Category: Shop talk

  • FDA Warns 14 Sellers of Illegal Flavored Vapes

    FDA Warns 14 Sellers of Illegal Flavored Vapes

    The U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced on May 1 that it had sent warning letters to 14 online retailers. The reason for the warning letters was that these retailers were selling unauthorized e-cigarette products.

    The warning letters specifically mentioned the sale of disposable e-cigarette products marketed under various brand names such as Elf Bar/EB Design, Esco Bars, Funky Republic, Hyde, Kang, Cali Bars, and Lost Mary, according to press release.

    The retailers receiving these warning letters sold or distributed e-cigarette products in the United States that lack authorization from FDA, in violation of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act.

    Warning letter recipients are given 15 working days to respond with the steps they will take to address the violation(s) cited in the warning letter and to prevent future violations. Failure to promptly address the violations can result in additional FDA actions such as an injunction, seizure, and/or civil money penalties.

    The agency announced on April 30 that the U.S. Marshals Service seized more than 45,000 unauthorized e-cigarette products valued at more than $700,000 in California.

    The seized products were mostly flavored, disposable e-cigarette products, including brands such as Puff Bar/Puff, Elf Bar/EB Design, Esco Bar, Kuz, Smok and Pixi.

  • Civil Money Penalties for 22 Elfbar Sellers

    Civil Money Penalties for 22 Elfbar Sellers

    Credit: Jeff McCollough

    The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today announced the issuance of complaints for civil money penalties (CMPs) against 20 brick-and-mortar retailers and two online retailers for selling unauthorized e-cigarettes, including Elf Bar, a popular youth-appealing brand.

    The regulatory agency previously issued warning letters to these retailers for selling unauthorized tobacco products. However, according to an FDA release, follow-up inspections revealed that the retailers had failed to correct the violations.

    Accordingly, the agency is now seeking a CMP of approximately $20,000 from each retailer.

    The approximately $20,000 CMP sought from each retailer is consistent with similar CMPs sought against retailers for the sale of unauthorized Elf Bar products over the last few months, including in Sept., Nov., Dec. and Feb.

    The retailers can pay the penalty, enter into a settlement agreement, request an extension to respond, or request a hearing. Retailers that do not take action within 30 days after receiving a complaint risk a default order imposing the full penalty amount.

  • Nicotine Pouch Sales Soar While Vapes Slow

    Nicotine Pouch Sales Soar While Vapes Slow

    Sales of cigarettes and e-cigarettes have declined in the last two weeks, while sales of oral nicotine pouches have seen significant growth, according to analysts at TD Cowen.

    They write in a research note that cigarette volumes across multiple channels were down 10 percent in the two weeks ending Jan. 13, a steeper decline than the trailing four weeks and 12 weeks.

    Bonnie Herzog, managing director at Goldman Sachs, remains cautious on the U.S. tobacco/nicotine industry in the near term as the tobacco consumer remains under substantial financial pressure.

    She stated in an emailed outlook that many consumers are being more selective in their purchases and turning to more affordable alternatives, such as 4th tier/deep discount cigarettes, modern oral tobacco and, increasingly, illicit or gray market disposable vapor products.

    “Shifts in category and consumer spending dynamics have been further exacerbated by flavor ban momentum at the state and federal level (with a final rule expected in March) and uncertainty with regard to the future of the e-cig category and category innovation (with FDA PMTA reviews still pending on big market brands such as JUUL and VUSE Alto, as well as menthol variants more broadly),” Herzog wrote.

    E-cigarette sales fell 11.3 percent in the two-week period and 10.7 percent in the four-week period, according to Barron’s.

    Sales of smokeless tobacco, including nicotine pouches, meanwhile grew 12.1 percent in the two-week period and 13 percent in the four-week period.

    The smokeless category continues to show strong dollar sales growth driven by the Zyn brand, the analysts say.

  • Chinese Helping Boost Russia’s Vape Market

    Chinese Helping Boost Russia’s Vape Market

    The withdrawal of European and American tobacco manufacturers and the gradual reduction of foreign e-cigarette brands doing business in Russia due to its war with Ukraine has allowed for the growth of Chinese e-cigarettes in Russia.

    As Russia’s tobacco industry relies heavily on the support and investment of foreign brands, the withdrawal of international tobacco companies will cause a large shortage in the Russian tobacco market, which will lead to a sharp increase in the price of tobacco products sold in Russia, according to iGeekPhone.

    By the end of 2021, there were more than 5,000 stores selling e-cigarettes in Russia, including more than 1,100 in the Moscow region.

    According to real estate platform DNA REALTY, the number of tobacco shops in Russia grew by at least 20 percent in 2022, with the bulk of their profits coming from e-cigarette sales.

    BAT announced it will withdraw from the Russian and Belarusian tobacco markets in 2023. Philip Morris International (PMI) and its subsidiary Fimo International, are also considering retaining their business in Russia because Russia is the seventh-largest tobacco market for PMI.

    Japan Tobacco suspended investments in Russia and Imperial Brands transferred its Russian operations to a successor in Russia.

    “E-cigarettes have great potential as alternatives to the tobacco market in Russia, where e-cigarette consumers account for 6.8 percent of the total number of smokers,” the article states. “After the United States and Europe, Russia is the world’s third-largest importer of electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS).

    “China accounts for 90 percent of the global market. In 2021, China’s exports to Russia reached 82.5 billion rubles. This year it could increase by 35 percent to 111 billion rubles.”