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  • Netherlands Makes One of the Largest Illicit Nicotine Busts in Its History

    Netherlands Makes One of the Largest Illicit Nicotine Busts in Its History

    Dutch authorities seized 277,000 illegal flavored vapes and 150,000 nicotine pouches in one of the country’s largest enforcement actions against illicit nicotine products. The Dutch Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority (NVWA) said customs officers discovered the flavored vapes during a routine inspection of a haulage company’s warehouse in Rotterdam, while the nicotine pouches were found at storage facilities in Rotterdam and Utrecht.

    Officials believe the products were destined for the Dutch black market. All seized products were destroyed, with disposal costs charged to the warehouse owners.

  • Japan Shelves Tightening HTP Regulations

    Japan Shelves Tightening HTP Regulations

    Today (July 9), Japan’s Ministry of Health said it will postpone tightening secondhand smoke regulations for heated tobacco products, concluding that current scientific evidence is insufficient to determine the health risks of secondhand exposure. The ministry will continue reviewing emerging research and revisit the issue in about three years, while moving ahead with stricter oversight of designated smoking facilities by requiring qualifying bars and similar venues to register with municipal authorities.

    The decision follows a five-year review of the revised Health Promotion Act, which bans cigarette smoking in most indoor public spaces but permits HTP use in designated rooms. Although a recent review found some HTPs may emit higher levels of certain carcinogens than conventional cigarettes, the ministry said evidence on health effects for bystanders remains inconclusive. Public health experts on the advisory panel urged a more precautionary approach, while the ministry noted that HTPs now account for about 40% of all tobacco users in Japan, one of the world’s largest markets for heat-not-burn products.

  • Spain Busts Syndicate Making 8M Illicit Cigarettes a Day

    Spain Busts Syndicate Making 8M Illicit Cigarettes a Day

    Spanish authorities dismantled two international criminal organizations operating six clandestine cigarette factories capable of producing nearly eight million counterfeit cigarettes per day. The operation, led by the Guardia Civil in coordination with Europol and law enforcement agencies in Poland and Lithuania, resulted in 50 arrests following raids across Alicante, Cuenca, Huelva, Murcia, Sevilla, and Toledo. Authorities seized more than 20 million counterfeit cigarettes, 38.4 metric tons of tobacco, 18 vehicles, encrypted electronic devices, firearms, and €170,000 in cash, with the tobacco products valued at more than €10 million. Two Polish fugitives were extradited, while seven suspects were remanded in custody.

    Investigators said the criminal networks manufactured counterfeit versions of well-known cigarette brands for distribution across Spain and other European markets, including Portugal, France, and potentially the United Kingdom. The factories also supplied third-party criminal groups and housed exploited workers in makeshift living quarters inside production facilities. The investigation began seven years ago after intelligence from Europol and authorities in Poland and Lithuania identified a Polish-led criminal network operating from Spain.

  • Oettinger Davidoff Posts 2.5% Sales Growth

    Oettinger Davidoff Posts 2.5% Sales Growth

    Oettinger Davidoff reported 2025 sales of CHF 545.3 million ($680 million), up 2.5% in real terms, driven by growth in its premium cigar portfolio. The Davidoff brand posted a 2.4% sales increase, while Zino grew 16.1%, supported by strong performance in the company’s Partner Markets & Duty Free EMEAA region and continued momentum in the U.S. market. Handmade premium cigar production totaled 36.6 million cigars, down 4.9% from 2024, as the company adjusted output to reflect changing market conditions.

    The company said it continued investing in manufacturing, opening a new blending center in the Dominican Republic and expanding its Honduras facility with additional box-making capacity and a new fermentation complex. Oettinger Davidoff also opened seven new retail stores and renovated four locations during 2025, with plans to open nine more boutiques in 2026. The company said the investments support its five-year Aspire727 strategy, which focuses on brand growth, operational excellence, and expanding its position in the global premium cigar market.

  • NC Budget Adds $1,000 Vape Shop Tax, Age Mandate

    NC Budget Adds $1,000 Vape Shop Tax, Age Mandate

    North Carolina’s new $34.4 billion state budget includes requirements for vape retailers, imposing a $1,000 annual tax on vape shops and requiring them to verify that customers are at least 21 years old. Retailers who already follow the federal Tobacco 21 law said the age-verification requirement formalizes existing practices, while the new tax will increase operating costs. The changes are part of the state’s broader effort to strengthen oversight of vape sales and reduce youth access to nicotine products.

    According to ABC News 13, the budget measures have prompted calls from tobacco-control advocates to expand regulation beyond vaping products to include cigarettes, cigars, and nicotine pouches. Advocates also continue to push for Solly’s Law, which would establish a statewide tobacco retail licensing system and align North Carolina’s enforcement framework with the federal minimum tobacco sales age of 21. Retailers say they support reasonable regulations that promote compliance and keep nicotine products out of the hands of minors.

