Author: Staff Writer

Vape Sector Welcomes NZ ‘Smoke-Free’ Law

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Vaping activists have welcomed New Zealand’s new “smoke-free” law, which they say strikes a balance between ensuring that safe, good-quality products are readily available for adult smokers while minimizing appeal to young people.
According to the U.K. Vaping Industry Association (UKVIA), New Zealand’s Smoke-free Environments and Regulated Products (vaping) Amendment Bill is “a breath of fresh air.”
“New Zealand has taken a huge leap forward in its efforts toward a smoke-free society in a move that brings its laws on vaping in line with the U.K.’s—and in many ways surpasses them,” the UKVIA wrote in a statement. “Not only does this move pave the way for many more smokers to be able to access vaping products with confidence, [but] it also puts its near neighbor Australia’s vaping policies to shame.”
In Australia, nicotine e-liquid is regulated like tobacco. However, the New Zealand government views vaping as a safer alternative to smoking and allows retailers to provide the following messages: “Completely replacing your cigarette with a vape will reduce harm to your health” and “If you smoke, switching completely to vaping is a much less harmful option.”
Among other provisions, New Zealand’s new legislation requires manufacturers to notify health authorities that a product has met the safety and quality standards before it can be sold; sets nicotine limits at 20 mg/mL for freebase nicotine and 50 mg/mL for nicotine salt products; and limits container sizes to 120 mL and requires them to be protected against breakage, leakage, spilling and have child-resistant closures.
In addition, the law sets a minimum sales age of 18 and restricts retail outlets to sell only tobacco, mint or menthol e-liquids. Vape shops, by contrast, will be allowed to sell a range of flavored products.
“We applaud New Zealand’s bold and brave approach to vaping, now enshrined into law, and can only encourage Australia and other countries with regressive, anti-harm reduction attitudes toward vaping to look again at the enormous role vaping can play in helping smokers to give up combustible tobacco for good,” the UKVIA wrote.
August 16, 2021
Paul Marobella Named President at Republic

Paul Marobella (Photo: Republic Brands)
Republic Brands has named Paul Marobella as its president and chief marketing officer.
Marobella brings more than 25 years of marketing, brand and leadership experience developing award-winning strategies for renowned brands, including Jim Beam, Adidas and Dos Equis. Most recently, he led 2,500 people while at the Paris-based advertising holding company Havas as chairman and CEO of North America.
While there, his teams won multiple “agency of the year” and “best place to work” awards while consulting on growth strategies for many of the world’s top brands. Prior to Havas, Marobella led a digital experience division of Accenture Interactive’s Wire Stone, consulting with brands such as Motorola, Conagra, Microsoft and Nike.
Marobella is also active in providing opportunities to America’s inner-city youth as a sitting member of the National Hockey League’s Fan Diversity and Inclusion Council, an advisory board member to the Chicago Blackhawks Foundation and Chairman of the Inner-City Education Program in Chicago.
“Paul’s world-class expertise in transforming global brands, increasing cultural relevancy and propelling enterprise growth brings a valuable opportunity to our multinational company as we enter the next era of the roll-your-own category,” said Don Levin, chairman and founder of Republic Brands, in a statement.
“It’s a rare opportunity in one’s career to join an established, growing company like Republic with our iconic stable of brands and appetite to capitalize on the once-in-a-lifetime growth opportunities the rolling category will experience over the next decade. Don has built an amazing company with incredible people; I am very excited for our future,” said Marobella.
Marobella plans to transform its consumer product brands alongside monumental market shifts and will lead Republic’s 50-year vision to meet rising demand amid rapid expansion.
August 13, 2021
Vectura Board Supports PMI Offer

