The Canadian tobacco industry is warning against “knee-jerk” reactions that would lead to additional regulation in the wake a growing series of respiratory illnesses in the U.S. and Canada that appear to be linked to vaping products.
The Canadian vaping industry — in which sales are projected to hit $895 million in 2019 — is dominated by JUUL Labs Inc, but the national tobacco titans have also had a presence since it was legalized in 2018 and see it as a potential way to offset their shrinking cigarette businesses. Health groups and lawmakers have both targeted flavour bans due to their popularity among underage vapers, who make up a significant percentage of those being stricken by lung illness. In the U.S. 16 per cent of the 530 reported cases of vaping-linked lung illness were contracted by people under 18 years old.
Through its Vype brand, Imperial did not have any of the candy or confectionary flavours that Gagnon highlighted for sale on its website. Most of Vype’s flavours are fruit-based, including “berry blast,” “mango wonder,” and “strawberry smash,” which Gagnon said help adults wean away from cigarettes. Still, Gaulin would not support a complete flavour ban. Rather, Gaulin suggested regulations tackling “open-system” vaping, in which consumers fill their e-cigarettes with flavoured liquids themselves instead of inserting cartridges into a pen .
Cynthia Callard, executive director of Physicians for a Smoke-Free Canada, has heard both suggestions before. A decade ago, the tobacco industry already used price increases to address the first hints of declines in cigarette sales and it has remained their strategy since, she said. The suggestion to increase enforcement is also a familiar one to Callard, who said tobacco companies had been pushing the enforcement angle on cigarettes long before vaping entered the market.