In the United States, the effect " Juul On young people could have a catastrophic consequence for the vaping industry. The regulator threatens manufacturers to ban flavored e-liquids for e-cigarettes if they fail to curb consumption among adolescents, described as an "epidemic".
A CATASTROPHIC “ULTIMATUM” FOR MANUFACTURERS
For the manufacturers of electronic cigarettes, this is an ultimatum. The American regulator - the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) - indicated Wednesday to give them 60 days to present a plan to reduce the consumption of their products by adolescents. " The number of adolescents who, in our opinion, consume these products ... has reached epidemic proportions , Writes Scott Gottlieb, head of the FDA in a statement.
If the FDA is not convinced by the industry's proposals, scented electronic cigarettes could simply be banned.
In his eyes, the marketing of cartridges with fruity or sweet scents makes these products particularly attractive to young consumers who are not, however, allowed to buy electronic cigarettes. " The availability of electronic cigarettes cannot come at the cost of the addiction of new generations to nicotine, it will not happen » He continues.
JUUL CARD IN SCHOOLS AND IS A PROBLEM FOR THE WHOLE INDUSTRY!
While tobacco sales have continued to decline in the United States, those of electronic cigarettes have grown by an average of 25% per year for four years. And fashion
hasn't spared middle and high school classes, where vaping has supplanted cigarettes, in part due to the strategy of manufacturers like Juul to market them as high-tech products.
Until now, the FDA has granted manufacturers a grace period, leaving them free to sell their products while they prove their tobacco control virtues. His priority was to reduce the nicotine in traditional cigarettes and encourage smokers to switch to products supposed to be less harmful, such as e-cigarettes.
Admitting that she did not anticipate the success of vaping with young people and adolescents, she has since declared war on manufacturers and distributors, and fined 131 of them after establishing that they were selling their products to minors. The agency says it is now ready to prosecute manufacturers and distributors in civil or criminal proceedings.
Juul, the main manufacturer, which has already been the subject of an FDA investigation since April, says it is primarily targeting adults seeking to quit smoking. The company claims to have changed its marketing practices by ceasing to stage young people under the age of 25. Valued at $ 15 billion during its last fundraiser, it also set up a filter to block minors from its website.
But the FDA believes that manufacturers' efforts are too modest. They managed the problem « as a public relations topic Scott Gottlieb said. According to a survey by the US administration, 2,1 million middle school and high school students admit to having consumed an e-cigarette in the past 30 days.
Source : Lesechos.fr/
