The American Cancer Society has made it clear that it wants nothing to do with Elfbar after a notorious Chinese e-cigarette company hinted at a partnership last month. It also says that you can keep the
ACS chief legal officer Timothy Phillips said in a statement to Stat, “The American Cancer Society is not affiliated with or receives funding from tobacco companies and has no further commitments to Elf Bar. I sent a letter of cancellation and withdrawal to prevent public deception.” News.In an email to Ars, the association said it had sent a cease and desist letter to Elfbar last Friday but had not received a response.
Elfbar did not immediately respond to Ars’ request for comment.
The fuss began in mid-January when Elfbar announced a program called the “Lighthouse Guardian Program” aimed at preventing minors from using their products. The program includes a donation component, and Elfbar makes a generous 10-cent donation to the United States whenever someone clicks a button labeled “Join to Light” on the American Cancer Society’s website. I said I would go to the Cancer Society.
In a press release about the program, Elfbar CEO Victor Xiao was quoted as saying, “Total donations exceed $10,000.”
When clicked, the button changes to “Thanks For Lighting Up” and opens a box asking the user to enter their email address and write a comment. “You are doing something different[sic]It is unclear how the user’s e-mail address is used.
At the time of publication, Elfbar’s website had received over 30,000 clicks.
Phillips told Stat that ACS should “immediately stop using the American Cancer Society name that falsely suggests an association with ACS,” including removing all references to ACS in its marketing materials. He said he sent a cease and desist letter requesting
Elfbar appears to have deleted the ACS-named press release that was circulated on the PR Newswire, but reissues can still be found elsewhere. The Chinese e-cigarette company’s website also removed any reference to ACS and said the 10-cent donation would go to an unnamed “non-profit organization.” However, as Stat pointed out, his Facebook account for the company still contains a post identifying his ACS.
regulatory loophole
Elfbar’s ostensibly anti-youth e-cigarette program not only irritates ACS, but also accuses Elfbar and the makers of similar products of continuing to addict teens to nicotine through regulatory loopholes and other health and youth advocates. Elfbar sells single-use vape products containing youth-friendly flavors. We currently sell flavors such as vanilla ice cream, strawberry watermelon bubblegum, and blue cotton candy. Such fruity, youth-appealing flavors became widely popular among teens with the introduction of his Juul a few years ago. And they were later banned by the Food and Drug Administration for that reason.
But there is a loophole here. Regulators have banned such flavors only from pre-filled, closed-system e-cigarettes like Juul. Disposable or refillable systems are not prohibited from having fruity flavors. As such, its popularity skyrocketed after the limited FDA ban that took effect in early 2020. Keeping up with the vape market.
Data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show that from 2019 to 2020, the use of single-use vape products among high school e-cigarette users increased by nearly 1,000% (from 2.4% to 26.5%), and by about 400% ( 3.0% to 26.5%). 15.2% of e-cigarette users in junior high school at the time).
A 2022 CDC study of youth e-cigarettes found that trend continues. Of the 2.55 million U.S. middle school and high school students who reported using e-cigarettes in 2022, disposable vape products were the most commonly used type of product, with usage rates surpassing high school e-cigarette users. 57% of junior high school students and 46% of junior high school students. school users. The most common brand reported was Puff Bar (the use of Elfbar was not specifically investigated in this study).
In 2002, 85% of adolescent e-cigarette users used flavored products. Specifically, 70% reported using fruity flavors and 40% reported using candy, dessert, or other sweet flavors.