  • Study Says Vape Flavors Alter 3K Genes

    Study Says Vape Flavors Alter 3K Genes

    A study published in Frontiers in Oncology found that e-cigarette flavorings were associated with more than 3,000 changes in gene activity among adult vapers, with fruit flavors producing the greatest effects. Researchers analyzed oral cell samples from 35 vapers, 24 smokers, and 24 non-users, finding that fruit-flavored products were linked to changes in 3,124 genes across the genome compared with non-users. The researchers said the findings do not demonstrate that flavored vapes directly cause disease but suggest they may influence biological pathways associated with cancer, cardiovascular, immune, and respiratory conditions.

    The study found fruit flavors accounted for about 31% of the observed gene expression changes, compared with 2.9% for sweet flavors and 0.9% for mint or menthol, while users of multiple flavors exhibited the broadest changes. Researchers also found that more advanced vaping devices were associated with greater changes in gene activity. Despite the findings, the U.K.’s National Health Service continues to state that vaping exposes users to fewer toxins than smoking and remains an effective smoking-cessation aid for adult smokers, while emphasizing that vaping is not risk-free and should not be used by youth or non-smokers.

  • Illicit Trade Picking Up in Wales

    Illicit Trade Picking Up in Wales

    Authorities in Newport, Wales, say their city has become a hotspot for the illicit tobacco and vape trade, having already identified 17 businesses selling illegal products since January 2026 and taking enforcement action against 14, including closures and prosecutions. Trading Standards seized 272,740 illicit cigarettes, 85.25 kg of hand-rolling tobacco, and 9,694 illegal vaping devices so far this year, following 59 seizures and 46 closure orders in 2025.

    With 9.8 vape shops per 100,000 people, Newport ranks eighth in the U.K. for vape shops per capita, fueling concerns over the rapid growth of the sector as officials say the illegal trade undermines legitimate retailers and is linked to wider criminal activity.

  • THR Needed for HIV Care, Researcher Says  

    THR Needed for HIV Care, Researcher Says  

    Dr. Jonathan Shuter, an infectious disease physician at Montefiore Einstein and professor of medicine at Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York, said in an interview with TheBodyPro that smoking-related illnesses now kill more people living with HIV in the United States than the virus itself. He said smoking rates among people with HIV remain around 40% — far higher than in the general population — and that cessation programs have produced disappointing results, with only about one in five smokers successfully quitting.

    Shuter argued that clinicians should adopt a broader harm reduction approach that supports patients who reduce smoking even if they do not quit completely, while emphasizing lung cancer screening, cardiovascular risk management, and tailored interventions that address the different reasons people with HIV smoke. Shuter also said complete switching from cigarettes to vaping could reduce harm compared with smoking, but cautioned that dual use of cigarettes and e-cigarettes offers little health benefit and remains the more common pattern among people living with HIV.

  • 22nd Century Reportedly Losing Key Customer

    22nd Century Reportedly Losing Key Customer

    According to the Winston-Salem Journal, 22nd Century Group received a 180-day termination notice from Smoker Friendly International, ending their exclusive private-label manufacturing agreement effective Jan. 1, 2027. The contract, signed in January 2025 and originally set to run for five years, covers the production of cigarettes and filtered cigars for the retailer’s network of more than 800 independently owned stores.

    The loss of the contract would represent a significant setback for 22nd Century, which derives nearly all of its revenue from manufacturing private-label traditional cigarettes and filtered cigars despite being known for its FDA-authorized very-low-nicotine (VLN) cigarettes. According to the WSJ, in the first quarter, the company’s traditional cigarette sales fell to $2.85 million from $5.01 million a year earlier, while filtered cigar sales declined to $873,000 from $1.1 million. The company employs about 40 people at its Mocksville, North Carolina, manufacturing facility.

    The contract termination comes as 22nd Century continues a financial restructuring that began in 2023, including reverse stock splits to maintain Nasdaq listing compliance and workforce reductions. While its VLN cigarettes remain the only combustible cigarettes authorized by the FDA as a modified-risk tobacco product, the company has struggled to generate meaningful sales despite expanded distribution, and the current FDA has shown less emphasis on very-low-nicotine cigarettes while authorizing additional flavored e-cigarette products.

  • Hawaii Bans Disposable Vapes

    Hawaii Bans Disposable Vapes

    Hawaii Gov. Josh Green signed legislation banning the sale, distribution, and offering for sale of disposable electronic smoking devices beginning Jan. 1, 2027. Under SB 2175, violators face fines of up to $100 per day per violation. Green also signed HB 1573, which requires manufacturers of electronic smoking devices and e-liquids sold in Hawaii to provide documentation demonstrating FDA authorization, with penalties for noncompliance.

    State lawmakers said the measures are intended to curb youth nicotine use and strengthen oversight of vaping products. Rep. Scot Matayoshi also indicated that lawmakers may consider future regulation of nicotine pouches, citing concerns over youth access to emerging nicotine products.