Development and Policies of Electronic Cigarette Industry in China

1. Development of electronic cigarettes

The electronic cigarette industry has gone through four main stages of development. The first electronic cigarette was created in China in 1963. From 2003 to 2008, the industry underwent its initial stages of development, followed by a period of rapid expansion from 2009 to 2018. From 2019 onwards, the industry has entered a phase of restructuring and consolidation.

The Developmental History of Electronic Cigarettes

Source of information: publicly available data compilation.

Report on China's E-Cigarette Industry Market Analysis and Development Trend from 2022 to 2028, released by Zhiyan Consultancy.

Secondly, China's policies on electronic cigarettes.

In recent years, the electronic cigarette industry has developed in a disorderly fashion due to regulatory gaps, with some products having unclear nicotine content, unknown additives, leaks in the e-liquid, and misleading advertising aimed at enticing minors to smoke and harm their physical and mental well-being. This has triggered strong reactions from various sectors of society, calling for increased regulation. The central government and the State Council have attached great importance to this issue, and since November 2021, there has been a flurry of policy releases in the e-cigarette industry. On November 26, 2021, the State Council issued a notice amending the "Regulations on the Implementation of the Tobacco Monopoly Law of the People's Republic of China," which officially included electronic cigarettes in traditional tobacco regulation; on November 30, 2021, the State Tobacco Monopoly Administration issued a draft national standard for electronic cigarettes, which clarifies the national standard for electronic cigarettes; on May 1, 2022, the "Administrative Measures on Electronic Cigarettes" officially came into effect, and on June 15, 2022, the national unified electronic cigarette transaction management platform was officially launched. On October 1, 2022, the "Mandatory National Standard for Electronic Cigarettes" will also be implemented. As a result, the electronic cigarette industry has entered a new stage of development where there are "laws to abide by and standards to follow." With regulatory policies providing protection, the industry now has more stable expectations for its long-term development.

The first policy on electronic cigarette regulation.

Source of information: Government official website, organized by Smart Research Consulting.

Electronic cigarette-related management policies (part two)

Source of information: Government official website; compiled by Zhī Yán Zīxún (Smart Research Consulting)

Policy Management on E-Cigarettes (Part 3)

Source of information: Government official website, compiled by Zhiyan Consultancy.

E-Cigarette Management Policy (Part Four)

Source of information: Compiled by government official website and Zhīyán advisory.

3. Regulations for the Management of Sub-sectors of Electronic Cigarettes.

In recent years, the blind development of the e-cigarette industry, the lack of standards in e-cigarette production, the lack of quality assurance in e-cigarette products, and the disorderly competition in the e-cigarette market have posed risks to consumer interests, the physical and mental health of minors, and the safety and stability of the industry chain. On March 11, 2022, the State Tobacco Monopoly Administration issued "Regulations on the Management of Electronic Cigarettes", which regulates the production, sales, transportation, import and export, and supervision of electronic cigarettes in the People's Republic of China. The main provisions are: firstly, to clarify the definition of electronic cigarettes and the regulatory objects; secondly, to implement license management for electronic cigarette production, wholesale, and retail subjects, without setting up a new type of administrative license for electronic cigarette licenses, but adding corresponding items in the scope of tobacco monopoly production, wholesale, and retail licenses; thirdly, to implement channel management for the sale of electronic cigarettes, establish an electronic cigarette transaction management platform and regulate the sales of electronic cigarettes; fourthly, to conduct full-process quality management for electronic cigarette products, establish a technical evaluation and tracing mechanism for electronic cigarette products; fifthly, to implement regulation on the transportation and import and export of electronic cigarettes in accordance with the law. In order to further regulate the production and operation order of electronic cigarettes, implement the main responsibility of electronic cigarette product production and operation subjects, ensure public consumer safety, provide unified product information services for consumers, and facilitate the timely grasp of relevant information on electronic cigarette products by the general public, the State Tobacco Monopoly Administration, based on comprehensive research and evaluation and in accordance with the relevant provisions of the "Regulations", has developed the "Management Measures for Electronic Cigarette Product Traceability.

Regulations for the Management of Sub-sectors of E-cigarettes (Part One)

Sources of information include the government's official website and research conducted by Zhīyán Consulting.

Regulations for the Management of Sub-categories of Electronic Cigarettes (Part 2)

Sources of information: Government official website and Intelligence Research Consulting compiled.

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