Disposable vapes. They’re everywhere right now, and with some state bans on flavors and the implementation of the 21 and over tobacco rule, we are seeing more and more of these devices that are not authentic.

It makes me wonder: is this a preview of what a dangerous and unregulated black market will look like if the FDA continues to deny vaping as tobacco harm reduction and continue its crusade to ban flavors?

Elfbar, the new JUUL/Puff Bar is one of the most popular disposables on the market right now in the US.

Personally, I do not have an issue with disposables. They are convenient and a lot of vapers use them to quit smoking. We all know that quitting smoking with vaping is not a “one size fits all” solution. Options are what make vaping so successful. I believe that all forms of harm reduction should be embraced and approved in the US. 

What we are beginning to see now, however, is more of an issue. When closed pod systems were heavily restricted in the US and disposables were spared, we saw a flood of disposables hit the market. Some from reputable companies just tried every avenue to stay afloat, but what we also saw were a lot more new brands coming into the US from China.

Elfbar, which does currently have a PMTA filed for their synthetic disposables, quickly became a hit and just as quickly took the place of JUUL and Puff Bar as public enemy number one in the eyes of organizations like Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids and the Truth Initiative. 

Elfbar itself is not the issue; the clones of these disposables are. To someone who doesn’t know how to verify their disposables, Elfbar offers an option on their website.

At Ecig Charleston, we have an internal group chat to share information instantly between locations. Just yesterday, we had a customer come in saying the disposable she purchased at another shop “tasted funny” and didn’t “look right.”  See the image below that the employee provided in comparison to an authentic Elfbar product. (Authentic product is on the left side of the image)

The only difference aside from the color is the font, as you can plainly see it is easy to be fooled by these clone products. 

The employee then went a step further and used Elfbar’s online verification to see if she could verify the customer’s product and then our product.

This first glimpse of what a black market could look like here in the US is a real eye-opener.

If the FDA really wants to do what is best for public health, it should approve more products from responsible companies that are only selling these products to adults to help them quit smoking.

Vaping is not going anywhere and the idea of these products all being pushed to a black market is truly scary. There is no way in my mind that a black market for vaping is safer than a regulated one. 

If the FDA hasn’t learned how dangerous prohibition has been in the past, I feel they will quickly learn that the decisions they are making are truly not appropriate for public health. I hope they recognize this error before someone gets sick or worse.