China-Made Candy e-Cigs Flood U.S. After Juul's Flavors Banned

Since 2016, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has sought to crack down on fruity, sweet-flavored e-cigarettes that hook teenagers on nicotine.

Photo Insert: At least 20 brands continue to sell China-made disposable devices with kid-friendly flavors such as "peach blueberry candy" and “pineapple strawnana" at liquor stores, smoke shops, and convenience stores in the US.

But at least 20 brands continue to sell China-made disposable devices with kid-friendly flavors such as "peach blueberry candy" and “pineapple strawnana" at liquor stores, smoke shops, and convenience stores in the US, Reuters has found.

Flavored disposable vaping devices account for one-third of US e-cigarette sales, up from less than 2% three years ago, according to a Reuters review of retail sales data.

Their surge raises questions about the public health agency’s failure to rein in the booming flavored e-cigarette market and its ability to enforce its own rules, some critics say, Chris Kirkham, Arriana McLymore and Gigi Zamora reported for Reuters.

Findings by Reuters are drawn from a dataset produced by IRI, a Chicago market research firm that uses scanner data and other information to track retail purchases.

The IRI dataset, which measures purchases from Jan. 12, 2014, to June 12, 2022, provides a rare look at the rise of disposable flavored-nicotine devices following the FDA’s crackdown on Juul Labs Inc, 35%-owned by Marlboro maker Altria Group Inc.

The data shows for the first time that consumers spent more than $2 billion on the new generation of disposable e-cigarettes over the past year, surpassing Juul's once-leading market share by about 3 percentage points since March.

The data was shared with Reuters by an individual outside IRI, who declined to be identified. In 2019, IRI said it measures purchases at retailers including more than 30,000 convenience stores.

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