The Food and Drug Administration and U.S. Customs and Border Protection seized nearly 2 million units of unauthorized e-cigarette products in Chicago. The products had an estimated retail value of $33.8 million, the FDA said.
The seizures, which occurred in February, were part of a joint federal operation to examine incoming shipments and prevent illegal e-cigarettes from entering the country, the agency said.
Most of the e-cigarette products originated in China and were intended for shipment to various U.S. states, the FDA said, and shipments contained vague product descriptions with incorrect values. Several brands of unauthorized e-cigarettes were found including Snoopy Smoke and Raz, among others, the agencies said.
“The FDA, working with our federal partners, can and will do more to stop the illegal importation and distribution of e-cigarette products in the United States,” said FDA Commissioner Marty Makary. “Seizures of illegal e-cigarettes keep products that haven’t been authorized by the FDA out of the United States and out of the hands of our nation’s youth.”
The FDA continues to see an increased number of shipments of vaping products packaged and mislabeled to avoid detection, said Bret Koplow, the newly named acting director of the FDA’s Center for Tobacco Products.
“However, we have been successful at preventing these shipments from entering the U.S. supply chain – despite efforts to conceal the true identity of these unauthorized e-cigarette products,” he said.
All products seized lacked the mandatory premarket authorization orders from the FDA and therefore could not be legally sold or distributed in the United States, the FDA said. Some shipments violated the FDA’s Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act, while others were also seized for Intellectual Property Rights violations for unauthorized use of protected trademarks.
For the first time, the FDA said it also sent import informational letters to 24 tobacco importers and entry filers responsible for importing the illegal e-cigarettes. The letters advise the firms to ensure their import entries contain complete and accurate information moving forward.
In addition to seizures, the FDA has issued more than 750 warning letters to companies for manufacturing, selling or distributing unauthorized new tobacco products. It has also issued more than 800 warning letters to retailers for selling these products and filed civil money penalty complaints against 87 manufacturers and more than 175 retailers for their distribution or sale.
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