Last week, the FDA ruled that Juul, the primary maker of smokeless tobacco products worldwide, cannot sell or market their product in the United States anymore. The ban comes after years of back and forth between regulators and the company. Juul has been heavily invested in by Altria, the primary manufacturer of cigarettes and other forms of tobacco in the US.

What Does the FDA’s Juul Ban Include?

The ban takes place in the form of marketing denial orders from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The orders, enforceable through court actions, mandate that the company must stop selling and distributing “all of their products currently marketed in the US marketplace.”

Products that have been targeted include the Juul e-cigarette d and four types of Juul pods. The products include tobacco-flavored pods with Nicotine as well as menthol-flavored pods.

Due to years of marketing to younger people, Juul has come under scrutiny. If they refuse to stop selling their products, enforcement activity can take place, which can effectively sue the company or even seize their property or face criminal charges.

Claims Of Deceptive Marketing Practices To Young People

Claims of marketing to young people, especially teens, have been made for years against the company, and the FDA has punished Juul several times for its marketing practices.

The marketing worked, according to the CDC research. Two-thirds of Juul users aged 12-24 did not know that the company’s products were addictive, harmful, or contained nicotine. Kids started getting addicted. Schools had trouble keeping track of the devices because they released vapor, not smoke. Smells from vaporized nicotine are harder to trace.

Juul admits a single Juul pod contains as much nicotine as a pack of 20 regular cigarettes. However, they contend that it just isn’t as harmful as smoking cigarettes. There have also been vaping scandals where counterfeit products caused severe lung injuries.

As with many drugs, there is a danger of the purchase and sale going underground. Counterfeit vapes are still dangerous, and there will be many desperate young people in need of their nicotine fix.