Turkish President Orders Ban on Investment in the Vaping Industry

On October 22, according to foreign media reports, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan recently ordered his trade minister to never allow vaping companies to develop the vaping industry in Turkey.

Erdogan said, “They asked us for sites and permits to produce these vaping products. We did not give them, and we will not give them,” although the president did not disclose which company he was referring to. “They want to invest in Turkey…… Let them invest elsewhere.”

Erdogan said tobacco companies grow rich by poisoning people.

World Health Organization data shows that in 2016, about 27% of Turkey’s population aged 15 and over smoked, down from 31% in 2010.

In Turkey, vaping products are not illegal, but buying or distributing them is illegal. Even so, many people still purchase vaping devices through online distributors, which also provide the liquids used in the devices.