CCTV, Beijing, December 3 （Reporter Zhang Mianmian） According to the China Voice of China Central Radio and Television “News”, in the past period of time, electronic cigarettes with labels such as quit smoking, substitute cigarettes, and play cool were blurred. In addition to its own tobacco properties, it has attracted a large wave of consumers, and even minors have joined it. On December 2, the China Tobacco announced the “Administrative Measures for Electronic Cigarettes （Draft for Comment）。” It mentioned that the State Council’s tobacco monopoly administrative department has established a unified national e-cigarette transaction management platform. In the future, e-cigarettes will be managed with reference to cigarettes, and permits must be obtained from production, wholesale, and retail.
E-cigarettes refer to electronic delivery products that produce nicotine-containing aerosols for people to smoke. In fact, some e-cigarette products not only have excessive nicotine content, but even add chemical compounds with unknown ingredients, which pose a more serious potential threat to consumers’ health. In the future, what kind of supervision will e-cigarettes face?
In recent years, due to regulatory gaps, the e-cigarette industry has developed disorderly, and some products have problems such as unclear nicotine content, unknown added ingredients, and e-liquid leakage. Liu Peifeng, Director of the Department of Foreign Affairs of the China Tobacco and spokesperson for the press, said: “Some operators use’healthy’ to help quit smoking’ and other propaganda that violates objective facts or has no evidence to prove to mislead consumers, and overemphasize e-cigarettes. In order to induce minors to smoke and harm the physical and mental health of minors for the “fashion” trend, all sectors of the society have expressed strong feedback and continue to call for strengthened supervision. In this regard, the Party Central Committee and the State Council have attached great importance to them and decided to amend the implementation regulations and strengthen the protection of electronics in accordance with the law. Supervision of new tobacco products such as cigarettes.”
The implementation regulations are revised this time to supervise new tobacco products such as e-cigarettes with reference to cigarettes. Wang Yulin, Director of the Policy, Regulations and System Reform Department of the China Tobacco, said: “Establishing an e-cigarette product quality and safety guarantee system and an e-cigarette product traceability system, market entities engaged in e-cigarette production, wholesale and retail business must obtain the tobacco monopoly administration accordingly. License issued by the competent authority. Establish a unified national e-cigarette transaction management platform. E-cigarette products shall comply with the national standards for e-cigarettes and the relevant provisions on packaging logos and warnings, and use registered trademarks in accordance with the law. E-cigarette advertisements shall apply to tobacco advertisements. Provisions. The State Council’s tobacco monopoly administrative department shall supervise and manage the import and export trade of electronic cigarettes and foreign economic and technological cooperation in accordance with the law.”
At the same time, the China Tobacco is currently working with the General Administration of Market Supervision and the National Standardization Administration to study and formulate mandatory national standards for e-cigarettes and publicly solicit opinions from the public, focusing on e-cigarettes and materials, atomizers, additives, and emissions. Risk points put forward strict requirements. Qian Hang, Director of the Science and Technology Department of the China Tobacco, said: “In terms of product form, e-cigarettes and cartridges that use e-cigarette liquid should have a closed structure. Regarding nicotine, the concentration of nicotine in the atom should not be higher than 20. Mg/g, the total amount of nicotine should not be higher than 200 mg. Regarding mist additives, please refer to the management requirements of my country’s food additives.”
According to Wang Yulin, products included in the scope of supervision include e-cigarette cartridges, smoking accessories, products sold in combination with cartridges and smoking accessories, and nicotine for e-cigarettes.
“It needs to be emphasized that heated cigarettes （also called heat-not-burn cigarettes, low-temperature cigarettes, etc.） are cigarettes, which have been included in cigarette management and are directly applicable to the “Tobacco Monopoly Law of the People’s Republic of China” and its implementation regulations on cigarettes. In accordance with laws and regulations, the sale of heated cigarettes has not been approved within the territory of the People’s Republic of China, and no market entity may illegally operate heated cigarettes.” Wang Yulin said.
From a global perspective, at present, the European Union and the United States have chosen to include e-cigarettes in the scope of tobacco product control. Zhang Quan, Director of the Development Planning Department of the China Tobacco, said that the Secretariat of the International Organization for Standardization/Tobacco and Tobacco Products Technical Committee clearly proposed to include e-cigarettes in the scope of tobacco products.
Zhang Quan is introducing: “More than 50 countries and regions in the world have included e-cigarettes in the scope of tobacco product control, and more than 40 countries have clearly banned the sale of e-cigarettes. Due to the proliferation of illegal trade after the prohibition, some countries have begun to completely ban e-cigarettes. Turn to supervise e-cigarettes in accordance with tobacco products.”
Considering that there is a process for the formulation and promulgation of e-cigarette management measures and e-cigarette national standards, etc., at the same time, in order to protect the legitimate rights and interests of e-cigarette production and operation entities, better implement relevant regulatory requirements, and protect the legitimate rights and interests of consumers, a certain amount of Transition period. Liu Peifeng said that during the transition period, the existing electronic cigarette production and operation entities can carry out normal production and operation activities. At this stage, tobacco monopoly administrative departments at all levels will temporarily not accept applications for licenses and product registrations for the production and retail of electronic cigarette production and operation entities, and will not accept new electronic cigarette retail business licenses for market operators that hold tobacco monopoly retail licenses. Application （the specific acceptance time will be notified separately）； the market supervision department will temporarily not issue business licenses for various types of electronic cigarette production and operation entities in accordance with relevant regulations.
Liu Peifeng said: “After the transition period is over, only e-cigarette production and operation entities that have obtained access permits and whose products meet national standards can carry out investment, construction, production and operation activities. Failed to obtain access permits, products that do not meet national standards and fail to pass registration, etc. , Shall not engage in e-cigarette-related business, otherwise it will be investigated and punished in accordance with the law.”