Kalinka and raspberry remain: what was really banned from being added to vapes

Flavors of liquids for smoking devices have not been regulated, only their composition and safety

Previously, a number of media reported that from March 1 the state would introduce a ban on some vaping flavors. Then the publications were corrected, and everything fell into place.

What they wrote

On March 1, a ban on a wide range of food flavorings for vape liquids came into force, the draft of which was prepared by the Ministry of Health last year. In essence, this is a ban on vapes with flavors of fruits, berries, etc.

The authors of the bill explain this need by the fact that these components help increase the attractiveness of liquids for consumers.

However, according to statistics from VTsIOM, the increase in vaping consumption is due to other reasons:

— 49% of respondents choose electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) because they are less harmful to health;

— 29% choose vaping because it can be used where smoking cigarettes is not allowed;

— for 25% of respondents, ENDS is an attempt to quit smoking;

— 48% note the absence of an unpleasant odor on clothes.

This fact is also confirmed by the practice of the United States, where, despite the ban on fruit, candy, mint and dessert flavors introduced by the FDA in 2020, the consumption of ENDS is growing every year (according to NCHS):

— in 2020, there was a decrease in consumption by less than 1% compared to 2019;

— in the first quarter of 2021, the percentage of consumption reached a value equal to that of 2019;

— by the end of 2022, ENDS consumption increased by 2.5% compared to the fourth quarter of 2019.

The second argument in favor of banning flavors concerns the preferences of teenagers: young vapers choose candy flavors rather than tobacco flavor. But how can this argument have any basis if the sale of vapes, like cigarettes, to persons under 18 years of age is prohibited in Russia? Teenagers have long entered the illegal market of electronic cigarettes, and the ban in this situation is like a poultice for the dead. More control is needed, not sanctions on tasty additives.

What really

The draft list of substances to be banned, prepared by the Ministry of Health last year, was not adopted. It was sent for revision. And the document that came into force on March 1, 2024, which the media confused with the list, is nothing more than changes to GOST R 58109-2018 “Liquids for electronic nicotine delivery systems.”

The updated clauses of the standard actually spell out new requirements for packaging and raw materials for vape liquids. But among the ingredients prohibited for use, there is not a word about flavors. Only those components are indicated that are proposed to be banned by the draft EAEU Technical Regulations being developed for nicotine-containing products. The harm of these components has been scientifically proven, and their presence in ENDS liquids really needs to be monitored.

This balanced, scientifically based approach is logical in every sense. After all, a “blind” and “emotional” total ban on tastes is equivalent to a ban on a category. This will inevitably lead to a reorientation of the vape market back to the illegal sector. But he just started to whitewash himself and act legally. The loss of state control over products (both from the point of view of their compliance with requirements and from the point of view of inaccessibility to minors) carries risks for the health of consumers (and there are more than 5 million of them in Russia), as well as large losses for the state budget – over a five-year horizon, more than 760 billion rubles.