The Food and Drug Administration, U.S. Homeland Security Investigations and U.S. Customs and Border Protection seized more than 628,000 unauthorized e-cigarette products from a warehouse in Miami, the FDA said Friday.
The seized products valued at more than $7 million included mostly flavored, disposable e-cigarettes, including the Geek Bar brand, as well as some packs, kits and batteries.
Findings from the 2024 National Youth Tobacco Survey indicated that 5.8% of current youth e-cigarette users reported using products under the Geek Bar brand. The FDA said emerging data showed Geek Bar, a Chinese-owned and manufactured brand, identified as a brand that is popular among youth.
The FDA's Center for Tobacco Products Director Brian King said an all-government approach is critical to preventing unauthorized e-cigarettes from entering the United States.
“Today’s action is another step in the right direction, and we remain committed to continuing to work with our federal partners to continue to combat the entry of these illegal products head on,” King said.
The seizures resulted from warehouse sweeps conducted by Customs and Border Protection, which uncovered shipments of various illegal e-cigarette products originating in China and intended for shipment to various U.S. states, the agency said.
Most of these unauthorized e-cigarettes were intentionally mis-declared as items with no connection to vaping products and with incorrect values, the agency said.
All shipments originated in China and the merchandise will be forfeited to the government and disposed, according to the FDA.
To date the FDA has authorized 34 e-cigarette products and devices.
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