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Tag: Taiwan

  • Taiwan Checks ID Checkers 

    Taiwan Checks ID Checkers 

    An undercover survey in Taiwan showed that 26.9% of tobacco retailers did not check ID cards for buyers in school uniforms, the Health Promotion Administration (HPA) said. From May to November last year, the Consumers’ Foundation conducted its annual inspection by sending 20-year-old volunteers in high-school uniforms to buy cigarettes at 854 retailers across the nation.

    Officials said that 38.6% of betel nut vendors, 26.9% of general stores, 23.4% of franchised supermarkets and hypermarkets, and 21.5% of franchised convenience stores failed to check buyer ID. From 2023, noncompliance decreased 4.6% for betel nut vendors, 5.7% for general stores, and 1.4% for franchised convenience stores, but increased 4.3% for supermarket and hypermarket franchises, they said.

    The nation’s retailers were insufficiently vigilant in ensuring that clerks know and follow the law, foundation secretary-general Chen Ya-ping said. Although the noncompliance figures were down, 15% of the clerks interviewed reported not knowing that the smoking age had been raised to 20 years. High turnover in venues and inadequate employee training appeared to be the main cause of the failure to check IDs, she added.

    Last year, retailers were fined a combined NT$1.15 million ($34,846) for 134 tobacco buyer ID citations, HPA Deputy Director-General Chia Shu-li said.

  • Taiwan Close to Deciding on Heated Tobacco Products 

    Taiwan Close to Deciding on Heated Tobacco Products 

    Two years in the making, Taiwan’s Health Promotion Agency (HPA) Director-General Wu Chao-chun said on Friday, that decisions to approve heated tobacco products could begin coming out as soon as next month.

    Eleven tobacco manufacturers submitted applications to the HPA and six completed the documentation assessment phase of the approval evaluation process. Those companies moved into the product testing phase of the evaluation, which takes six months.

    In March 2023, the Tobacco Hazards Prevention Act was amended to allow a path to legalization on a case-by-case basis. Manufacturers that gain approval would be authorized to commercialize their products with the appropriate labeling and health warnings. Those that do not are forced to resubmit and begin the process again or move to litigation.

    Wu said announcements of the results would be staggered as the documentation came in at different times and often had to be redone.

  • Taiwan Bill to Strengthen E-Cig Regs

    Taiwan Bill to Strengthen E-Cig Regs

    Today, Taiwan’s  Health Promotion Administration (HPA) proposed an amendment to the Tobacco Hazards Prevention Act (THP) to strengthen regulations against e-cigarettes and heated tobacco products. The proposal allows the direct confiscation and destruction of these products and enhances online supervision, Tobacco Control Division head Lo Su-ying said.

    The THP was amended in 2023 to prohibit the manufacture, import, sale, display, advertisement, and use of e-cigarettes and unapproved heated tobacco products. Since then, more than 600,000 fines totaling $11.2 million have been issued, however, currently, the contraband items cannot be confiscated but are instead returned to the owner. The proposed amendment would fill in this loophole, facilitating the accelerated confiscation and destruction of e-cigarettes and heated tobacco products, Lo said.

    The new proposal would also stipulate that internet service providers must remove illegal tobacco advertisements and restrict access to related content. 

  • Taiwan Worried About ‘Zombie Vapes’

    Taiwan Worried About ‘Zombie Vapes’

    Image: Pavelkant

    Taiwan authorities are concerned about the growing popularity of “zombie vapes,” e-cigarettes containing etomidate, reports The Taipei Times.

    According to health experts, etomidate is a type of central nervous system depressant that can induce anesthesia. Abusing etomidate could lead to irritability, disorganized behavior, tremors, twitching or even death, explained Lin Yi-ching, a pediatrician at Kaohsiung Medical University Chung-Ho Memorial Hospital.

    From July to October, authorities seized 14,128 zombie vape cartridges, along with e-liquid and powders that could be made into more than 1.83 million cartridges worth about NTD4.6 billion ($143.33 million).

    While etomidate is listed as a Category 3 narcotic, a review committee will consider whether to upgrade the drug to Category 2, Ministry of Justice Department of Prosecutorial Affairs Director-General Kuo Yung-fa said.

    Overall e-cigarette use among junior high school students in Taiwan increased from 1.9 percent in 2017 to 3.9 percent in 2021, a HPA survey reported by Taiwan News showed. Among senior high school students, the rate rose from 3.4 percent to 8.8 percent during the same period.

    Taiwan outlawed vapes in 2023, with violators risking fines of up to NTD10,000.

  • Taiwan Mulls Ban on Flavor Chemicals

    Taiwan Mulls Ban on Flavor Chemicals

    Photo: Hertz Flavors

    The Ministry of Health and Welfare wants to ban 27 types of chemicals from being used in tobacco products, vapes and heat-not-burn devices, reports The Taipei Times.

