DTI Reports Millions Worth of Seized Illegal E-cigarette Products
According to a report from Philstar on April 26, the Philippine Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) reported yesterday (the 25th) that they have intercepted illegal e-cigarette products worth over 31 million pesos (53.7 thousand US dollars) since last year.
The department stated in a press release that from February 9, 2023, to April 23 of this year, a total of 65,865 e-cigarette products were seized and 84,523 physical and online e-cigarette shops were supervised. Among the monitored online and physical stores, 298 received Notices of Violation (NOV), while 493 received Summons to Court (SCO). These non-compliant establishments were required to submit a written explanation within 48 hours of receiving the summons and notice of violation.
Recently, in a joint operation with the Philippine National Police, the department seized 45,200 units of illegal tobacco, non-tobacco, and new tobacco products from a store claiming to be a milk tea shop, with a value of nearly 25 million pesos (43,000 US dollars).
According to the Philippines Tobacco Law (Republic Act 11900 or the e-cigarette law), it is prohibited to sell e-cigarette products within 100 meters of areas frequently visited by minors. The department claimed that the store violated Section 12 of the law, which prohibits the sale of flavored e-cigarettes targeted at attracting minors.
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