Earlier this year, the
Food and Drug Administration began rolling out new regulations for electronic
cigarettes, changing the ways they can be sold and advertised.
These regulations
intend “to protect youth by restricting their access to tobacco products,”
according to an FDA release. Some, however, are concerned about the impacts
these regulations could have on the industry.
As of now, vape shops
can no longer claim that vaping is safer than other tobacco products, which has
been a main selling point of e-cigarette products. Anyone who appears to be
under the age of 27 must provide identification and customers must be 18 at the
time of the purchase.
Electronic cigarettes
fall under the umbrella of what is considered smoking by NC State, and smoking
is prohibited within 25 feet of all university buildings.
According to the FDA,
e-cigarette use among high school students has increased from 1.5 percent in
2011 to 16 percent in 2016. Previously, no law prevented sale of e-cigarettes
to consumers under 18. By regulating these products, the FDA hopes to decrease
use, especially among youth.
Furthermore, employees
cannot assemble or modify customer’s products before a purchase, as this would
make the employees tobacco manufacturers under the law.
Scheduled to take
effect on Aug. 8, 2018, additional regulations will require electronic
cigarette products to undergo the same rigorous testing and research as other
tobacco products. This process, which costs millions of dollars and can take
multiple years, would primarily affect manufactures of e-cigarette products.
“I think it’s more the
FDA trying to regulate something they don’t have control over,” said Omar Syed,
an employee at Good Guy Vapes on Hillsborough Street. “Vape products don’t have
any tobacco in them, how can you call it a tobacco product?”
The use of
e-cigarettes, an activity also known as “vaping,” has become increasingly
popular among the general population as well as on college campuses. Many users
of personal vaporizers and e-cigarettes can be seen on campus daily exhaling
exorbitant amounts of scented vapor, called “clouds” by the vaping community.
“E-cigarettes should
not be treated the same as tobacco in all situations,” said Logan Herman, a
sophomore studying engineering. “From an economical standpoint, they should be
treated different.”
Some companies are
rushing to release new vape products before the new regulations regarding
manufacturers go into place two years from now. By doing so, they will avoid
the costly and lengthy testing the FDA requires with the new laws.
With a testing process
that could cost millions, it may become difficult for smaller e-cigarette
manufacturers to afford to put new products through the testing process after
the new regulations have been put into effect.
“Chain stores have a
lot more of a financial backing that they can maybe weather the storm,” Syed
said. “A small mom and pop shop, they’re living basically month to month.”
His employer, Good Guy
Vapes, is a chain store with multiple locations throughout the United States.
There is also worry
that current e-cigarette users may be pushed back to other tobacco products if
the e-cigarette market slows down.
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