Category: News This Week

Warnings Over Liquids in Medicine Bottles

Image: FDA
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has warned six online retailers for selling unauthorized e-liquid products from the Bad Drip brand that imitate prescription drug bottles. The retailers were also warned for selling unauthorized flavored, disposable e-cigarettes, including those under the brand names Funky Republic and HQD.
“It boggles the mind that someone thought it was a good idea to package a tobacco product to look like a prescription drug bottle,” said FDA Center for Tobacco Products Director Brian King in a statement. “There’s no place for this gratuitous and blatantly dangerous packaging, and FDA is committed to taking action against the illegal sale of these products.”
In addition to selling e-liquids that imitate prescription drug bottles, each of these retailers was warned for selling unauthorized disposable e-cigarettes that appeal to youth—including flavors such as apple watermelon and mint.
According to the 2023 National Youth Tobacco Survey, among U.S. middle and high school students who used e-cigarettes, 89.4 percent reported using flavored products and 60.7 percent reported using disposable products.
June 14, 2024
‘Carcinogens Among Permitted Additives’

Photo: New Africa
Canada’s proposed list of permitted vapor product additives includes dangerous ingredients, according to Imperial Tobacco Canada (ITCAN).
“To put it bluntly, the list contains at least one known substance that could cause cancer,” said ITCAN Vice President, Corporate and Regulatory Affairs Eric Gagnon in a statement.
According to ITCAN, several ingredients on the flavor ban proposal list of permitted ingredients are substances that its parent company, British American Tobacco, categorically avoids in its vaping products.
The company says BAT’s toxicological risk assessment prevents the use of substances classified as having carcinogenic, mutagenic or reprotoxic (CMR) properties, as per the Globally Harmonized System for classification and labelling of substances.
“It is shocking that the government would include a proven and classified CMR substance in its lists of permitted additives for vaping products,” ITCAN wrote on its website. “The effect of a regulation that formally permits such ingredients is simply an encouragement to manufacturers—particularly smaller producers with limited access to scientific literature—to use an inherently unsafe substance in a product that is designed to be inhaled into the lungs.”
Gagnon cited isophorone as an example. “This substance is classified by the European Union as cancer-causing and acutely toxic. It is also banned by Canadian food and drug regulations from use in human cosmetics,” he said.
“We encourage Health Canada to reconsider the list and consult with experts to determine the best way forward.”
June 14, 2024
Health Canada Recalls Zyn Pouches

Image: Swedish Match/ HstrongART
Health Canada recalled eight types of Zyn nicotine pouches on June 12, saying they were sold without market authorization, reports Global News.
They affected variants are flavored apple mint, bellini, black cherry, citrus, cool mint, espresso, original and spearmint. The pouches had 1.5 or three milligrams of nicotine in them.
Philip Morris International, which manufactures Zyn products, said it does not sell in Canada and applauds Health Canada for taking action.
“The products at issue are being sold by unauthorized parties,” a spokesperson for PMI’s Rothmans Benson & Hedges affiliate was quoted as saying by the Global News.
“RBH works with law enforcement to stop illicit trade and we are supportive of government efforts on this front.”
Health Canada has approved only one nicotine pouch for sale—Imperial Tobacco Canada’s Zonnic brand.
The introduction of nicotine pouches in Canada has run into opposition from health activists.
Experts say these products are appealing to children, who face the risk of becoming addicted to nicotine.
In March, Health Minister Mark Holland said that he was “seeking authority” to restrict such products “so they are solely for the purposes of cessation.”

June 14, 2024
Labour Committed to Generational Ban

Photo: sezerozger
Britain’s opposition Labour Party, which is favored to win the July 4 national elections, has reiterated its commitment to the generational tobacco ban proposed by Tory Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, reports Reuters.
The plan would make it illegal to sell tobacco products to anyone born on or after Jan. 1, 2009, after they turn 18. It would also provide powers to address vaping among young people.
The generational tobacco ban passed its first parliamentary hurdle in April but was put on hold after Sunak called a national election.
Labour leader Keir Starmer, whose party is far ahead in opinion polls ahead of the vote, published its planned policies on June 13, vowing to provide political and economic stability, and to improve health outcomes.
“We must take preventative public health measures to tackle the biggest killers and support people to live longer, healthier lives. That starts with smoking,” the manifesto document said.
“Labour will ensure the next generation can never legally buy cigarettes … Labour will ban vapes from being branded and advertised to appeal to children to stop the next generation from becoming hooked on nicotine.”
June 14, 2024
Cigarette Sales Down in Denmark

