Vape Associations Respond to the China Regulation

On June 20, 2023, the Office of the State Tobacco Administration sent out a notification on the "Guidelines for Promoting the Building of Quality Assurance Systems for Exported Electronic Cigarette Products", which the key points of the guidelines include:

1. All e-cigarettes exported from China will need to comply with local regulatory legal requirements and need to be traceable throughout their inbound and outbound transport.
2. All Chinese exports of e-cigarettes that are investigated by authorities overseas for quality issues must be reported to the Tobacco Administration where the manufacturer is located and be subject to relevant investigations.
3. The State Tobacco Administration (STA) will establish a traceability system for exported e-cigarettes, Tobacco Bureaus at all levels should collaborate with Customs, market supervision, taxation and other departments to strengthen global supervision.

2FIRSTS interviewed several vaping industry associations, including the Independent European Vaping Association (IEVA), the UK Vaping Industry Association (UKVIA), the Independent British Vape Trade Association (IBVTA), and the Vaping Industry Trade Association of Canada (VITA) to inquire about their views on the "Guidelines."

IEVA Chairman, Dustin Dalhmann, told 2FIRSTS: 

"This is a positive development. It will reduce non-compliant products in the market, enhance the overall quality of electronic cigarettes, and improve the industry's reputation."

UKVIA Chairman John Dunne told 2FIRSTS:

“This is very positive news indeed. While most manufacturers do follow the rules,invest in state of the art manufacturing facilities and expert complience teams,more robust action needs to be taken against the remaining rogue operators. Under age youth vaping is a huge issue not only here is the UK but worldwide and there is a direct link between illegal vaping products and youth uptake. Inferior production practices and last of oversight on testing continue to undermine consumer confidence in vaping. The UKVIA has been working very closely with its international partners and many manufacturing members in China to help raise standards and stamp out illegal products. We have seen great progress in China in the last two years but more still needs to be done to address irresponsible, overtly child friendly product designs which often use cartoon characters and youth appealing names.”

IBVTA CEO, Gillian Golden, said: 

“There are many reputable manufacturers and brands in China investing in product safety and compliance, and they have undoubtedly contributed to the UK becoming a world leader in vaping and tobacco harm reduction. Illegal imports reaching the UK are having a devastating effect on the local market. In terms of the link to access by young people through illicit supply chains, and in terms of sector reputation. While we believe the number of illegal manufacturing operations in China has reduced over the past year, this new guidance from the authorities there is most welcome.”

VITA of Canada President, Daniel David:

"China's new guidelines on E-cigarette quality assurance and traceability are a very encouraging and responsible step forward. These guidelines should help reduce the availability of illicit vape products coming into Canada while improving product quality and traceability which is great news for governments, the legal industry and consumers."