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The board of Vectura will support Philip Morris International’s £1.1 billion ($1.5 billion) takeover offer for the inhaled treatments manufacturer after the tobacco company outbid private equity firm Carlyle, reports Reuters.
PMI on Sunday sweetened its offer for the asthma drugmaker to 165 pence per share, surpassing Carlyle’s final 155 pence proposal.
Vectura said it considered the terms of the Philip Morris offer to be fair and reasonable, and its board planned to unanimously recommend the bid to shareholders.
“The Vectura directors recognize the superior cash price the final PMI offer provides Vectura shareholders,” the board wrote in a statement published on Aug. 12, according to Sky News.
“The Vectura directors also note that wider stakeholders could benefit from PMI’s significant financial resources and its intentions to increase research and development investment and to operate Vectura as an autonomous business unit that will form the backbone of its inhaled therapeutics business.”
Previously, the company had noted that being owned by a cigarette maker could present “uncertainties.”
PMI wants to use Vectura’s expertise with inhalable formulations and device design to produce respiratory therapies. The acquisition is part of the cigarette manufacturer’s ambition to move beyond tobacco and to derive at least $1 billion in sales outside nicotine by 2025.
The proposed transaction has been heavily criticized by health activists who object to ownership by a company whose primary products are a major contributor to the medical conditions that Vectura aims to treat.
After Vectura’s announcement on Thursday, the chief executive of Asthma U.K. and the British Lung Foundation called the move by PMI “unacceptable.”
“Along with representatives from more than 20 organizations, I wrote to the Vectura board today to urge them to reject the bid. They’ve decided to recommend, so now it’s over to the shareholders,” said Sarah Woolnough.
PMI needs the acceptances of holders of just over 50 percent of Vectura shares for the deal to go through.
August 13, 2021
Russia Lifts Ban on Malawi Tobacco

Photo: Taco Tuinstra
Russia has lifted its ban on imports of tobacco and tobacco waste materials from Malawi, reports the AK&M Information Agency.
In 2021, Russia’s Federal Service for Veterinary and Phytosanitary Supervision detected five instances of the tobacco pest Megaselia scalaris in tobacco shipments from Malawi.
Malawian authorities reported that the multi-eating humpback fly is absent on the territory of the country and has never been found in places where tobacco is grown and in tobacco raw materials. They emphasized that Malawi applies strict control mechanisms for exported products that meet international standards. Each batch reportedly undergoes a fumigation procedure twice before shipment, after which the containers with the cargo are sealed and sent to the port of Mozambique where they undergo another stage of disinfection.
Given that the humpback fly prefers a humid climate, which is not typical for Malawi, as well as the fact that the import of tobacco raw materials from neighboring countries is prohibited, representatives of the Malawian departments suggested that the contamination of goods could have occurred during loading or transportation.
Nonetheless, Malawian authorities vowed to strengthen control of tobacco exports, prompting Russia to lift its embargo.
August 13, 2021
Swisher Creates Matchbook Capital

Zack Crafton (Photo: Swisher)
Swisher has announced a major initiative to fund innovative, experiential and emerging brands through the launch of Matchbook Capital.
Matchbook Capital will be led by Zack Crafton, who also serves as vice president of Swisher’s Innovation Platform. Crafton has built companies in industries such as cannabis, wine and beer as well as held board and advisory roles in the for-profit and not-for-profit spaces. Building on a successful career scaling companies, including leading NakedWines to success as the largest online winery in the world and holding the first permit for a cannabis delivery service in California, Crafton brings a balance of analytical, M&A and value-creation experience to bear at Matchbook Capital’s helm.  
“Swisher has grown into the collection of iconic brands it is today by fueling an endless quest to uncover fresh ideas, innovative technologies, quality products and the people behind them,” said Crafton in a statement. ”Matchbook Capital will continue that tradition by making significant investments of capital and resources into new categories to build a robust portfolio of products for adult consumers.”
Joining Crafton at Matchbook Capital is a team of former entrepreneurs who bring a new and refreshing approach as they expand Swisher beyond tobacco through corporate venture. In addition to having the ability to scale brands through Swisher’s extensive retailer footprint, the team brings a level of empathy to the corporate venture process rooted in its members’ experience on “the other side” of the table, according to Swisher. 
“We have more than 250,000 distribution points and invest with cash,” Crafton added. “As a former entrepreneur, I know how exciting this value proposition is for new brands seeking rapid growth. We are uniquely positioned to be a strategic partner for founders who are in it for the long run. We want to help them build their legacies and launch their brands to iconic status.”
Matchbook Capital invests in or acquires companies that are in the test, build or scaling stages of growth and looks for leaders who have a passion for success.
“Given the climate of disruption from which the country is emerging, now is the time to find and fund the next big idea,” added Crafton. “During Covid, consumers were forced to change almost every part of their daily lives … from shopping and finding entertainment to communicating and learning. This represents a massive disruption and period of transformation that will bring about a ‘new normal’ for retailers and consumers alike. We can support this movement by assisting innovators with capital, strategic guidance and access to Swisher’s dominant distribution network.”
Matchbook Capital is most interested in emerging industries (such as cannabinoids) experimental categories and innovative consumer packaged goods.
For more information, visit the Matchbook Capital website.
August 13, 2021
Scientists: EVALI Cases May Have Been Covid