    The list includes vanillin, maltol and heliotropin among other chemical compounds commonly used as additives in flavored tobacco products. Without these substances, manufacturers would be unable to produce popular flavors such as caramel, butter, almond, rose, coconut, raspberry, vanilla and cheese,

    The new proposal would enable the ministry to remove more than half of flavored tobacco products from the market, according  to Lo Su-ying, who heads the Health Promotion Agency’s Tobacco Control Division.

    Under the draft rule, manufacturers and importers of products containing the banned substances would risk fines of between NTD1 million ($30,846) and NTD5 million, while sellers would incur penalties of between NTD10,000 and NTD50,000.

     The government will subject the proposal to a 60-day public consultation.

  • Taiwan: No ENDS Approved Yet

    Taiwan: No ENDS Approved Yet

    Image: tang90246

    Taiwan’s Health Promotion Administration (HPA) has reminded suppliers and consumers that it has not approved any e-cigarettes or heated-tobacco products (HTPs), reports Taipei Times.

    The warning came after security footage showed a lawmaker using an HTP in the legislature’s corridors.

    Novel tobacco and nicotine products require government approval in Taiwan. To date, the HPA has received applications for authorization for HTPs from 12 companies. It has rejected the applications of eight while two of the remaining four have been asked to furnish additional information.

    The HPA has a panel of toxicology, public health and addiction experts to assess requests for authorized use of HTPs. The panel has so far convened 30 meetings.

    Taiwanese law punishes the manufacture, import, sale, supply, display or advertisement of unauthorized novel tobacco products by a maximum penalty of TWD5 million ($152,263) while users may be fined TWD10,000.

  • Taiwan Group Protests THP Regulations

    Taiwan Group Protests THP Regulations

    Image: butenkow

    The Clean Air Alliance has called on the Taiwanese public to join a protest in front of the Presidential Office Building in Taipei March 22, 2024, against heated tobacco regulations that  benefit traditional cigarette manufacturers, reports The Taipei Times.

    The group states that though its been a year since the Tobacco Hazards Prevention Act was amended, heated-tobacco products cannot be sold legally but 14 new types of traditional paper-wrapped cigarettes have been approved for sale.

    The alliance noted that the review standards for heated-tobacco products and traditional cigarettes are disparate and unfair toward heated-tobacco products, which benefits cigarette manufacturers.

    Police have put traffic restrictions in place in the area due to the protest.

    The protest is set to begin at 9 a.m. and end by noon.

  • Taiwan to Increase Size of Health Warnings

    Taiwan to Increase Size of Health Warnings

    Image: Andrii

    In Taiwan, graphic health warnings will soon have to cover at least 50 percent of cigarette packages, an increase from the current requirement of 35 percent, according to the Health Promotion Administration (HPA), reports Focus Taiwan.

    The new rules take effect Friday, March 22, 2024, following the expiration of a one-year transition period.

    Manufacturers caught violating the rules will face fines up to NTD5 million ($156,629), and those caught selling improperly labeled products will face fines up to NTD50,000.

    According to HPA Director General Wu Chao-chun, 122 countries and territories require graphic health warnings covering at least half of packaging, exceeding the World Health Organization recommendation of at least 30 percent.

    The HPA has sent officials around Taiwan to promote the upcoming policy, making sure that those affected are aware of the changes, according to Lo Su-ying, head of the HPA’s Tobacco Control Division.

  • Taiwan Warnings to Cover Half of Pack

    Taiwan Warnings to Cover Half of Pack

    Photo: sharafmaksumov

    Beginning March 22, 2024, health warnings on cigarette packages in Taiwan must cover at least 50 percent of the packaging, up from 35 percent, according to the Taipei Times.

    The Health Promotion Administration cited the World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control Article 11, saying the article requires all contracting partier to ensure tobacco product packaging carries health warnings describing the harmful effects of tobacco use.

    According to a 2024 Canadian Cancer Society report, 127 countries and territories require warnings to cover 50 percent or more of the packaging.

    Those caught not following the health warning rule face fines of TWD10,000 ($319.23) to TWD50,000.

  • Taiwan Worried About Popularity of Flavors

    Taiwan Worried About Popularity of Flavors

    Photo: zoommer

    Health authorities in Taiwan are worried about the growing popularity of flavored tobacco products, especially among young students and women, reports Taiwan News.

    In a 2022 survey, 18.2 percent of those aged 18 and older who smoke reported using flavored tobacco products, up from the 15.6 percent recorded in 2020. Female respondents exhibited a higher usage rate, with 43.8 percent showing an interest in these products, compared to 14.3 percent reported among males, according to the Health Promotion Administration (HPA).

    Data from 2021 revealed that 40 percent of adolescent smokers in Taiwan were using flavored tobacco products. Among, junior high and senior high school female students the usage rates were 57.2 percent and 60.7 percent, respectively, surpassing their male counterparts.

     The HPA emphasizes that flavored tobacco products are as harmful to health as nonflavored varieties, adding that young smokers are at an increased risk of developing addictions to other substances.

    Lawmakers have initiated a public consultation on plans to ban specific fragrances, such as chocolate and mint.