The Food and Drug Administration issued warning letters to 14 online retailers for selling or distributing unauthorized e-cigarette products.
The warning letters, sent Tuesday, cited the sale of youth-appealing disposable e-cigarette products marketed under several brand names, which include Elf Bar/EB Design, Lava Plus, Funky Republic/Funky Lands, Lost Mary, Cali Bars, Cali Plus, and Kangvape.
The warning letters were the result of the FDA’s nationwideongoing monitoring of multiple surveillance systems to identify products that are popular among youth or have youth appeal.The companies that received warning letters sold or distributed e-cigarettes that lack authorization from the FDA, in violation of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act. They have 15 working days to respond with how they will correct the violation and prevent future ones.
More than 50 percent of youth who use e-cigarettes reported using the disposable e-cigarette brand Elf Bar, according to data from the 2023 National Youth Tobacco Survey (NYTS).In 2023, the manufacturer of Elf Bar began marketing the product under the name “EB Design,” the agency said.
Brands including Lava Plus, Funky Republic/Funky Lands, Kangvape, Cali, and Breeze were also identified as popular or youth-appealing by the agency following review of retail sales data and emerging internal data from a survey among youth, the FDA said.
As of Jan. 30, the FDA has issued more than 440 warning letters and 88 civil money penalties (CMPs) to retailers for the sale of illegal e-cigarettes, including convenience stores.
To date, the agency has authorized 23 e-cigarette devices and tobacco-flavored e-cigarette products.
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