It’s no secret to anyone in the industry that the Biden administration wants to put the brakes on vaping. The re-nomination of Dr. Robert Califf as FDA Commissioner already has blowback from a divided Senate from Democrats who are concerned about Dr. Califf’s ties to the pharmaceutical industry.
The issue goes further than the FDA: anti-vaping advocates are present in the executive and legislative branches, amplifying the calls to more tightly regulate the industry. However, like in many other highly regulated industries, there are going to be pushbacks on any total bans. For vaping, there is one flavor that is preventing national action: menthol.
Why has menthol somehow survived years of regulation, and why is it going to be a sticking point for the Biden administration’s attempts to regulate the industry? The eJuices.co team will take a look at why menthol has survived government regulation.
How Menthol Survived Regulation
For those who have previously used traditional nicotine products, menthol is generally associated with a gentler, cooler feeling in contrast to the harsh throat hit of tobacco-flavored traditional nicotine products. The FDA faced off against anti-tobacco groups in a federal district court concerning menthol flavors on November 18, and more court battles are yet to come as the vaping industry continues to advocate on behalf of vapers using alternative nicotine products. But to truly understand why menthol is a sticking point for the Biden administration and anti-tobacco groups, we must look at why menthol has often been exempted from flavor bans.
According to Joelle Lester, the director of commercial tobacco control programs at the Public Law Health Center in St. Paul, Minnesota, “The FDA has put itself in a position of having sort of a tension between its action on menthol cigarettes and other kinds of flavored tobacco products—most specifically e-cigarettes.” The 2009 Tobacco Control Act banned all flavored cigarettes, leaving menthol as the sole exception.
One thing that should be alarming to both sides of the aisle is the rise of the sale of traditional nicotine products—namely cigarettes. This was the first uptick in 20 years, and many factors have led to this, namely the restrictions placed on alternative nicotine products such as vape juice. While individual states have taken their own action regarding vaping products, either raising excise taxes or banning flavors outright, it is also possible that national action on vaping could be around the corner, which may exacerbate this issue.
Is Banning Menthol Racist?
Another issue that we should look at regarding menthol is race. African Americans tend to consume menthol-flavored traditional nicotine products at higher rates than the general population. Naturally, this would also extend to alternative nicotine consumption methods such as vaping. Mentholated vape juices are also popular among vapers across the board, with mentholated versions of popular vape juices being among the best-sellers here on eJuices.co.
In fact, some have argued that tobacco control is racist. In 2020, African American politicians such as Rep. Jim Clyburn (D-SC) and Rep. Yvette Clarke (D-NY) have expressed concerns about banning menthol, claiming it would lead to even more over-policing of black communities. Rep. Karen Bass (D-CA), who is also African American, held a different view on the topic, supporting the menthol ban. “The tobacco industry targets the African American population with menthol,” she said.
Prominent African American activists such as Rev. Al Sharpton have also fought against menthol bans in cities such as San Francisco and New York City. Rev. Sharpton argued that banning menthol cigarettes would increase the risk for interactions between black smokers and the police. One such high-profile interaction involved Eric Garner, an African American man, who was killed by a NYPD officer in 2014 for selling loose cigarettes in Staten Island.
A 2019 study showed that vaping is generally an activity enjoyed by white, higher-income individuals. In a previous State of Vape, we discussed why vaping was cheaper than other forms of nicotine consumption. Given that incomes widely vary among racial and ethnic groups, the (relatively) lower cost of vaping should lower the barrier to entry and allow all individuals who wish to use alternative nicotine products access to those products, thus why menthol (and vaping in general) also intersects with racial issues.
What This Means For Your Business
With tobacco control groups still divided on how to approach the issue of menthol (especially from a perspective of racial justice), this could allow you to take action on behalf of your customers. For example, if you have a diverse customer base, you can talk about how their use of vaping products has not only helped with harm reduction but also brought some form of economic justice as well through how much vapers have saved through purchasing alternative nicotine products. This could also play into extending a hand to potential customers of diverse backgrounds who may have a different perspective of vaping compared to traditional nicotine products.
That’s all for this edition of the State of Vape. If you have any questions, comments, or concerns, you can always contact your eJuices.co account manager or sales representative. We’re looking forward to having a conversation with you and helping your business succeed.