According to closely restricted sales statistics obtained by The Associated Press, the variety of electronic cigarette devices marketed in the U.S. has nearly tripled to over 9,000 since 2020, driven almost entirely by a wave of illegal disposable vapes from China.
The increase is in stark contrast to authorities' own statistics, which claim that only a small number of new e-cigarettes intended for adult smokers were approved, while 99 percent of company petitions to sell them were denied.
Underage Vaping Continues in the US
The statistics show that more than three years after announcing a crackdown on kid-friendly flavors, the Food and Drug Administration is still unable to manage the volatile vaping business. Teenagers' preferred tobacco product is the disposable electronic cigarette, which is thrown away after use and typically comes in flavors like pink lemonade, gummy bear, and watermelon.
Although they are all technically unlawful, their surge has altered the FDA's regulatory structure. Regulators now have to find a way to recover thousands of unlawful products that were sold by unscrupulous importers and distributors rather than carefully examining specific products that might assist adult smokers.
Read also: US Adult Cigarette Smoking Rate Drops to Record Low, Signaling Positive Trend
New Variants are Being Introduced Every Month
Although many disposables are copies of a few well-known brands, like Elf Bar or Puff Bar, hundreds of new variants are introduced each month. Companies steal one another's designs, making it difficult to distinguish between genuine and fake products. Entrepreneurs can easily launch a new product by asking Chinese manufacturers to produce tens of thousands of units in just a few short weeks in exchange for their logo and preferred flavor.
According to statistics from analytics company IRI, cheaper disposables, once a niche industry, made nearly 40 percent of the almost $7 billion retail market for e-cigarettes last year. Sales of barcode scanners from convenience stores, gas stations, and other retailers are collected and stored in the company's confidential data.
There are currently more than 5,800 distinctive disposable goods being marketed in a variety of flavors and compositions, an increase of 1,500 percent from 365 in early 2020. At that time, the FDA effectively prohibited all flavors from cartridge-based e-cigarettes like Juul, the rechargeable device blamed for igniting a statewide upsurge in teenage smoking, with the exception of menthol and tobacco.
But because disposables were not included in the FDA's guideline, which was developed under President Donald Trump, many teenagers chose to switch from Juul to the more recent flavored products.
The fact that foreign producers of the prefilled devices are not required to register with the FDA makes the situation even more difficult for authorities, who have minimal access to information about the vast sector headquartered in China's Shenzhen manufacturing hub.
The FDA recently delivered warning letters to more than 200 businesses selling well-known disposables, like Elf Bar, Esco Bar, and Breeze, in response to pressure from legislators, parents, and big vaping firms. Additionally, the agency issued orders prohibiting the import of those three brands. However, according to IRI data, these businesses only represented 14 percent of disposable sales in 2017. Numerous other brands, such as Air Bar, Mr. Fog, Fume, and Kangvape, remain unaffected.
Related article: FDA Orders Pull Out of Juul E-Cigarettes From US Market For Causing Rise in Teen Vaping
