Vapers Digest 9th April

Wednesday’s News at a glance:

Countries Challenge EU Strategy ~ Mindset Shift Needed ~ Taxing To Reduce Risk ~ IBVTA Highlights DEFRA Advice ~ A new systematic review by CoEHAR sheds light on the role of ENDS in managing post-cessation weight gain ~ HEALTH CANADA GUIDANCE ON NRT’S: A CALL FOR EVIDENCE-BASED REFORMS ~ When Regulation Backfires – The Global Undermining of Vaping for Harm Reduction ~ How to Advocate for Vaping Rights in Your Country (Without Losing Your Mind) ~ New Initiative Takes Aim at Tobacco Harm Reduction Misinformation ~ The April Fools Day That Wasn’t A Joke ~ “Like Antibiotics”? The Dangerous Nonsense of Australia’s Vaping Analogy ~ Advocates Urge Accountability Amid WHO Corruption Allegations ~ Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids Falsely Claims that Vaping is “Tobacco Use” ~ Safer But Unavailable: Why Are Nicotine Pouches And Vapes Out Of Reach For African Smokers? ~ ‘Many failures’: Whistleblower exposes how fired Biden-era official was soft on China, prioritized DEI ~ U.S Supreme Court sides with FDA on banning sweet flavoured vapes ~ Explainer: why vape prices will more than double with Trump tariffs ~ Duke Finds Artificial Sweeteners in Nicotine Pouches ~ Paper on Pouches In Pakistan Calls for More Paternalistic Public Health Policy ~ Say Goodbye to the NJOY Ace – For Now Anyway ~ OLDCORN: A TALE OF TWO POUCHES: Why cannabis gets the sweet deal while nicotine gets left behind ~ Growing trend or overreach? Poland joins the crackdown in Europe on disposables ~ BULGARIA MULLS VAPING BAN

Four from Dave Cross, Planet of the Vapes

Countries Challenge EU Strategy

Italy, Greece and Romania are challenging the EU’s current approach to legislation by calling for an evidence-based approach, according to the World Vapers’ Alliance. The organisation says that Politico is reporting their stand against the EU’s current tobacco control strategy.

Mindset Shift Needed

The Coalition of Asia Pacific Tobacco Harm Reduction Advocates (CAPHRA) has urged global tobacco control policymakers to abandon outdated prohibitionist approaches and embrace harm reduction strategies grounded in science. The call comes as the World Health Organization gears up for the 11^th Conference of Parties signed up to its tobacco control protocol.

Taxing To Reduce Risk

The latest Global State of Tobacco Harm Reduction (GSTHR) Briefing Paper, “Safer nicotine products taxation and optimal strategies for public health”, calls for a health-focused approach to the taxation of tobacco and safer nicotine products. Written by GSTHR Economist Giorgi Mzhavanadze, it examines the current global situation regarding the taxation of safer nicotine products and how this relates to product accessibility, before offering evidence-based policy recommendations for optimal taxation strategies in support of harm reduction goals and public health.

IBVTA Highlights DEFRA Advice

The Independent British Vape Trade Association (IBVTA) has highlighted to its members the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs’ (Defra) reminder for retailers to deplete their disposable vapes stockholding. New legislation comes into force banning the sale of single-use ecigs on June 1st.

Weight gain remains one of the most feared side effects among those who decide to quit smoking. According to consumer opinions and preliminary industry data, reduced-risk products—such as electronic cigarettes—could represent a viable strategy to help control post-cessation weight gain. But what does the science say? A new systematic review conducted by the CoEHAR research team, part of the In Silico project, and published in the journal Archives of Medical Research, examines the effects of substituting traditional cigarettes with electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) on body weight.

HEALTH CANADA GUIDANCE ON NRT’S: A CALL FOR EVIDENCE-BASED REFORMS

Imperial Tobacco Canada, Cision

Imperial Tobacco Canada (ITCAN) submitted a consultation reply in response to Health Canada’s Draft Guidance on Additions to the List of Nicotine Replacement Therapy Dosage Forms (the “Draft Guidance”) last week. The Draft Guidance outlines criteria for adding new Nicotine Replacement Therapy Products (NRTs) to a list of product formats which may be sold in all retail locations, including places where cigarettes are sold. However, it is flawed, requiring NRTs not on the list to prove they won’t be misused by non-smokers, is a nearly impossible standard. This discourages the development of innovative NRTs needed to assist smokers and could exacerbate the illicit market for products like nicotine pouches.

