Gov. Gretechen Whitmer recently announced her state to be the first to ban electronic cigarette flavors - claiming that companies that offer flavored e-liquids and candy packaging are meant to “hook children on nicotine.” Even though the temporary ban lasts only 6 months, many vape store owners are already feeling the pressure.
The bill, meant to prohibit the sale of flavored e-cigarette products, is meant to abrupt the teen vaping epidemic. Local vape shops and distributors will have 30 days to comply with the regulations or face up 6 months in jail and be additionally fined for every product sold. Consumers that are caught with more than 4 bottles of flavored e-liquid can also face similar consequences.
With these new regulations, small business owners will have to adjust or risk jeopardizing their business. This goes without saying that many owners agree that the ban will kill the vaping industry in Michigan as many have stated that 99% of their sales come from flavored e-liquid.
President of the American Vaping Association, Gregory Conley, said “This shameless attempt at backdoor prohibition will close down several hundred Michigan small businesses and could send tens of thousands of ex-smokers back to deadly combustible cigarettes.”
This new ban will probably create an enormous black market as many vapers use flavored e-liquids as a replacement to traditional cigarettes.
Let’s just hope the flavor ban won’t work as intended as this ban just inconveniences adult users from finding a healthier smoking alternative.