Photo: Nikolay N. Antonov
Danish smokers bought 3.85 billion cigarettes in 2023, down 5.1 percent from 2022, according to the country’s statistics agency. This corresponds to 804 cigarettes per adult Dane, compared with 854 in the previous year.
Cigarette sales in Denmark started falling in 2018 and have declined by 32 percent since that year.
The sale of smoking tobacco, which includes loose tobacco for pipes and roll-your-own cigarettes, dropped from 378 tons in 2022 to 320 tons in 2023.
Sales of cigars and cigarillos remained unchanged at 22 million pieces in 2023
June 14, 2024
Switzerland Poised to Ban Disposables

Photo: twinsterphoto
Swiss lawmakers voted on June 12 to ban sales of disposable vapes, reports the Swiss Broadcasting Corp.
The motion calls on the government to amend the Federal Act on Tobacco Products and Electronic Cigarettes so that single-use vapes may no longer be offered for sale in Switzerland.
“’Puff bars’ are attractive to young people due to their many flavors and bright colors and are therefore becoming increasingly popular, said Green Party parliamentarian Christophe Clivaz, using the brand name of a popular vape brand to refer to all cigarettes.
Switzerland imported 10 million units in 2022, he added.
Clivaz lamented the environmental impact of improperly disposed vapes and the addictive nature of nicotine products. Clean-up efforts cost millions and the health effects of disposable cigarettes have been insufficiently researched, he noted.
Interior Minister Elisabeth Baume-Schneider voted against the House of Representatives’ motion, which the Federal Council, Switzerland’s executive body, considers premature.
The proposal will now move the Senate.
June 13, 2024
China Tobacco and BAT Meet in Beijing

Photo: Stephen Finn
Zhang Jianmin, director of China’s State Tobacco Monopoly Administration and general manager of China National Tobacco Corporation, met with a high-level BAT delegation in Beijing, according to Weixin
The companies reportedly held “friendly talks.”
Others in attendance included Wang Gongcheng, member of the Party Leadership Group of the National Bureau and deputy director, heads of the State Administration Office (foreign affairs department), the development planning department, China Tobacco Sales Corp. and China Tobacco International.
June 13, 2024
Free Tracking for Small Cigar Shipments

Photo: rh2010
Ecomo Impex is making its track-and-track system available, free of charge, to companies shipping up to 100 boxes of cigar products per year.
In May 2024, the European Union extended the scope of its Tobacco Product Directive to include tobacco products like cigars, cigarillos, pipe tobacco and smokeless tobacco products. Among other things, this implies that every producer, importer and retailer must comply with the labelling and tracking requirements of tobacco products sold within the EU.
“As track and trace becomes obligatory across the EU on May 20, 2024, small operators encounter technical hurdles and increased operational costs and we understand the challenge this means”, said Ecomo Impex Founder and Managing Director Hung Ma.
“We already have this system set up and would like to open it to all smaller-scale businesses, allowing them to enter the EU market with confidence and without fear of regulatory issues. Our commitment supports smaller-scale businesses, ensuring a wider variety of products available in the European market. If the quantity shipped exceeds over 100 boxes per year, we will charge our regular track-and-trace service fees,” added Hung Ma.
Ecomo Impex offers centralized coverage across the EU as well as overall assistance in import processes, product labelling, sales, distribution via EMCS, and brand building making it possible to tailor to the specific needs of any producer, brand owner or operator.
For details and registration visit www.trackandtraceforfree.com.
June 13, 2024
Huella Introduces TobacTrack
Huella has introduced TobacTrack, a compliance platform leveraging RFID and block chain technology to streamline regulatory oversight for the U.S. Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) and ensure adherence to the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act.
The TobacTrack platform assigns a Unique ID to each tobacco product, providing details such as the product’s TTB tobacco class, excise tax classification, FDA compliance status, and manufacturing code. This enables precise tracking and verification at every supply chain stage.
TobacTrack features a tailored user interface for industry stakeholders, such as factories, importers/brokers, wholesalers/distributors and regulatory agencies.
In addition to aiding TTB and FDA compliance, the TobacTrack platform can help tobacco producers meet the Prevent All Cigarette Trafficking (PACT) Act and related state tobacco product reporting requirements.
By automating and simplifying the reporting processes, the system enables companies to efficiently comply with federal and state-level regulations concerning the tracking and reporting of tobacco sales. This capability also empowers state authorities to conduct audits and ensure adherence to the PACT Act with greater ease and accuracy.
The TobacTrack RFID technology enhances operational efficiency by minimizing manual errors and reducing administrative costs. The platform provides instant access to a tobacco product’s tax and compliance status, thereby optimizing the effectiveness of regulatory efforts by state and federal agencies, including the TTB, FDA, and state tobacco tax and compliance regulators.
This enhanced efficiency substantially reduces the need for extensive field and factory audits.
For more information about TobacTrack, please visit www.tobactrack.com.
June 13, 2024
U.S. Regulators Grilled Over Illegal Vapes

