Fears for South African market if e-cigs are brought under tobacco regulation

There is growing fear in the South African vaping industry that an impending amendment to the country’s Tobacco Products Control Act (TPCA) will make it “easier to smoke than to vape”.

The government is planning to bring e-cigarettes – both with and without nicotine – into the terms of the act so that vaping will be controlled and regulated as tobacco products. There has also been a suggestion by the health department that e-cigs could be taxed.

Twisp, “the biggest vape brand in South Africa”, told ECigIntelligence: “One cannot solve one of the biggest health issues by regulating it with the problem. Should vaping be regulated as a tobacco product, it will invariably make it easier to smoke than to vape.

“It is imperative that the health ministry does not become complicit with the tobacco industry by over-regulating the vaping industry to the benefit of tobacco.”