See you in court: obstacles to enforcing the ban on electronic cigarette flavours and marketing in Finland

Abstract

The aim of Finnish tobacco policy is to end the use of tobacco and other nicotine-containing products by 2030. Towards that end, the regulation of electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) in Finland is stricter than that in other European Union (EU) countries, including a ban on characterising flavours in e-cigarette liquids as well as on marketing e-cigarettes. This article describes the e-cigarette market, its regulation and the challenges faced in enforcing regulations in Finland. The materials used for this study include data from tobacco control authorities on retail licences, product notifications, and guidance and decisions concerning enforcing regulations, as well as public documents from the courts concerning e-cigarette-linked appeals on selling flavours and marketing e-cigarettes. Legislation and documents produced during legislative processes are also used. Access to e-cigarettes is limited, as only 5% of retailers for tobacco or nicotine products have a licence for retailing nicotine liquids. Liquids containing flavours but without nicotine are commonly sold by specialised e-cigarette shops and websites as foodstuffs. Effective regulation is hampered by the enormous number and variety of e-cigarette products notified for potential market access, limited resources for tobacco control to expand in scope and reluctance of the e-cigarette business to comply with the stricter regulations in Finland, resulting in court cases filed by e-cigarette businesses. Mounting evidence suggests that regulating flavours in e-cigarettes to protect youth is wise although not easy. Many counties are currently considering further regulations on e-cigarettes and so should the EU.

E-Cigarettes: A New Threat to Cardiovascular Health – A World Heart Federation Policy Brief

“…The Tobacco Act 2016 prohibits the sale and distribution of e-cigarettes to minors, online sales of e-cigarettes, flavouring agents that 'smell or taste other than one of tobacco' [27], and the use of e-cigarette anywhere tobacco cigarettes have been banned [27,28]. The legislation also prohibits the marketing and advertising of e-cigarettes, as well as the use of misleading claims [27,28]. Moreover, manufacturers are required to include appropriate labelling and health warnings on e-cigarette packages [28].…”

“…The Tobacco Act 2016 also subjects e-cigarette solutions to excise duty [27]. A number of studies have demonstrated that an increase in e-cigarette prices is directly related to a decline in e-cigarette sales [29,30].…”

E-cigarette retailer storefront availability following a nationwide prohibition of e-cigarettes in India: A multicentric compliance assessment

“…The ENDS/ENNDS prohibition in Brazil was motivated to prevent the population consuming a product whose safety and benefits were not yet confirmed, and, thus, the benefits of the prohibition are considered to outweigh the profits of sales of these products in the country 29 . Furthermore, with an abundance and variety of ENDS/ENNDS products, including e-liquid, available in the market, countries might encounter difficulties in formulating an effective regulation to assess the products under scrutiny 30 . As exemplified by Finland, the country’s policy on prohibition of characterising flavours in e-cigarette liquids and e-cigarette marketing was strongly challenged by e-cigarette businesses due to limited resources for tobacco control to expand in scope and the reluctance of the e-cigarettes industry to comply with the regulations 30 .…”

“…Furthermore, with an abundance and variety of ENDS/ENNDS products, including e-liquid, available in the market, countries might encounter difficulties in formulating an effective regulation to assess the products under scrutiny 30 . As exemplified by Finland, the country’s policy on prohibition of characterising flavours in e-cigarette liquids and e-cigarette marketing was strongly challenged by e-cigarette businesses due to limited resources for tobacco control to expand in scope and the reluctance of the e-cigarettes industry to comply with the regulations 30 . Therefore, a total prohibition of ENDS/ENNDS products is deemed justified, given the potential loopholes present in complicated ENDS/ENNDS regulations.…”

“…The ENDS/ENNDS prohibition in Brazil was motivated to prevent the population consuming a product whose safety and benefits were not yet confirmed, and, thus, the benefits of the prohibition are considered to outweigh the profits of sales of these products in the country 29 . Furthermore, with an abundance and variety of ENDS/ENNDS products, including e-liquid, available in the market, countries might encounter difficulties in formulating an effective regulation to assess the products under scrutiny 30 .…”