Trump Administration Announces FDA to Ban Vape Pod Flavors
In early January 2020, the FDA announced it would prioritize enforcement against flavored cartridge-based e-cigarettes, meaning pre-filled pods in any flavor other than tobacco or menthol. Bottled e-liquid and open-system hardware such as mods and coils were not included, so shops like ours could keep selling vape juice to adults.
Short version: The 2020 flavor policy targeted pre-filled pods and cartridges, not bottled e-liquid. The bigger worry for small businesses was the PMTA deadline that followed.
How we got there
On September 11, 2019, President Trump announced a plan to ban flavored e-cigarettes. Adult vapers and small businesses answered with a social media campaign under the hashtag #wevapewevote, and the administration stepped back from a full ban, citing concerns about job losses. It later held a White House discussion with voices from both sides of the debate.
Who the policy hit
The policy mainly affected pod brands backed by big tobacco companies, such as JUUL (then partly owned by Altria), blu and Vuse, which dominated sales in convenience stores and gas stations. JUUL had already stopped selling pods in flavors other than tobacco and menthol the year before.
Because bottled e-liquid was left alone, ZampleBox, independent vape shops and e-liquid makers across the country could keep operating, which we called fantastic news at the time.
The PMTA problem
The flavor policy wasn’t the end of it. Every vaping product still needed a premarket tobacco product application, or PMTA, to stay on the market, and each flavor, nicotine strength and bottle size could count as a separate product. Small e-liquid makers worried they couldn’t afford applications for whole product lines, and we asked whether the ruling had only postponed the industry’s troubles.
Where things stand now
The PMTA deadline arrived in September 2020, and many products are still under FDA review. Federal law has set the minimum age at 21 since December 2019, and flavor rules vary by state and city and change often, so check the rules where you live. You can still shop vape juice and disposable vapes on our site, or let the Zamplebox Club curate a monthly box for you.
WARNING: This product contains nicotine. Nicotine is an addictive chemical. For adults 21+ only.