Weekly Vape Brief: Colorado Lets Voters Decide E-Cigarette Tax Policy

 

Hot news of the week

 

Juul was sued by a former employee over confidentiality agreements to prevent cooperation with the investigation, causing controversy

 

According to foreign reports, Juul Labs Inc. has been sued by a former manager, questioninge-cigarettesThe confidentiality agreement used by the company. Plaintiff Marcie Hamilton alleges that the confidentiality requirement harms the company's current and former employees, the public and the California public interest by preventing employees from cooperating with the investigation and litigation against Juul. Hamilton claimed in a complaint filed Thursday in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California that she had information about her work at JUUL. However, in her confidentiality agreement, she prohibited the communication of this information to government regulators, government officials, the press and others. The complaint alleges that the company relies on confidentiality agreements and other confidentiality requirements to prevent its current and former employees from providing information related to these investigations and actions.

 

Colorado puts e-cigarette tax policy to voters for vote

 

The Colorado House of Representatives has passed a bill to refer a measure to increase taxes on nicotine products to voters in the November election. In HB20-1427, nicotine products are defined as cigarettes, tobacco, suction devices, electronic cigarettes and nicotine liquids. The bill claims that the taxes collected will be distributed among several different funds, including those that will fund K-12 schools and promote early childhood education. If passed, the voting initiative would increase the tax on each cigarette from 1 cent to 8 cents by 2027 and another 10 cents thereafter. This will be the first time a tax will be imposed on nicotine products such as e-cigarettes and atomized nicotine liquids. The tax will start at 10% and increase to 22% by 2027.

 

Xisu e-cigarette releases 19.9 yuan new bomb replacement products and spends 200 million yuan to subsidize users and channels

 

On the 8th, a subsidiary of Hanma Investment Groupe-cigarette brandsXisu CISOO announced the official launch of its entry-level bomb replacement product "Scream" to compete for the entry-level e-cigarette market and will launch a summer subsidy campaign of 200 million yuan for users and channels. This is also the third brand this year to explicitly launch an entry-level ammo replacement e-cigarette. The first two are YOOZ Pomelo and VPO Microper, which indicates that this year's competition for e-cigarettes has started from an entry-level ammo replacement product.

 

2. Industry dynamics

 

Only its CEO runs a supercar stall to sell e-cigarettes

 

Recently, Weiqi CEO Liu Dongyuan opened a supercar stall to sell e-cigarettes and took two supercars to set up a stall in Beijing to promote e-cigarettes and Weiqi's stall tables. He said that in order to actively respond to the policy call, Weiqi is now urgently launching a 0 yuan no-threshold stall start business plan. You only need to pay a deposit of 999 yuan for goods to start a business stall. If you can't sell all the goods, you can exchange them and return them to solve the worries of inventory backlog.

 

Yueshi official Weibo: Nielsen data shows that Yueshi's market share is 69%

 

On the 11th, the domestic e-cigarette brand Yueshi just posted an article "25 Reasons to Fall in Love with Yueshi" on the official WeChat account, describing the various reasons why users choose Yueshi. At the end of the article, Yueshi said that after reading Nielsen's April 2020 report, among the 20 new first-tier cities, Yueshi accounted for 69% of the market share of closed e-cigarettes. Only good products will be loved by most people.

 

Hong Kong cancels bill to ban e-cigarette sales

 

According to Vaping360 and Hong Kong media reports, the Hong Kong Legislative Council has abandoned plans to ban the use of electronic atomizing products, at least for now. E-cigarettes and harm reduction advocates have been fighting the proposed ban since Hong Kong's chief executive delivered a speech 19 months ago.

 

FDA reviews Altria Nicotine Bag PMTA application, more than 66000 pages of document

 

According to foreign reports, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has accepted and submitted 35 On! Substantive review of premarket tobacco product applications. The product is manufactured by Altria joint venture Helix Innovations. In support of these applications, Altria Group submitted more than 66,000 pages of documents, including six major studies. Paige Magness, senior vice president of regulatory affairs for customer services at Altria, said: "We believe the scientific evidence in these applications suggests that On! Marketing! Applicable to protecting public health. Nicotine bags are a key part of our vision to responsibly lead adult smokers in the transition to a non-combustible future.

