Vaping Flavour and Advertising Bans – Why They Leave a Bitter Taste

Vaping

Vaping has drawn controversy ever since its conception in the mid-noughties. The wide range of flavours and devices from wholesale vaping supplies UK companies that draw ex-smokers away from tobacco all require nicotine as their secret weapon. Of course, due to its addictive properties nicotine deserves intense scrutiny. But at what point do regulations and bans that are designed to keep customers safe, cross the line into damaging the smoking cessation industry?

This blog will explore two of the main bans on vaping that have entered the debate around US e-cigs in recent years, and argues that whilst they may have good intentions, it could actually negatively impact health and the e-liquid manufacturing industry as a whole. The UK industry has yet to take a leaf out of the US flavour ban book but is on par when it comes to advertising. Only time will tell how this might change over the next few years, but

Flavour Bans

Flavour bans in other countries were introduced due to a rise in lung injuries caused by vaping and because of the concern that young people were drawn to fruity and sweet-adjacent flavours, young people who had not smoked before they took up vaping. Many criticised the vape industry for what they perceived as deliberate marketing ploys to draw in younger vapers. Whilst this has not been brought into law yet in the UK, the debate still rages.

At the moment in the UK, flavour bans are mainly focused on dangerous chemicals such as diacetyl, which were once used in vape liquids but have now been proven to cause lung damage. All flavours sold in the UK are either synthetic or organic, and all legal flavours are MHRA approved.

The Problems With Flavour Bans

It is incredibly important to stop young and underage people from becoming addicted to nicotine, but flavour bans in other countries has led to many people searching further afield to order vape liquids and increases the chances that they buy uncertified, black-market devices – which were in fact the cause of the EVALI (electronic vape lung injury) outbreaks in the first place. The most common cause of EVALI was the purchase of black market vape devices and e-liquids, and there’s been a correlation found between vape use for marijuana.

Laws surrounding flavour bans outside of the UK also ignore the tens of millions of ex-smokers who have made a positive change in their lives through smoking cessation. In short, regulation should be focused on stopping young people from vaping instead of banning flavours that legal aged vapers already use. Whilst flavour bans have not yet been introduced in the UK, the precedent set may very well mean that British TPD Laws begin to focus on flavours in the future.

Advertising Bans

The UK may not have bans on flavours, but the country has extensive restrictions on vaping advertisements. Flavour brands and e-liquid wholesale UK companies cannot advertise in many online spaces, as well as in magazines and periodicals, paid for space on YouTube and Google, in apps, games and classified ads. This is why you’ll often find billboards advertising vape brands as it’s one of the only places you are permitted to showcase these products.

The Problem With Advertising Bans

It’s argued by vape companies such as Nicohit Manchester that more space for vape advertising would mean that more people are exposed to and aware of the realities of vaping. Many people still think the smoking cessation tool is as dangerous – if not more so – than smoking. More accessibility to information about vaping would clear up many myths surrounding it and could help control who vapes and how thus making the industry even safer.