Huzhou Changxing cracks Zhejiang's first case of selling e-cigarettes to minors

As we all know, smoking is harmful to health. In recent years, under the careful packaging and enticing advertisements from merchants, a large number of young people, including minors, have even started to "play" with e-cigarettes. Recently, the Market Supervision Bureau of Changxing County, Huzhou City, investigated the first case in Zhejiang Province of selling e-cigarettes to minors, based on the newly revised "Law on the Protection of Minors."

On June 17 of this year, the Market Supervision Bureau of Changxing County received a tip-off that a certain e-cigarette specialty store in Changxing was selling e-cigarettes to middle school students. Immediately, our enforcement personnel went to the store for verification and conducted a joint investigation with the county's tobacco bureau. After questioning the store owner, sales staff, and the students who purchased e-cigarettes, as well as reviewing the mall's video surveillance and the store's cash register records, it was found that this e-cigarette specialty store had failed to fulfill its verification obligations since June 2021 and illegally sold one e-cigarette cartridge each to two middle school students from a local school. The actions of the parties involved are suspected of violating the relevant provisions of the "Law on the Protection of Minors of the People's Republic of China," and the Market Supervision Bureau of Changxing County has filed a case for investigation.

In recent years, more and more e-cigarette companies have targeted the youth demographic, taking advantage of their curiosity and openness to new things, as well as their lack of clear understanding of products like e-cigarettes. In many cases, they perceive vaping as a "fashionable, cool, and competitive" behavior. Some merchants, in order to attract more young people and enhance the appeal of their products to minors, indiscriminately add various additives, altering the flavors and colors of e-cigarettes, which can seriously harm the physical and mental health of minors and create adverse social impacts.

The newly revised "Law on the Protection of Minors" officially came into effect on June 1, 2021. This law includes regulations prohibiting the sale of tobacco to minors (Article 59), which for the first time explicitly prohibits the sale of e-cigarettes to minors in a national law. On June 18 of this year, the State Administration for Market Regulation and the State Tobacco Monopoly Administration jointly issued the "Special Action Plan for Protecting Minors from Tobacco Harm: 'Guarding Growth,'" which emphasizes increasing the enforcement against tobacco-related illegal activities, focusing more on prevention, combining prevention and treatment, and implementing comprehensive governance to effectively protect the healthy growth of minors.

To curb the spread of e-cigarettes among minors, the Market Supervision Bureau of Changxing County, in conjunction with the tobacco management department, is comprehensively rectifying the e-cigarette market, emphasizing strengthened joint law enforcement, and continuously increasing supervision of e-cigarette products, especially around stores and supermarkets in areas where minors gather. They are legally increasing inspections of physical e-cigarette stores, seriously investigating the sale of e-cigarettes to minors and the publication of false illegal e-cigarette advertisements by physical stores, and conducting comprehensive checks to ensure that e-cigarette stores fulfill their explicit commitments, implementing effective age verification measures to prevent minors from purchasing e-cigarettes, thus effectively protecting minors from e-cigarette harm.

Tip

Currently, various e-cigarette products on the domestic market have significant variability in terms of raw material selection, additive use, process design, and quality control. The quality of e-cigarette products is uneven, and some products may have safety hazards such as e-liquid leakage, poor-quality batteries, and added components. Additionally, the core consumable component of most e-cigarettes is purified nicotine, which is a highly toxic chemical. Minors' respiratory systems are not fully developed, and inhaling such substances can adversely affect lung function and may lead to nicotine poisoning and other safety risks if used improperly.