The British government said on Oct. 24 that single-use vapes will be banned beginning June 1, 2025, with the intention of combating the rise of youth vaping and preventing environmental harm.
Vape usage in England grew by more than 400% between 2012 and 2023, with 9.1% of the British public now buying and using these products, according to the British government's Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.
“Banning disposable vapes will not only protect the environment, but importantly reduce the appeal of vapes to children and keep them out of the hands of vulnerable young people,” said Andrew Gwynne, England’s minister for public health and prevention.
Making the sale of single-use vapes illegal, the British government said, delivers on the government’s commitment to act on this important issue and kick-starts the push towards a circular economy.
“This is the first step on the road to a circular economy, where we use resources for longer, reduce waste, accelerate the path to net-zero and create thousands of jobs across the country,” said Circular Economy Minister Mary Creagh.
In the United States, the results of the 2024 National Youth Tobacco Survey (NYTS) released in September reveal e-cigarette use among U.S. youth is declining.
The survey, from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), found the number of youth who used e-cigarettes in 2024 is “approximately one-third of what it was at its peak in 2019, when over 5 million youth reported current e-cigarette use,” the FDA said.
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