When Regulation Backfires – The Global Undermining of Vaping for Harm Reduction

Diane Caruana, Vaping Post

Vaping is increasingly under siege by regulatory bodies on both sides of the Atlantic. Originally developed to offer smokers a less harmful alternative to combustible tobacco, vaping has helped millions worldwide reduce or quit smoking altogether. Yet, despite mounting evidence of its efficacy, shifting regulatory landscapes are threatening to reverse this public health progress.

How to Advocate for Vaping Rights in Your Country (Without Losing Your Mind)

I’ll be honest—when I first started getting involved in vaping advocacy, I thought I had a pretty good handle on my country’s regulations. Turns out, I had no idea how deep the rabbit hole went. There were hidden taxes, restrictions I hadn’t even noticed, and policymakers making decisions about vaping who clearly had never talked to an actual vaper in their life.

If you’re reading this, chances are you care about vaping and want to make a difference. That’s awesome! But before you jump in, there are a few things you need to know so you can advocate effectively without burning out or getting frustrated too soon.

New Initiative Takes Aim at Tobacco Harm Reduction Misinformation

Kiran Sidhu, Filter

For many years, tobacco harm reduction advocates have had to contend with waves of misinformation about safer nicotine products, constantly emanating from media, academia, nonprofits, and governmental or international agencies.

By portraying reduced-risk nicotine options like vapes, pouches and heated tobacco products as far more dangerous than they actually are, these falsehoods and distortions have been shown to dissuade people from quitting combustible tobacco—which causes 8 million annual global deaths.

The April Fools Day That Wasn’t A Joke

Skip Murray, Skip’s Corner, Let’s Talk!

It has been heartbreaking to watch the cancellation of NIH grants and witness thousands of people lose their jobs. The stress the people affected are under must be overwhelming.

Even those who still have their grants or jobs must feel like they are tiptoeing on eggshells, wondering if they will be the next victim of a cruel axe that seems to have no rhyme or reason for where it falls. As I read DMs, posts, and articles, I can’t help but cry. So many lives… and I dread the fallout from all of this. From the economy to public health, the ramifications will be devastating.

“Like Antibiotics”? The Dangerous Nonsense of Australia’s Vaping Analogy

09algor, Australia, Let’s Improve Vaping Education (A.L.I.V.E.)

Australia’s war on vaping has reached a new level of absurdity. In their desperate attempts to justify draconian restrictions on access to safer alternatives to smoking, public health figures like Simon Chapman have begun comparing vapes to antibiotics. “Vapes aren’t banned,” he insists. “They’re just legally available in pharmacies.” This, we’re told, is perfectly reasonable.

Let’s be clear: it is not. It’s both a poor analogy and a smokescreen for an indefensible policy.

Advocates Urge Accountability Amid WHO Corruption Allegations

Coalition of Asia Pacific Tobacco Harm Reduction Advocates (CAPHRA)

The Coalition of Asia Pacific Tobacco Harm Reduction Advocates (CAPHRA) has called for an urgent review of funding to the WHO Western Pacific Regional Office (WPRO), and the WHO Southeast Asia Regional Office (SEARO) citing ongoing governance failures, widening health inequalities, and corruption allegations within the organisation’s global leadership.

“Two years after Dr Kasai’s dismissal, WPRO remains plagued by dysfunction,” said Nancy Loucas, Executive Coordinator of CAPHRA. “Despite promises of reform, the office continues to prioritise bureaucracy over meaningful change.

Click to visit Danish Vapers Association

Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids Falsely Claims that Vaping is “Tobacco Use”

Michael Siegel, The Rest of the Story

In its Take Down Tobacco program, the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids is lamenting the fact that through its sale of flavored vapes, the tobacco industry is addicting youth and reversing progress in reducing tobacco use.

The Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids states that: “Flavored vapes have fueled the youth e-cigarette epidemic, which is addicting a generation of kids and threatening to reverse decades of progress to reduce youth tobacco use in the U.S.”

They also claim that: “Eliminating the sale of flavored e-cigarettes is a critical step toward ending the tobacco industry’s modern day pipeline of youth addiction.“

Safer But Unavailable: Why Are Nicotine Pouches And Vapes Out Of Reach For African Smokers?

Soko Directory

In much of Africa, a smoker trying to quit has only one readily available option: quit cold turkey or die trying. The irony? Safer alternatives like nicotine pouches and vaping devices, which have helped millions quit smoking globally, are either banned, priced out of reach, or simply unavailable across the continent.

‘Many failures’: Whistleblower exposes how fired Biden-era official was soft on China, prioritized DEI

Andrew Mark Miller, Fox News

A former Food and Drug Administration (FDA) senior staffer is speaking out about problems at the agency under the Biden administration, including diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI), and failures to combat China flooding the U.S. market with illicit vapes after the FDA’s top tobacco official was removed from his position.