 

Florida's attorney general warns teenagers and their families about the dangers of e-cigarettes

 

According to foreign reports, recently, teenagers in Florida, USA, after using e-cigarette products, were sent to hospital due to symptoms like COVID-19, and some of them even had to be placed on ventilators. Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody has warned parents and teenagers about a new health scare about e-cigarette use.

 

American Tobacco sues Los Angeles County, claiming its ban on flavored e-cigarettes unconstitutional

 

According to foreign reports, a group of tobacco companies are overturning Los Angeles County's ban on the use of flavored e-cigarette smoke, alleging that the action is unconstitutional and unenforceable. On June 1, 2020, the second-largest tobacco company in the United States filed a complaint against the ban. North Carolina-based tobacco company RJ Reynolds leads a coalition of plaintiffs, which also includes American Snuff Company, LLC and Santa Fe Natural Tobacco Company, Inc.

 

Dozens of doctors in Alberta are urging the government to ban flavored e-cigarettes and limit nicotine

 

Dozens of doctors in Alberta have called on the provincial government to ban flavored e-cigarette products and limit their nicotine concentrations because of the high health risks they pose to young people. Nearly 30 medical professionals expressed their concerns in open letters to Prime Minister Jason Kenney, Opposition Leader Rachel Notley and Alberta's top medical official, Dr. Dinahinshaw. The author of the letter believes that e-cigarettes are too attractive to young people and the government needs to implement stricter restrictions.

 

Estonia lawmakers propose to stop taxing e-cigarette liquid

 

According to foreign reports, Estonia lawmakers have submitted a bill to Parliament that will stop the collection of consumption taxes on tobacco e-liquids within two years. Lawmakers hope the measure will help control border trade and the black market. In a draft explanation, the bill's drafters pointed out that stopping the excise tax would provide entrepreneurs with an opportunity to reduce the price of e-liquids and encourage the sale of legal products. If passed, the law will take effect on December 1, 2020.

 

Juul can be purchased online through Bestway and requires acceptance and consent to age verification

 

According to foreign reports, after the two companies jointly launched an online age verification platform, Bestway Wholesale customers can now purchase Juul products online. After filling out new age verification documents on the website, Bestway customers can now purchase Juul equipment, kits and Juul cartridges on the company's wholesale website. Retailers must enter their name and store details, and accept and agree to age verification, store suspension and retail sales policies. This process must be completed before you can purchase any Juul products.

 

Juul's e-cigarette official website has been revised, making online purchases no longer possible

 

Juul's e-cigarette official website has been revised on the 12th. Compared with the old version, the new version has significantly removed product introduction and product purchase links. That is, the official website is now more like a company and mission introduction, and relevant product purchase links have been removed.

 

Canadian Electronic Cigarette Association says electronic cigarette regulations only benefit big tobacco companies

 

According to the Canadian Electronic Cigarette Association (CVA), many health organizations are calling for fogging regulations to benefit e-cigarette brands owned by major tobacco companies. Canada's e-cigarettes strongly urge WHO to review evidence that removing flavors will only benefit brands owned by big tobacco and harm adult smokers who want to use flavor products to successfully transition from the world's number one killer tobacco.

 

28.7% of Maine high school students use e-cigarettes. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention launches text messaging anti-e-cigarettes campaign

 

According to foreign reports, a new anti-e-cigarette campaign from the Maine Centers for Disease Control and Prevention can help young people understand the risks of e-cigarettes and provide text messages to support young people who want to quit smoking. Gov. Janet Mills directed the Maine Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to launch a campaign on the vapefreemaine.com website against reported increased e-cigarette use by state high and middle school students. This trend reflects the increase in the number of young people smoking across the country in recent years. Launched in April and will last at least until the end of 2020, the event reaches Maine's youth through TV, Hulu, Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok, YouTube and its website.

 

US research shows that up to 60% of students in some schools have used e-cigarettes

 

According to foreign reports, a study by the University of Michigan showed that in the past month, more than one-tenth of American middle school students used e-cigarettes. The study also found that e-cigarette usage rates in some schools are as high as 60%, with the highest proportion of e-cigarettes being used in schools with a higher proportion of white students and a higher proportion of students smoking traditional cigarettes.

