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Category: Around the Industry

  • Sen. Schumer Urges FDA to Crack Down on Illicit Chinese Vapes

    Sen. Schumer Urges FDA to Crack Down on Illicit Chinese Vapes

    New York Sen. Chuck Schumer is calling on the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to provide more information on how it identifies illicit nicotine products and investigate whether Chinese manufacturers are using chemical substitutes to evade FDA oversight. In a letter to acting FDA Commissioner Kyle Diamantas, Schumer also urged the agency to use its enforcement authorities to remove unlawful products from the market. He cited concerns that unauthorized products manufactured in China are entering the U.S. market and being marketed in ways that appeal to youth.

    Schumer cited estimates that unauthorized products account for 70% of U.S. e-cigarette sales, including more than 97% of disposable e-cigarette sales, and requested a response from the FDA within 30 days. He also raised concerns about FDA staffing and its ability to monitor illicit nicotine products following workforce reductions in 2025.

  • Riot Labs Says Open Letter from Health Orgs is Hypocritical

    Riot Labs Says Open Letter from Health Orgs is Hypocritical

    UK e-liquid maker Riot Labs is challenging proposed UK restrictions on vape packaging, appearance, and retail displays, arguing that requiring vape products to be hidden from view could discourage smokers from switching. The company’s comments follow an open letter circulated by the National Centre for Smoking Cessation and Training (NCSCT), with support from Action on Smoking and Health (ASH), calling on the government to implement proposed restrictions in full. The consultation closes Oct. 2.

    The proposals would require vape products to use plain white packaging, limit device colors to black, white, or gray, and require products to be kept out of sight at retail locations. Riot Labs Chief Executive Ben Johnson said the company supports measures including licensing vape retailers, stronger enforcement of age restrictions, and restrictions on youth-oriented packaging and marketing, but opposes applying tobacco-style display requirements to specialist vape shops. ASH’s consultation guide says it is concerned that a total display ban could undermine the role of vaping in smoking cessation, while also supporting the proposed restrictions.

    Riot Labs cited its own Freedom of Information research covering 21 Trading Standards services, which it said found substantial differences in the frequency of underage-sales testing. The company also cited ASH survey data showing that 61% of smokers who have never vaped believe vaping is as harmful as smoking or more harmful, compared with 27% in 2019. The NCSCT and ASH have separately cited public support for restrictions on youth-oriented vape packaging and marketing.

  • Brazil Intercepts 200K Illicit Vapes

    Brazil Intercepts 200K Illicit Vapes

    Brazil’s Federal Revenue Service seized a container at the Port of Santos containing about 200,000 smuggled electronic smoking devices in an operation conducted Sept. 18. The shipment originated in Yantian, China, and was destined for Montevideo, Uruguay, but was falsely declared as LED screens and electronics.

    Authorities found that about 95% of the cargo consisted of undeclared electronic cigarettes without marketing authorization. The seizure followed information provided by Philip Morris International’s Illicit Trade Prevention team, which alerted Brazil’s General Coordination of Customs Administration after identifying that the vessel would stop in Santos before continuing to Uruguay.

  • Bangladesh Seizes 8.25 Tons of Tobacco-Like Materials

    Bangladesh Seizes 8.25 Tons of Tobacco-Like Materials

    Bangladesh customs officials seized about 17.5 tons of goods at Chattogram Port after finding discrepancies between the declared and actual contents of two consignments imported under the name of Authoy Enterprise. The shipment included tobacco or tobacco-like materials and scrap paper, according to the National Board of Revenue.

    The first consignment was declared as pan masala and zarda, or chewing tobacco, but contained 8,250.4 kilograms, or about 8.25 tons, of tobacco or tobacco-like material. Some materials appeared to be powdery substances resembling narcotics, though laboratory testing is required to determine their composition. The second consignment was declared as printed paper catalogues but contained 9,263 kilograms, or about 9.26 tons, of scrap paper.

    Authoy Enterprise’s proprietor told customs officials that he and the company were unaware of the imports and suspected their name and import information had been misused. Authorities are investigating the shipments and whether any offences were committed.

  • Canada Health Minister Rejects Calls to Loosen Pouch Rules

    Canada Health Minister Rejects Calls to Loosen Pouch Rules

    Canadian Federal Health Minister Marjorie Michel said she is not considering changes to Canada’s regulations governing nicotine pouches, which are regulated as smoking-cessation aids and restricted to adult sales through pharmacies. Zonnic, manufactured by Imperial Tobacco, is currently the only authorized nicotine pouch brand, with sales limited to 4 mg pouches and restricted flavors. Unsmoke Canada, part of Philip Morris International’s Rothmans, Benson & Hedges business, has campaigned for allowing pouches to be sold through retail stores, arguing that broader legal availability could address the illicit market.

    Michel acknowledged challenges with illicit sales, including online sales of products such as Zyn, while tobacco-control groups called for stronger enforcement rather than looser rules. The groups said nicotine pouch use among Canadian youth is increasing and warned that wider retail availability could increase youth access.

