care nothing about product safety or the health of consumers and they cut every corner possible to maximize their profits,” he said. “Quite frankly, the conditions in these factories are absolutely squalid where workers man production lines in filthy conditions with no regard to hygiene at all.”
ELFBAR is clamping down hard on the illegal vape market and is building up an intelligence dossier on fake products as the counterfeiters get smarter and more efficient. While ELFBAR works hard to stop the fraudsters at source it realizes that it is impossible to stop all the fakes from getting through and is now warning retailers that they are the last line of defence to protect consumers.
“While it can be hard to tell a fake product from the real thing just by looking at it, there is no excuse for any retailer to sell a counterfeit ELFBAR product. Retailers can scan a code on the packaging to check the authenticity of the product and we urge them to do this for every product they sell,” Xiao said. “Fighting fakes is a priority for ELFBAR and we remain zero tolerance for these fake vapes right across the entire industry. The UK market is very important to us and we will continue to do all in our power to ensure that British consumers have confidence in their vapes.”
John Dunne
John Dunne, director general of the UK Vaping Industry Association (UKVIA), said he applauds ELFBAR for standing up against the counterfeiters.
“They pose a significant risk to the harm reduction reputation of the global vaping industry. It’s why we have called for a retail licensing scheme here in the UK to prevent the sale of illicit products and much higher penalties of at least £10,000 per instance for retailers who break the law in this way,” he said. “Similarly, the counterfeiters and those who trade fake vapes along the supply chain need dealing with in a way by the relevant authorities that put them off from doing it ever again.”
November 28, 2022
Brussels to Propose First EU-Wide Vaping Levy
In a long-anticipated move, the European Union is to propose a bloc-wide vaping tax policy as part of a shake-up of levies on the tobacco industry. The new rules would also double excise duties in member states with low cigarette taxes, according to a draft European Commission document.
The update to the 2011 EU tobacco taxation directive will tax novel smoking products, such as e-cigarettes, vapes and heated tobacco, comparatively with combustible cigarettes as policymakers worldwide take an increasingly dim view of the new products’ popularity among young people.
Products with a high nicotine content would have an excise duty of at least 40 percent applied to them, while lower-strength vapes will face a 20 percent duty. Heated tobacco products will also be hit by 55 percent duty, or a tax rate of €91 per 1,000 items sold.
The changes to legislation, part of a push by Brussels to cut smoking rates, will increase the EU’s minimum excise duty on cigarettes from €1.80 to €3.60 per pack of 20, which would raise prices in eastern European nations where packs can sell for under €3.
Alberto Alemanno, professor of EU law at HEC Paris business school, told the Financial Times that the absence of an EU-wide excise framework for vaping and heated tobacco products had been “weakening tobacco control efforts” across the bloc.
Excise duties on cigarettes would also increase considerably in countries such as Austria and Luxembourg where prices are low relative to income. The tax rise on cigarettes is expected to generate an extra €9.3 billion for EU member states.
The changes aim to speed up the EU’s push for a “tobacco-free generation” by 2040. As part of the EU’s Beating Cancer Plan, health officials want to drive tobacco use among EU citizens from the current level of about 25 percent down to 20 percent in 2025, and below 5 percent by 2040.
The commission this month imposed a ban on flavored heated tobacco products to curtail a surge in demand among younger consumers. In the U.S., regulators at the Food and Drug Administration have moved to ban popular vaping products, such as Juul.
Peter van der Mark, secretary-general of the European Smoking Tobacco Association, an industry body, warned that “if you have a sudden very steep increase, you can create a market for illicit trade.” Dustin Dahlmann, president of the Independent European Vape Alliance, added that imposing taxes on novel tobacco products could lead to “the much less harmful alternatives” to smoking being “taxed far too heavily in many countries.”
A leaked impact assessment said that the increase in the minimum excise duty would have “a strong impact on consumers and economic operators” in EU states where cigarette prices were low, including Bulgaria, Slovakia, Poland and Hungary. The assessment also noted that the excise duty on novel tobacco products “which are particularly appealing to young people, who are at risk of developing addiction” would aid public health efforts to cut tobacco use.
The proposal will have to be agreed by all EU member states before it is enshrined in law. British American Tobacco, one of the world’s biggest cigarette manufacturers, stressed this was “the beginning of a long legislative process.”
November 27, 2022
Ireland’s Government Approves E-cigarette Rules
Credit: Schankz
The Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly and the Minister for Public Health, Frank Feighan, received government approval to introduce additional restrictions on the sale and advertising of nicotine inhaling products such as e-cigarettes.
Under the new proposals, the sale of e-cigarettes and related vaping products will be prohibited from self-service vending machines, from temporary or mobile premises and at places or events for children, according to a press release. In addition, advertisements for e-cigarettes will be prohibited on public transport, in cinemas and near schools.
“These measures are designed to protect our children and young people from starting to vape,” said Donnelly. “We recognize that nicotine is a highly addictive drug, and we are acting today to make these products less accessible to our young people and to remove the advertising for these products from our children’s everyday lives.”
The proposals will be incorporated into the Public Health (Tobacco and Nicotine Inhaling Products) Bill which is currently being drafted. The Bill is expected to be finalised and published by year-end. The legislation will be designed to regulate any product that can be used for the consumption of nicotine-containing vapour or any component of that product.
The Bill already contains measures to ban the sale of nicotine inhaling products to those under the age of 18 and to introduce a licensing system for the retail sale of tobacco products and nicotine inhaling products. Other measures contained in the Bill include:
prohibiting the sale of tobacco products and nicotine inhaling products by persons under 18 years of age
prohibiting the sale of tobacco products from self-service vending machines, from temporary or mobile units and at events or locations for children
introducing minimum suspension periods for retailers convicted of offences
introducing fixed penalty notices for offences
The Minister of State with responsibility for Public Health, Well Being and the National Drugs Strategy, Frank Feighan, welcomed the government’s approval of the measures.
“Tobacco smoking continues to kill approximately 4,500 people in our country each year,” he said. “We recognize that nicotine inhaling products are used by some adult smokers to assist them to quit tobacco smoking. However, we are clear that these products are of no benefit to our children and young people or to non-smokers and that is why we are taking this action today.”
November 26, 2022
New York Issues First Retail Licenses for Marijuana
Credit: Spyrakot
New York regulators last week issued the first 36 marijuana retail licenses for an adult-use market that officials insist will open by year’s end.
That timeline took a positive turn when the state’s Office of Cannabis Management (OCM) announced it would allow qualifying businesses to launch delivery services before opening their retail stores, a significant change from other recreational markets, according to MJBizDaily.
“This will help jumpstart sales and enable these small business owners to generate capital and scale their operations,” the regulatory agency tweeted Monday.
New York adult-use retailers are projected to generate $1 billion-$1.2 billion in sales next year, growing to $2.2 billion-$2.7 billion by 2026, according to the 2022 MJBiz Factbook.
Regulators said 28 of the retail license winners went to individuals with marijuana convictions or family members who’d been arrested for cannabis.
The other eight licenses went to nonprofits.
The first group of Conditional Adult-Use Retail Dispensary (CAURD) license winners include:
Capital District Cannabis & Wellness.
Essential Flowers.
Kush and Kemet.
Gotham CUARD.
NYCCABUDS.
The agency is reviewing 903 CAURD applicants, the state’s version of social equity, to issue the first 150 adult-use licenses, as well as helping them lease and fund operations through a proposed $200 million social equity cannabis fund.
November 26, 2022