The Food and Drug Administration issued warning letters to 80 brick-and-mortar retailers in 15 different states for the sale of unauthorized Elf Bar and Lost Mary e-cigarette products that appeal to youth, the agency said Thursday.
The FDA is also seeking civil money penalties (CMP) against eight other retailers, which the agency previously issued warning letters for their sale of unauthorized tobacco products. Follow-up inspections revealed that the retailers had failed to correct the violations, and the agency said it is now seeking $20,678 from each retailer.
Lost Mary is manufactured by the same firm as Elf Bar, which is a commonly used brand among youth e-cigarettes, according to the 2023 National Youth Tobacco Survey.
Retailers that received the warning letters have 15 working days to respond with how they will correct the violation and prevent future ones.
The FDA has issued more than 690 warning letters and more than 140 civil money penalty actions to retailers for the sale of unauthorized e-cigarettes. To date, the FDA has authorized 34 e-cigarette products and devices. These are the only e-cigarette products, which are currently the only e-cigarette products that may be legally sold in the United States.
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