Altria and Juul in Minnesota's sights

Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison (pictured) announced in early December that the state is suing e-cigarette maker Juul, accusing the company of violating state consumer protection laws and creating a public nuisance.[1]On December 10, the complaint was filed with the cigarette manufacturer Altria (which markets the Marlboro brand in the United States).[2].

The e-cigarette leader is being criticized for developing a range of products that deliver higher doses of nicotine than traditional cigarettes and other e-cigarette brands. However, the product's higher addictiveness was not disclosed by the brand, which at the time presented its models as safer alternatives to combustible cigarettes.

Cigarette marketing strategies recycled by Juul

According to the prosecutor, the protection of young people is one of the main motives of the complaint. It details in particular how Juul developed elegant products, with elaborate designs, and designed to attract a young clientele. Beyond the appearance of the product, the sweet and fruity flavors of its nicotine pods are also pointed out for targeting teenagers in priority. In other words, the manufacturer of electronic cigarettes is accused of having recycled the marketing strategies used by the tobacco industry for decades. The existence of a connection in the methods used is also confirmed by the co-founder of Juul himself, having declared that he had studied in detail the marketing strategies of cigarette manufacturers before launching his own products on the market.

Multiple charges

As the Minnesota Department of Health pointed out, 90% of the state's teens had seen at least one vaping ad in the 30 days prior to the 2017 investigation. The e-cigarette giant is also accused of willfully turning a blind eye to the company's failure to comply with the ban on selling products to minors. The complaint filed by Keith Ellison charges Juul with several counts: consumer fraud, deceptive and illegal business practices, false advertising, public nuisance, negligence, and unjust enrichment.

An unprecedented increase in nicotine consumption

This strategy has resulted in an explosion in the use of e-cigarettes among young people. According to a study published in October 2019, the share of adolescents aged 11^th (equivalent to class 1^era in France) using electronic cigarettes increased by 50%, while it almost doubled for 8-year-olds^th (fourth in France). 75% of these minors had never smoked cigarettes before, highlighting the idea that the e-cigarette is an initiation product. Finally, for the first time in almost 20 years, 2017 was the year when the number of smokers in secondary school increased.

Behind Juul, a cigarette giant

On December 10, 2020, the State of Minnesota announced that it had expanded its complaint to include the tobacco company in its lawsuits. While in October 2018, the tobacco giant had withdrawn its pod-based e-cigarettes from the market, arguing before the American Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that the latter contributed to " significantly to the increase in the use of vaping products by young people ", Altria announced two months later its financial participation in Juul, amounting to 35%, representing an investment of nearly 13 billion dollars (10.6 billion euros). Following this agreement, Altria assisted Juul in the sale, commercialization, marketing and promotion of electronic cigarettes, in particular by giving it the benefit of its distribution network and its customer database. According to the plaintiffs, Altria's support allowed Juul to significantly increase its firepower, particularly among young people.

[2] State adds tobacco giant Altria as defendant in JUUL lawsuit for deceptive marketing targeting youth, Red Lake, 11/12/2020, (accessed December 14, 2020)