News

With Christmas just around the corner, it’s a great time to pick up new vaping gear – whether as gift for someone else or just a "to me, from me" treat – and the industry has responded with a solid selection of new devices and atomizers hitting the market in November. So this month's vaping product releases roundup is particularly well-stocked with awesome new gear!

The Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Authority (MHRA) in the UK has recently announced that it will regulate e-cigarettes (as well as other nicotine-containing products) as medicines from 2016 onwards. This move is a huge step forwards for the e-cig industry – despite some concerns – but what will the legislation mean for UK vapers? And is the FDA likely to pursue their regulation in the same vein?

Today the Royal Society became the site of the E-Cigarette Summit, a day dedicated to debating the safety, efficacy and regulation of e-cigarettes. The day was split into three sessions, firstly looking at the safety and efficacy, then moving on to regulation, and finally looking at the controversies surrounding the technology.

The Welsh government has announced that it will ban vaping in enclosed public places under a new public health law, igniting much debate about the pros and cons of such a decision. It's argued that vaping could pose a health risk to bystanders and may re-normalize smoking, but are these concerns justified?

Trump announced recently that he's backing off from the flavor ban. At least for now. While of course a welcomed move from those within the industry, it still leaves a skeptical flavor (excuse the pun) in the mouths of professionals and connoisseurs. That the battle may be won, but the war certainly isn't.

The recent revelation that Five Pawns’ extremely expensive e-liquid may be riddled with diacetyl (DA) and acetyl propionyl (AP) brings an important issue to the light once again: the flavorings we inhale might not be good for us. So, what’s the deal with DA and AP in e-liquid? Which are the worst offenders based on the tests available? And can we even trust the results?

Another week, and more legislation, arguments about the risks and benefits of vaping, media stories about explosions and potential poisonings, new vaping gear and great blog posts from the community. So what’s been going on in the world of vaping?

After a string of court cases in Germany revolving around the possible classification of e-liquids as medicines, the Federal Administrative Court has decisively ruled that they don't meet the definition, and e-liquids can therefore continue being sold freely.

Tobacco giant Altria (manufacturer of Marlboro) has agreed a deal to purchase Florida-based e-cig company Green Smoke, marking another milestone for the Big Tobacco expansion into the e-cig industry.

Skycig is set to become blu eCigs in May, after recently being acquired by Lorillard. Is this a sign Big Tobacco will take over the market?

The FDA’s Center for Tobacco Products has announced it will be holding a public listening session to discuss “any topic relevant to science-based regulation of tobacco products” on April 5th in San Diego.

Oklahoma Senator Rob Johnson’s proposed bill to impose a small tax on e-cigs, formally ban their sale to minors and require any vendors to be licensed seems like a harmless and sensible piece of legislation on first reading about it. However, there is a darker vein lurking in the densely layered legalese and clunky phrases like “vapor products,” since the bill would also make it illegal to buy e-cigs online and for sellers in the state to buy their products from anybody other than Oklahoma-based distributor or wholesaler.

It's been jam-packed with research this week, from studies leading to claims that vaping will cause lung cancer to ones finding little to no risk of passive vaping, but there's also been the usual selection of new pieces of legislation, excellent blog posts from the community and some serious nonsense spouted about e-cigs. It's the Week in Vaping.

In a disarmingly rational decision, lawmakers in North Dakota have passed a bill that both bans the sale and use of e-cigarettes by minors and classifies them as non-tobacco products. Instead, they passed another bill classifying e-cigarettes as “nicotine devices.”

New York City Councilman Costa Constantinides introduced a bill on Tuesday proposing a ban on all flavored e-cigarettes, flatly claiming, “These flavors are direct marketing to children.

The Global Forum on Nicotine included talks from over 80 experts in vaping science, policy and more, taking place over three days in Warsaw. There was a lot of useful information shared over the course of the weekend, but here are my top 10 take-away points.

A bill that will add electronic cigarettes to New York City's Smoke-Free Air Act was passed by NY City Council Thursday afternoon. The legislation would go into effect in four months and would ban use of e-cigarettes wherever smoking is prohibited.