“I think many of us had been anticipating it for quite some time, we knew that change was drastically needed at FDA when it came to tobacco control, because tobacco control had really gotten out of control,” David Oliveira, who recently left the FDA after six years, said in response to FDA chief tobacco regulator Brian King being removed from his post earlier this month.

Two from Clearing The Air

U.S Supreme Court sides with FDA on banning sweet flavoured vapes

Ali Anderson

The U.S Supreme Court has ruled for the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on its right to block applications from makers of sweet-flavoured vapes.

The crux of the lengthy legal battle has been whether the FDA failed to correctly consider the requests of two manufacturers – Triton Distribution and Vapetasia – to sell flavoured e-liquids, putting it in violation of federal law.

The FDA was appealing a decision by the U.S Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals that its denial of the applications was “arbitrary and capricious.”

The Supreme Court justices have now unanimously ruled that the FDA did not in fact violate federal law.

Explainer: why vape prices will more than double with Trump tariffs

Peter Beckett

Trump’s tariffs look set to ruin the US vaping industry and send consumers back to cigarettes en masse thanks to sky high price rises. To understand why, and in particular why this is so acutely bad for vapes in particular, we need to understand two things: the role of China and the role of taxes.

The co-founders of Clearing the Air – Neil and I – used to run an online vape retail business. So we know a little bit about how the economics of this work.

Two from Joseph Hart, The Daily Pouch

Duke Finds Artificial Sweeteners in Nicotine Pouches

Researchers at Duke School of Medicine have made a startling discovery about nicotine pouches. Using chemical analysis, Sairam Jabba and Sven-Eric Jordt discovered that popular brands like Zyn, VELO and On! contain artificial sweeteners!

Sure, instead of using Liquid Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry to identify the sweeteners, they could have just looked at the ingredients on the box. But who’s getting a research grant for that?

Paper on Pouches In Pakistan Calls for More Paternalistic Public Health Policy

Oxford University Press has released a new paper titled “The Availability and Marketing of Nicotine Pouches at Tobacco-selling Point-of-Sale in Pakistan” (Farzeen, 2025). It explores the impact of the innovative smoke-free product in the South Asian Republic.

Considering that smoking-related deaths total around 130,000 per year in Pakistan, you may think the authors would be excited about the adoption of these innovative harm-reduction products. Of course, you’d be wrong.

The Trump administration has declined to block a decision by the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) to remove imported NJOY Ace devices and pods from the American market.

The ITC ruled Jan. 29 that the imported Ace products infringed Juul Labs patents and can no longer be sold on the U.S. market. The Trump administration’s Office of the U.S. Trade Representative had 60 days to overrule the decision, but did not intervene.

March 31 was the last day NJOY could legally import Ace devices and pods. Retailers are allowed to sell off NJOY Ace products that were in stock before April 1, but will be unable to replenish stock after that date.

OLDCORN: A TALE OF TWO POUCHES: Why cannabis gets the sweet deal while nicotine gets left behind

Christopher Oldcorn, Western Standard

Have you ever noticed how you can easily find flavoured cannabis pouches in Canada, but when it comes to nicotine pouches, you’re stuck with mint, menthol, or plain?

That might sound like a small thing, but it shows a bigger problem with how our government handles these products.

Growing trend or overreach? Poland joins the crackdown in Europe on disposables

Antonia Di Lorenzo, ECig Intelligence

With France and Belgium already acting on banning disposable vape products, Poland is poised to be the next in line.

Poland’s Ministry of Health is advancing legislation that would impose a complete ban on nicotine-containing and nicotine-free single-use vapes, raising the question: Is this the beginning of a wider European trend to phase out disposable vapes in favour of stricter public health measures?

BULGARIA MULLS VAPING BAN

Global Forum on Nicotine

Bulgaria has been embroiled in debate about a potential vape ban, including proposals to target disposable vapes. Arkadi Sharkov shines a light on the situation in Bulgaria, including the impact a disposable vape ban could have on a developing illicit market and the knock-on effect such a ban may have on vapers in the country.

On this Day…2021

A look back at how things have moved on or otherwise…

Smoking Rates Tumble Across UK and EU

Thanks To Vaping – Neil Humber

According to the latest EU own statistics, smoking rates tumble across the UK and Europe thanks to vaping.

The numbers don’t lie and show a whopping 121% increase in the number of smokers making the switch to safer nicotine products such as e-cigarettes and SNUS.

Vaping Prohibitionists Host Conference..

To Confirm Their Own Views – Alex Norcia

On April 7, the organization Parents Against Vaping E-Cigarettes (PAVE) hosted a day-long virtual conference called “Clear the Vapor: The Way Forward.”

Visit Nicotine Science & Policy for more News from around the World