Photo: Katherine Welles
U.S. Senators criticized top health and law enforcement officials for their failure to tame the rapidly growing illicit e-cigarette market, reports the Associated Press.
During a hearing on June 12, lawmakers on the Senate Judiciary Committee questioned officials from the Food and Drug Administration and Department of Justice (DOJ) about attempts to manage the vaping market, which has grown to include thousands of flavored, unauthorized e-cigarettes imported from China.
“I simply do not understand how FDA and DOJ have permitted thousands of products to remain on store shelves when their manufacturers have not received authorization or, in some cases, even filed an application,” said the committee’s chairman, Dick Durbin.
Brian King, director of the FDA’s Center for Tobacco Products, said the agency has been slowed by a backlog of applications submitted by vape companies seeking approval to sell their products in the U.S. The FDA received millions of premarket tobacco product applications, each of which must be scientifically reviewed.
An industry lobbyist told the committee that the FDA has created an untenable marketplace by rejecting more than 99 percent of applications submitted by companies.

I simply do not understand how FDA and DOJ have permitted thousands of products to remain on store shelves when their manufacturers have not received authorization, or, in some cases, even filed an application.
Dick Durbin, chairman, Senate Judiciary Committee
Ahead of the congressional hearing, several government agencies, including the FDA and the DOJ, established a task force to better coordinate the fight against illegal e-cigarettes. Republican Senator Thom Tillis called the timing of the announcement “a political stunt” and criticized the absence of other federal agencies from the initiative, including Customs and Border Protection (CBP).
“If the timing of the task force formation wasn’t evidence of how unserious the FDA is about tackling the flood of illicit e-cigarettes, FDA’s exclusion of CBP from the task force makes it crystal clear,” said Tillis, who represents North Carolina, a major tobacco-producing state. He urged officials to concentrate enforcement on Chinese brands rather than large domestic manufacturers like Reynolds American, which is based in North Carolina.
The FDA can conduct investigations and recommend cases, but only the Justice Department can bring lawsuits. The FDA has sent hundreds of warning letters to vape shops and e-cigarette manufacturers in recent years. But the letters have done little to dissuade companies from flouting FDA rules and introducing new vapes.
Disposable vapes account for an estimated 30 percent to 40 percent of the roughly $7 billion-dollar U.S. vaping market. The two bestselling disposables—Breeze and Elf Bar—generated more than $500 million in sales last year, according to Nielsen retail sales data analyzed by Goldman Sachs.
Both brands have been sanctioned by FDA regulators but remain widely available, in some cases with new names, logos and flavors.
King noted that products like Elf Bar cannot legally be sold in China because the government there has banned nontobacco-flavored e-cigarettes. Outraged that brands banned in China are sold in the U.S., Texas Senator John Cornyn vowed to introduce legislation to rectify that situation.
Jefferies analyst Owen Bennett said the congressional testimony could spur the FDA to approve more products from BAT and Juul. “This hearing is another example of increasing political pressure for the FDA to act” against unauthorized products, he said in a research note quoted by Bloomberg.
June 13, 2024