UK considers banning flavourings in vaping products

Flavourings in e-cigarettes could be banned in the UK as the government seeks to tackle the rise in young people using the products. Health Secretary Neil O'Brien is expected to deliver a speech next month calling for an inquiry into the issue, with the possibility of banning addictive fruit flavours that have exploded in popularity in recent years.[1].

The Department of Health and Social Affairs is looking at ways to tackle vaping among young people. At the same time, the government wants to continue making these vaping products available to adult smokers as an alternative to smoking.

Growing concern about youth drug use

In a speech scheduled for May, Mr O'Brien will outline the government's concerns about e-cigarettes and launch a consultation to ask experts how best to protect children from highly addictive nicotine. He will also formally respond to the findings of Dr Javed Khan's independent review into the government's target of achieving a smoke-free generation in England and Wales by 2030.

The government wants to review all the features of vaping products currently on sale, including marketing, particularly the flavours available, but also the number of attractive brands. Some brands use cartoon characters as part of their marketing tactics to attract customers. The review will also look at how products are promoted on social media, often to a very young audience.

Recent data reveals that the proportion of teenagers vaping is increasing in the UK, with many influenced by social media platforms such as TikTok. New disposable e-cigarettes are growing in popularity, due to their low cost (average £5) and availability in a wide range of colours and fruity flavours.

Increasing restrictions on flavors

Many governments around the world have recently come out in favour of banning flavourings in vaping products in the interests of protecting young people and achieving a tobacco-free generation. In the UK, a Scottish Green MP[2] had already proposed to remove vaping product displays in stores and to ban attractive flavours for all vaping products. By the end of 2022, the Netherlands[3] have indicated that they will ban all flavors for vaping devices (whether disposable or not) by October 2023, with the exception of tobacco flavor.

In the United States, restrictions on the sale of flavored tobacco and nicotine products – including all menthol products – are gaining traction at the local and state levels with a growing number of cities banning the sale of flavored products.[4].

More recently in France, in February 2023, the National Committee Against Smoking (CNCT) published its study on new tobacco and nicotine products and made a similar recommendation by wishing to ban all flavours (except for tobacco flavour) for all products containing nicotine (excluding nicotine replacement treatments). In early March 2023, the Quebec government[5] also announced plans to ban flavors in vaping products except for tobacco flavor.

Keywords: UK, vaping, e-cigarettes, flavours, ban

AE

[1] Addictive fruit-flavored vapes could be banned, itv News, published 29 March 2023, accessed 3 April 2023

[2] Tobacco-free generation, Scottish MP proposes ban on attractive displays and flavours for vaping products, published on December 30, 2022, consulted on April 3, 2023

[3] Tobacco-free generation, Netherlands bans flavourings in vaping products, published on December 6, 2022, consulted on April 3, 2023

[4] Tobacco-free generation, Ban on flavors for nicotine products gains ground in the United States, published on February 27, 2023, consulted on April 3, 2023

[5] Tobacco-free generation, Quebec Considers Banning Flavors in Vaping Products, published March 8, 2023, accessed April 3, 2023