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Some victims of the vaping-related lung disease that swept the U.S. in 2019 were in fact suffering from Covid-19, reports the Global Times, a tabloid newspaper associated with the Chinese communist party.
After reviewing some 250 chest CT scans from published papers, a group of Chinese scientists and radiologists suspect that some patients were wrongly diagnosed with e-cigarette or vaping use-associated lung injury (EVALI). According to the Global Times, the scientists found that 16 EVALI patients suffered from viral infections, which indicates that they could have had Covid-19.
Yang Zhanqiu, a virologist at Wuhan University, said that due to the similarity of symptoms between EVALI and Covid-19 patients and since no nucleic acid detection kits were available at the time, it’s highly likely that some Covid-19 patients were misdiagnosed as EVALI patients in 2019.
The scientists are now urging U.S. officials to start screening for Covid-19 in patients who in 2019 were diagnosed with EVALI.
Covid is generally believed to have originated in Wuhan, but the Chinese communist party has on several occasions suggested that Covid-19 originated outside of China.
August 12, 2021
France Declares War on Cigarette Litter

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France wants to reduce the number of discarded cigarette butts in the environment by 40 percent within six years, reports DPA International, citing government officials.
Every year, smokers toss an estimated 23.5 billion cigarettes into the country’s streets and parks.
The French environment ministry wants tobacco companies to help solve the problem. A recycling and anti-waste law passed last year requires them to take responsibility for their products after their “end of life.”
The tobacco industry will pay €80 million ($93.8 million) per year to a newly created institution that will allocate the money to projects aimed at eliminating cigarette butts and raising awareness, the ministry said.
The ministry also wants to distribute pocket ashtrays, set up more cigarette-only trash bins and establish new collection and recycling systems for cigarette butts.
According to the latest EU statistics, smokers account for 22.4 percent of the French population.
August 12, 2021
U.K. Regulatory Agency Clarifies E-Cig Rules

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The government agency overseeing the U.K.’s e-cigarettes and refill containers notification scheme as well as implementing the Tobacco and Related Products Regulations (TRPR) has updated guidance on the sale of vaping products following discussions with the U.K. Vaping Industry Association (UKVIA) and Trading Standards.
The UKVIA decided to intervene after being approached by a significant number of vape product manufacturers, distributors and retailers confused about what could and could not be legally sold in shops, particularly following the recent surge in new disposable vapes entering the U.K. market.
As a result, the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has now clarified its advice to both manufacturers and distributors of e-liquids and devices and vaping retailers.
The UKVIA took part in discussions with the MHRA and Trading Standards following concerns raised by retailers unsure of their compliance requirements and wary of falling foul of the law.
“Due to the numerous [inquiries] we received about the legality of stocking new-to-the-market products, in particular the surge in new disposables, we decided it was imperative to talk to Trading Standards and raise this with the MRHA to seek clarification,” said John Dunne, director-general of the UKVIA, in a statement.
“Since then, we have been working with the MHRA to clarify the process around when products can legally be placed on the market for sale.
“The first part saw the MHRA issue an e-bulletin clearly setting out the process and making it unambiguous that it is illegal to place products into the market until the ‘ECID’ numbers are published on the MHRA website as ‘approved/declared.’
“Next the MHRA updated its online advice for retailers, which is a highly satisfactory outcome as it effectively closes the loophole for when brands can place the product on the market and when a retailer can legally sell the product.”
The MHRA’s guidance for vaping retailers previously read:
“When sourcing new supplies of any e-cigarette or e-liquid product, check that details of the notification for the product have been published in the list of Notified Products.
“If you cannot find the product on the MHRA’s website, ask your supplier to confirm that the product complies with the TRPR and has been notified to the MHRA. If a producer has not notified the product or it does not comply with the TRPR, they may not supply it to you.”
The new wording says:
“When sourcing new supplies of any e-cigarette or e-liquid product, check that a compliant notification has been published in one of the Notified Product lists above.
“If you cannot find the product on the MHRA’s website, ask your supplier to confirm that it has been published and provide details to enable you to confirm the product’s status. If a product has yet to achieve publication status, they may not supply it to you.”
Dunne said the clarification demonstrates the effectiveness of open dialogue.
“We want our sector to be known for upholding strict standards when it comes to the manufacture, distribution and sale of vaping products, and this clarification from the MHRA can leave no one in any doubt about where their responsibilities lie,” he said.
The MHRA’s full wording on the sale of vaping products is available here.
August 12, 2021
Study: Vapor Flavor Ban Would Boost Smoking

