Vapers Digest 19th August
Wednesday’s News at a glance:
‘Not if, but when’ Report ~ Age of Sale Law Changes ~ UK PM Attacks Vape Shops ~ Retailers Urged To Submit Opinions ~ The Tobacco Control Antis Have a Problem ~ Doctor’s orders: Offer vapes to smokers as quitting tool ~ Brazil’s Vaping Coverage Has Become a Misinformation Assembly Line ~ Summer 2026 Road Trip: Day 4 ~ The Global State of Tobacco Harm Reduction 2026: A Situation Report ~ EU tobacco consultation exposes growing divide over nicotine harm reduction ~ Media Watch: The Telegraph’s “Five Ways Vaping is Wrecking Your Health” is Crackers ~ Nearly 40,000 answer ‘impossible’ EU tobacco survey ~ FDA’s Pilot Program Clears Path for Nicotine Pouches, Giving Smokers a Vital Lifeline ~ Can nicotine pouches drive Big Tobacco’s future beyond cigarettes? ~Trump Picks White House Health Policy Aide Heidi Overton to Lead FDA, Pending Senate Confirmation ~ Britain’s Latest Public Health Threat Is Cheesecake, According to the Government ~ Europe’s irregular vape market worth €6.6bn and could hit €10.8bn by 2030, study finds ~ Youth vaping study retracted after analysis errors affected results ~ Vape industry backs high street crackdown but warns specialist shops must be protected ~ Australia’s legal nicotine market collapses as illicit products reach 80 per cent of consumption
Four From Dave Cross, Planet Of The Vapes
‘Not if, but when’ Report
The Global State of Tobacco Harm Reduction (GSTHR), a Knowledge•Action•Change project funded by Global Action to End Smoking, has launched The Global State of Tobacco Harm Reduction 2026: A Situation Report. The report is the fifth in a unique series documenting tobacco harm reduction’s development, history and possible futures.
Age of Sale Law Changes
From 29 October 2026, the age of sale for all vaping and nicotine products will be age 18 and over. It will be an offence to sell these products to a person under the age of 18 (that is, people aged 17 years and under). It will also be an offence for anyone aged 18 or over to buy, or attempt to buy, vaping or nicotine products on behalf of a person under the age of 18.
UK PM Attacks Vape Shops
High streets that have been hollowed out by the unchecked spread of vape stores, betting shops, and rogue businesses “that do little to serve local communities” are set to face a crackdown under new powers announced by the Prime Minister, repeating his fallacious attack on those providing harm reduction products.
Retailers Urged To Submit Opinions
Elfbar and Lost Mary are urging retailers to have their say in the government’s consultation on vape rule changes before the October deadline. Government analysis is projecting that the restrictions on the display of vapes alone will knock £318 million off retailer profits.
EU tobacco consultation exposes growing divide over nicotine harm reduction
Carl Deconinck, Brussels Signal
The Commission launched the public consultation on May 22, following a separate call for evidence earlier that month. The consultation closed on August 14 and is intended to inform a revision of the EU’s tobacco-control framework, which the Commission plans to propose before the end of 2026.
According to the Commission’s own evaluation of the existing framework, the EU tobacco rules had contributed to a significant decline in smoking and tobacco-related deaths. At the same time, it identified the rapid emergence of novel tobacco and nicotine products, particularly their growing use among young people, as a major challenge.
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