Vape News | Fake Vape Gear Flooding America? | IQOS Plans More Stores + More

Vape News Headlines:

San Fran Vape Ban Certain! – Fake Vape Gear Flooding America? – Canada Teen Vape Epidemic? – Hungary Tightens Vape Laws – IQOS Plans More Stores – India Vape Ban Now Likely

San Francisco Vape Ban Now A Certainty

The ban on all things vape within the city limits of San Francisco was officially passed last night leaving just the Mayor to sign off on the law.

Major London Breed has said she will definitely rubber stamp the legislation meaning it could be the end of the road for campaigners trying to stop the ban.

Mayor Breed will sign the legislation into local law in 10 days time and it would be implemented within 7 months – unless opponents can find any legal loopholes with which they could mount an appeal.

Adding her support to the outright ban Breed said:

I support the legislation authored by City Attorney Dennis Herrera and Supervisor Shamann Walton to suspend the sale of e-cigarettes in San Francisco until the Food and Drug Administration concludes a review of the impacts of vaping on public health.

There is so much we don’t know about the health impacts of these products, but we do know that e-cigarette companies are targeting our kids in their advertising and getting them hooked on addictive nicotine products.

We need to take action to protect the health of San Francisco’s youth and prevent the next generation of San Franciscans from becoming addicted to these products.

All vape shops within the city limits now face closure and the loss of jobs and hard-earned investment. Other stores will be forbidden from selling anything vape related – delivery companies bringing in vape gear will be banned from entering city limits and online sales will also be forbidden.

Any vape companies that rent a property off the local government will be evicted and this includes JUUL who have a head office within the city limits. As I wrote last week the company says it will not leave the city – rather find alternative accommodation.

City officials say the ban will remain in place until the Food and Drug Administration [FDA] conducts scientific studies into any health risks posed by e-cigarettes and more importantly begins its approval process.

JUUL has been leading the fight against the vape ban through a petition that would force a ballot on the matter.

Juul spokesman Ted Kwong said:

This full prohibition will drive former adult smokers who successfully switched to vapor products back to deadly cigarettes, deny the opportunity to switch for current adult smokers, and create a thriving black market instead of addressing the actual causes of underage access and use.

We have already taken the most aggressive actions in the industry to keep our products out of the hands of those underage and are taking steps to do more.

LA Times: Vape Ban Is An ‘Overreach’

An editorial published in the LA Times on the day of the final vote also attacked the ban:

…the possible consequences of a ban on just this one tobacco product are concerning.

In addition to being easy to evade — plenty of e-cigarettes will still be available at retailers a short drive down the peninsula — the prohibition would create an opportunity for black marketers inside the city’s borders.

In a perverse twist, that might make it easier for teens to buy vaping equipment because e-cigarette bootleggers are not likely to check IDs.

And here’s an even worse scenario: If adults who vape can’t get their hands on replacement nicotine cartridges, they might take up traditional cigarettes to get their fix.

…San Francisco has often been a pioneer in smart, progressive public policy, such as when it bucked federal law and began issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples in 2004, or when it became the first U.S. city to ban single-use plastic grocery bags.

But in recent years it has imposed a flurry of more intrusive restraints, such as forbidding high-tech delivery services and trying to ban company cafeterias.

The proposed ban on e-cigarette sales is another overreach in the name of the public good.

To call this vape ban criminal is an understatement especially when you consider 40,000 smokers from California die from lit tobacco-related diseases each year and under this legislation lit tobacco products will remain on the shelves…

Truth is stranger than fiction and I draw your attention to the story I wrote over Christmas – A Vaping Fairy Tale Of New York 2022 – A Short Story Or Dire Warning?…I might have got the wrong city in that piece – New York is considering a similar ban – but the rise of black market sales in San Francisco is – as JUUL says – very likely.

The question is will New York be the next domino to fall and who will be next?

Source

Fake Vape Pods Flooding America?

In his latest attack on vaping in America, a senator labelled a ‘creep’ by President Trump is calling for a crackdown on ‘fake’ pods and e-cigarettes coming from China.

Senator Chuck Schumer from New York has already campaigned for a nationwide e-liquid flavour ban and now reckons the country is being flooded with fake vape goods from China.

He says pre-filled pods, in particular, are of concern especially fake JUUL pods – a little rich given he’s so anti-vaping lol.

He told the media:

…amidst an emerging ‘fake’ e-cig flavor pod explosion I am urging the feds to get real focused: crackdown on illegal online sales, implement plans to more vigorously inspect and detect illegal shipments, and altogether remove these faux pods from the U.S. marketplace.