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If vapor product sales were restricted to tobacco flavors, one-third of U.S. vapers between the ages of 18 and 34 would switch to smoking combustible cigarettes, according to a new study in Nicotine & Tobacco Research.
The study analyzed data from February to May 2020 and looked at 2,159 young adults in Atlanta, Boston, Minneapolis, Oklahoma City, San Diego and Seattle, examining support for e-cigarette sales restrictions and the perceived impact of flavor and vaping bans.
This study precedes the FDA’s impending Sept. 9 deadline for premarket tobacco product application (PMTA) decisions, which could potentially take most vapor products off the market.
The FDA’s deadline will be “like watching an unstoppable object hit an immovable wall,” said Charles Gardner, executive director of INNCO, a global nonprofit supporting the rights of adults using safer nicotine products. “The FDA must know flavor bans will increase teen, young adult and older adult smoking.”
“In general, the FDA does not comment on specific studies but evaluates them as part of the body of evidence to further our understanding about a particular issue and assist in our mission to protect public health,” an FDA spokesperson said.
Two other recent studies showed similar results. A study in JAMA Pediatrics showed that following San Francisco’s flavor ban, teens were more likely to smoke than those in other school districts. A different study in Nicotine & Tobacco Research shows that teens who vape would be smoking cigarettes if vapes hadn’t become available.
“All hell will break loose if [the FDA] authorize[s] flavors as ‘appropriate for the protection of public health,’” said Gardner. “The Truth Initiative and the Bloomberg-funded Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids have staked their reputations on the public health benefits of flavor bans. And many key leaders in the U.S. Congress believe them.”
August 11, 2021
No Auction After Carlyle Declares Bid Final

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The takeover battle between Philip Morris International and private equity firm Carlyle Group for the British inhaled treatments maker Vectura will avoid an auction sale after Carlyle declared its £958 million ($1.33 billion) bid final, reports Reuters.
On July 9, PMI offered £852 million for Vectura as part of the company’s ambition to leverage its expertise in inhalation and aerosolization into adjacent areas.
The Carlyle Group then raised an earlier offer to £958 million. Carlyle had struck an agreement to buy Vectura in May until PMI emerged with its offer in July.
In response, PMI raised its offer to £1.02 billion while stressing that Vectura would operate as an autonomous business unit under its umbrella.
The bidding war prompted Britain’s takeover regulator to intervene, saying that it would enter a rare head-to-head auction here if the bidders did not make final bids by Aug. 10.
PMI’s bid unleashed a storm of criticism from public health advocates who dislike the idea of a tobacco company investing in the lung health business.
The Vectura directors on Friday acknowledged reports of uncertainties relating to the possible impact on Vectura stakeholders if the company were owned by PMI.
Founded in 1997, Vectura makes inhalers and nebulizers, which enable patients to breathe in medication as a mist, either through a mouthpiece or a mask. Its customers have included Novartis and GlaxoSmithKline.
PMI is counting on Vectura to help achieve its goal of at least $1 billion in sales outside nicotine by 2025. Its $820 million acquisition of Fertin Pharma, a maker of nicotine chewing gum and oral drugs for pain, gives the company expertise in oral deliveries, but it would take Philip Morris longer to develop inhaled therapies without Vectura.
A deal with either one of the U.S. companies would require shareholder approval.
August 11, 2021