  • Cigarette Seizures in Finland Already Double 2025

    Cigarette Seizures in Finland Already Double 2025

    Finnish Customs seized more than 34 million illegally imported cigarettes during the first six months of 2026, twice the amount seized in all of 2025. Customs said the cases identified through June resulted in more than €13.5 million in estimated lost tax revenue, while shipments involving hundreds of thousands or millions of cigarettes have become more common.

    Authorities said ferry routes between Estonia and southern Finland are the main route for illegal shipments, with cigarettes often concealed among legitimate goods and moved through commercial transport networks before being distributed from storage facilities. Customs also reported a June seizure of 4 million cigarettes hidden in legal cargo and an investigation involving 15 people suspected of smuggling up to 10 million cigarettes and other tobacco products into Finland during 2025 and 2026. Investigators said some of the supply originates from illicit manufacturing operations in the Baltic countries and Poland.

  • VTA Launches Ad Campaign on Vaping Regs

    VTA Launches Ad Campaign on Vaping Regs

    The Vapor Technology Association (VTA) launched a seven-figure cable, broadcast, and digital advertising campaign urging President Donald Trump and Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to replace the FDA’s current Premarket Tobacco Product Application (PMTA) framework with what the trade group describes as clear, science-based guidance for vapor products. The campaign is running on Fox News programming, Truth Social, and X. VTA said the campaign cites a poll showing 71% support for replacing the current PMTA rules with scientific guidelines.

    VTA said the campaign follows an August 2026 decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit involving the FDA’s PMTA process. VTA Executive Director Tony Abboud said the proposed framework would provide clearer requirements for manufacturers while strengthening enforcement against noncompliant products.

  • VA, DoD Update Cessation Recommendations

    VA, DoD Update Cessation Recommendations

    The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) issued updated clinical practice guidelines for treating tobacco and nicotine use among veterans and military service members. Published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, the guideline includes 32 recommendations covering cessation medications, counseling approaches, and treatment strategies for adults who use a range of tobacco and nicotine products. The guideline recommends varenicline or combination nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) to increase abstinence, motivational interviewing to improve treatment engagement, and immediate retreatment following relapse.

    The guideline, which is based on literature published through 2024, also addresses electronic nicotine delivery systems, including e-cigarettes, but does not recommend them as a cessation treatment, stating that evidence is insufficient to establish their efficacy and that known and unknown harms outweigh potential benefits. Nicotine pouches and other newer nicotine products are included within the guideline’s broader scope of tobacco and nicotine use, but the recommendations do not endorse them as cessation treatments. The guideline also recommends offering treatment to adults who are not yet ready to quit and supports pharmacotherapy for patients with mental health conditions, citing evidence of safety and effectiveness.

  • Surveys Show Strong Support for Tobacco Controls in Türkiye

    Surveys Show Strong Support for Tobacco Controls in Türkiye

    Surveys by Turkish Green Crescent (Yeşilay) found broad support for proposed tobacco-control measures focused on protecting children and young people from tobacco and nicotine use. The digital survey included 1,461 participants, while 5,481 people participated in a face-to-face survey conducted across Türkiye’s seven regions. In the digital survey, 91.4% supported new regulations aimed at protecting young people from tobacco and nicotine addiction.

    Support for a proposed “Tobacco-Free Generation” policy, which would prohibit tobacco sales to people born in 2015 or later, reached 89.3% in the digital survey and 83.2% in the field survey. Meanwhile, 84.5% supported limiting the visibility of tobacco products at points of sale, 89.6% backed stronger restrictions on tobacco products on digital platforms, and 91.6% favored measures to reduce tobacco use and visibility in public spaces. Respondents also widely viewed newer nicotine products as harmful, with 96.3% describing e-cigarettes as harmful, compared with 92.9% for disposable vapes, and 91.5% for heated tobacco products. Yeşilay President Mehmet Dinç said the organization supports the Health Ministry’s proposed tobacco-control measures, emphasizing regulation rather than a ban and calling for legislation to advance through Parliament.

  • Half of Cig Packs Collected in Belgium Were Foreign or Counterfeit

    Half of Cig Packs Collected in Belgium Were Foreign or Counterfeit

    More than half of cigarette packs collected in Belgium in the second quarter of 2026 contained cigarettes that were either intended for foreign markets or counterfeit, according to figures from Cimabel. The share reached 50.6%, up from 44.4% at the end of 2025 and 33.1% a year earlier. Foreign-market cigarettes accounted for 46% of the total, while counterfeit cigarettes represented 4.6%. The survey covered 2,800 empty packs, representing 59,320 cigarettes, collected across 18 cities by WSPM Group.

    The share of foreign and counterfeit cigarettes increased in 14 of the 18 cities compared with the end of 2025 and exceeded 50% in eight cities. Leuven recorded the highest share at 61.7%, followed by Genk at 57.3% and Charleroi at 54.8%. Bulgaria was the largest identified country of origin, accounting for 30% of the cigarettes, compared with 15.7% a year earlier, followed by Luxembourg at 5.3% and Turkey at 2.1%. Cimabel estimated the market represents a theoretical €2.6 billion in Belgian tax revenue, while noting that the survey could not determine whether foreign cigarettes entered Belgium legally within travelers’ allowances or through illicit trade.