Not quite sure what he means by ‘illegal’ online sales, however, he also shows a real lack of knowledge when it comes to the history of the manufacturing of vape devices suggesting China is in some way ripping off an American idea:

As is the case with lots of American ingenuity, China is at it again, copying and cashing in on the popularity of e-cigs here in New York and beyond.

But in the case of dangerous e-cig copycat flavors cooked up in some foreign lab, the stakes are too high and concern the public’s health and safety.

As I said, the whole bloody world of vape manufacturers is in some way ‘cloning’ or borrowing ideas from each other and have been since day one.

However, the vehemently anti-vaping politician has received praise from none other than JUUL lol.

They welcome his calls – especially given many of the so-called ‘fake pods’ are designed to fit into the JUUL battery. Not only that the company says there are indeed counterfeit kits on the market:

We share Senator Schumer’s concern and applaud his efforts as we continue to fight counterfeit and compatible knock-off products that are made with unknown ingredients, under unknown quality and manufacturing standards, and are often sold online without adequate age verification​.

Strange bedfellows lol.

Source

Teen Vape Epidemic Fears In Canada Quashed

The anti-vape crowd of Canada are ramping up the pressure on vaping with a new report suggesting there’s the beginning of a ‘teen vape epidemic’ in the country.

As I said on Sunday, there’s a slow but sure cranking up of anti-vaping rhetoric and a new study suggests a sudden spike in the number of young people taking up vaping and in particular JUUL.

Professor David Hammond of the University of Waterloo in Ontario led the study and said:

The vaping market in North America has evolved rapidly over the past two years owing to the growth of JUUL e-cigarettes and similar products.

JUUL uses benzoic acid and nicotine salt technology to deliver higher concentrations of nicotine than conventional e-cigarettes.

News reports and social media analyses suggest that both the marketing and discreet product design of JUUL are particularly appealing to young people.

On the back of this study the Canadian Cancer Society has called for the age of all tobacco products to be increased to 21 with special laws created for e-cigarettes and in particular flavours.

A spokesman said:

Provinces should also prohibit the sale of flavoured vaping products except in adult-only speciality vape shops.

However, the results of the study – published in the British Medical Journal, have come under fire with many vaping advocates saying when you actually drilled down into the figures it showed just 0.6% of Canadian kids had tried vaping.

In real numbers that equated to 15 youngsters that already smoked had tried an e-cig out of 2441 studied.

A number they say in no way shows an ‘epidemic’.

Do check out the Twitter thread [above] to get to the real facts.

Source

Hungary Considers Tighter E-Cig Regulation

The country already has the strictest vape and e-cig laws in Europe but Hungary is considering clamping down even more.

A new bill would effectively shut down all specialist vape shops meaning e-cigs and e-liquid could only be sold in state-run tobacco shops. Not only that, the number of those shops would also fall. At the moment one shop is allowed per 3,000 people in an area, the new bill would raise that to 4,000.

There’s also plans to raise tax on both e-liquid and hardware.

The bill was submitted by the ruling Fidesz party MP János Lázár who ironically is the commissioner of the government’s defence of non-smokers of which of course vapers are classed as.

Source

IQOS Plans More UK Stores

Big Tobacco giant Phillip Morris Inc is planning a rollout of its products across the UK with the opening of at least 4 new stores.

At the moment the company has just two stores in London selling its IQOS Heat Not burn and IQOS Mesh e-liquid based device.

It’s hoping to open up two in both Bristol and Manchester and are currently in discussion with other ‘landlords’ across the country.

Deborah Arnott, chief executive of health charity Action on Smoking and Health advised smokers looking to quit to try an alternative brand:

We’d advise smokers wanting to quit to try e-cigarettes first, as there’s good evidence they help smokers quit, they’re likely to be less harmful than heated tobacco products, they’re cheaper than IQOS and widely available.

Source

India Vape Ban Likely In 100 days

A complete ban of all things vape looks likely to pass into Indian law within 100 days.

The Health Ministry made its announcement this week following a move to place e-cigarettes into the Drugs and Cosmetic Act – effectively criminalizing the import or use of any devices or e-liquids.

The final decision came after an advisory committee declared vaping was carcinogenic and not a safer alternative to smoking.

A spokesman said:

A technical committee of the ministry evaluated findings of a WHO 2016 report saying e-cigarette is lethal and can lead to serious health conditions.

The only criminality here is this crazy decision.

As I keep saying India is home to a staggering 12% of the world’s smoking population which equates to a million deaths per year from lit tobacco-related diseases.

Shame on them.

More vaping news on Sunday and hopefully a little more positive!