VAPING
GLOBAL PERSPECTIVE LEGISLATIVE DEVELOPMENTS
VAPING GROWTH FAR FROM PLAIN SAILING DESPITE PUBLIC HEALTH ENGLAND’S REPEATED COMMITMENT TO ITS VIEW THAT VAPING IS 95% SAFER THAN SMOKING, THE GROWTH OF THE VAPING CATEGORY IS BEING SLOWED UP BY LEGISLATIVE
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CHALLENGES AROUND THE GLOBE.
aping has long been touted as the saviour of the tobacco category, yet its growth has stalled recently as governments around the globe struggle with what can be a complex set of products. Despite the fact that Public Health England has consistently said vaping is 95% safer than smoking and despite the fact that the Menthol Ban should have triggered a spike in vaping sales, the category still seems mired in misinformation and, at times, malevolent scaremongering. The smooth route to growth has been anything but and, as the following case studies show, plenty of challenges still lie ahead as the vaping industry struggles to have its products understood.
CASE STUDY 1: THE NETHERLANDS
FLAVOURS BAN PROPOSAL
The Dutch Government has announced plans to ban flavoured electronic cigarettes next year in a bid, it says, to make vaping less attractive to young people. The government has claimed that the sweet tastes of flavours such as strawberry and mojito has made vaping more popular amongst young non-smokers. Deputy Health Minister Paul Blokhuis said: “The smoke-free generation we see coming also needs to be free of electronic cigarettes.” Responding to the plans, UK Vaping Industry Association (UKVIA) Director John Dunne said: “It is completely wrong to conflate smoking tobacco with using vaping devices which often contain no tobacco or nicotine. There is little evidence that suggests that vaping encourages young people to start smoking. The recent Public Health England (PHE) Vaping in England Report found that current vaping is mainly concentrated in young people who have experience of smoking. Less than 1% of 11 to 18-year-olds who have never smoked are current vapers.” Dunne also points out that, rather than pushing non-smokers towards smoking cigarettes, vaping products can be extremely effective at helping smokers quit. The same PHE report found that when vaping products were used in an attempt to quit, either alone or with licensed medication, success rates were comparable to, if not higher than, licensed medication alone. “We would call on the Dutch government to rethink this decision which could have the significant unintended consequence of deterring those looking to stop smoking,” Dunne concluded.
WEDNESDAY 8TH JULY 2020 / ISSUE 12 / SLRMAG.CO.UK / 21