 

Research: People with mental illness who use tobacco and e-cigarettes are more likely to suffer from other diseases

 

A recent U.S. study extracted data from the 2014-2017 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) and analyzed the link between cigarette use, e-cigarette use and dual product use among adults with severe psychological distress, Vapingpost reports. Consistent with previous studies, the current study shows that among adults who report severe psychological distress (SPD), the prevalence of smoking, e-cigarettes and dual use is higher than among minors.

 

New study: Most patients with electronic nebulized lung disease also have a history of gastrointestinal tract

 

New research published online by Pediatrics found that most teenagers diagnosed with EVALI, a respiratory disease related to e-cigarettes, also have gastrointestinal symptoms and a psychosocial history, such as drug abuse. Study author Devika Rao, MD, a pediatric pulmonologist and assistant professor of pediatrics in Respiratory Medicine, said: This is the first study of adolescents and EVALI at Southwestern University in the United States, and it is also the first domestic study on the clinical characteristics of EVALI in a pediatric population.& rdquo;

 

Urine sampling study: harmful substances in traditional cigarettes are higher than e-cigarettes

 

The study, titled "Comparative Nicotine and Toxic Substances Exposure among E-Cigarette and Combustible Cigarette Users," was published in the journal JAMA Network Open. The researchers analyzed urine samples from 5105 participants and compared samples from e-cigarette users, traditional cigarette users, dual users and non-users. In addition, the level of toxic chemicals in the urine of e-cigarette users is lower than that of traditional cigarette users. Compared with specialty cigarette smokers, the concentrations of biomarkers (including TSNAs, PAHs, most VOCs and nicotine) exposed to e-cigarette users were significantly reduced by 10% to 98%; the concentrations of metals and the three VOCs were comparable.

 

CAPRA urges Asian countries to support the use of e-cigarettes to reduce tobacco harm

 

An expert group from the Asia-Pacific Alliance of Tobacco Harm Reduction Advocates (CAPHRA) has written to the top ministers of nine Asia-Pacific countries asking them to highlight the implementation of tobacco harm reduction policies at the upcoming meeting of the Parties to the World Health Organization's Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC).

 

3. Investment and financing

 

Tobacco oil producer Avail acquires e-cigarette e-commerce platform Giant Vapes

 

According to foreign reports, U.S. e-liquids retailer Avail Vapor has agreed to acquire e-vapor company Giant Vapes. According to Avail, the acquisition will create a global omnichannel organization with a clear mission to bring value to customers. By combining Avail's extensive physical store strength with the advantages of Giant Vapes's extensive e-commerce platform, the combined company will provide unique value to its customers in the United States and abroad, the company wrote in a statement.

 

4. IPO dynamics

 

Sources say e-cigarette maker Simmore will seek IPO approval in Hong Kong this week

 

According to foreign media, citing people familiar with the matter, e-cigarette equipment maker Simmore International Holdings Co., Ltd. plans to seek approval from the Hong Kong Stock Exchange for its initial public offering (IPO) plan as early as Thursday, a deal that could raise at least US$800 million.

 

McQuail may begin assessing Hong Kong IPO needs on Monday

 

A few days ago, market news said that e-cigarette manufacturer McQuail is understood to plan to start evaluating Hong Kong's IPO demand on Monday. Bloomberg reported on June 9 that McWare would seek approval for a Hong Kong IPO this week or raise $800 million. In fact, McQuail is already wearing a ten-fold crown. As early as December 14, 2015, McWeill was listed on the New Third Board at a price of 11.8 yuan per share. In 2018, it once rose to 130 yuan per share, achieving the three-year tenfold feat that investors have dreamed of.

 

5. Industry data

 

The chip is the core control component. Brands such as EVOLV and Yihai are well-known

 

The upstream market of e-cigarettes mainly involves industries such as batteries, cigarette oil, heating components, and control circuits, including chip design solution providers, battery, cotton, silk and other accessory manufacturers, plastics, hardware and other raw materials, and suppliers such as screen printing and packaging. etc., among which chips are the core of the upstream industrial chain and the core control component of e-cigarette hosts. There are many mature chip design solution providers in the industry, providing solutions to many small and medium-sized e-cigarette manufacturers. At present, the world's major e-cigarette chip suppliers include EVOLV of the United States, Yihai Electronics of China, etc.