Retailers must remove most flavors of cartridge units from their shelves ahead of the deadline
By NACS Online // January 10, 2020
ALEXANDRIA, Va.—The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Tuesday officially published its final guidance in the Federal Register banning most flavored cartridge-based e-cigarettes, except for tobacco and menthol flavors. The guidance permits the sale of e-liquid flavors used in open vaping systems and in disposable, single-use vape products.
The effective date when stores must remove cartridge-based e-cigarettes from their shelves will be February 6. NACS has created signage for members to display to customers noting this new policy. To get the signage, members may click here.
The FDA final guidance focuses on which products can and cannot be sold rather than the locations in which those products are sold. NACS has been a vocal advocate for the fair treatment of retailers selling tobacco products and strongly opposed the initial efforts by the FDA to permit sales of flavored e-cigarettes in retail stores that are considered adult-only, such as vape shops and tobacco outlets, while prohibiting them in convenience stores.
“It would appear that the FDA heeded our concerns regarding a level playing field among retailers and adjusted their final guidance policy accordingly,” said Lyle Beckwith, NACS senior vice president of government relations, in the NACS Daily story announcing the guidance.
