Yesterday, the FDA released a list of 55 companies throughout the country to whom they issued compliance letters. These companies, according to the FDA, sold newly-regulated products to minors. While we at Draper Vapor agree that no shop should be selling to minors, there are also a few major problems with these warning citations.
The compliance checks were done directly toward “a variety of youth-appealing flavors, including bubble gum, cotton candy, and gummy bear” according to the press release sent out by the FDA. It’s fairly obvious that they’re trying to make a point here in an ostensible attempt to keep “enticing” flavors out of vape products. There is a huge problem with this mentality. Think about it – what are some of your favorite things to eat or drink? Do you enjoy the taste of a rich, buttery cake? How about a fruit salad concoction with perfectly balanced flavors? These things taste good to kids, and minors certainly love a yummy treat, but so do you. So do we; legal adults, with the right to enjoy these flavors. If the government is already trying to make it seem like the vaping industry is pulling in children with yummy flavors, it’s not difficult to see the path they’re trying to take, and that path will lead to you not getting to enjoy your favorites, because someone younger MIGHT like it too.
It looks like the FDA hired minors to try to purchase these products around the country. While this is a common tactic, it goes against the idea that they are projecting. The government regulatory body claims that it wants to restrict underage buyers, which is great. But the impression they give is that they want to keep innocent, unsuspecting children from getting hold of these products. If they are paying children, giving them fake information to use, and directing them which specific products to purchase, these are not unsuspecting children. They are employees doing what they are told to do. Should those minors have gotten access to vape products simply because they knew what they were getting? No, of course not! Should the government be able to make it virtually impossible to detect the lies? We don’t think so.
A total of 27 of the 55 companies hit by these notices – a full half of them – were online shops. There are several shops out there that sell their products online. According to the deeming regulations, they need to have age verification systems in place, to ensure they aren’t selling to minors. Several, if not all, of the shops listed that got notices have this verification in place. Unfortunately, the verification failed for one reason or another. And this isn’t free software that hasn’t been tested. They were using the top-of-the-line, industry leading age verification software. At least one of these software companies is stating that it was a failure of the eCommerce platforms, not their software. Really we don’t know where the failure was.
However, what it comes down to is that these companies actually used the software in place. They were working to ensure they weren’t selling to minors. And they were still screwed over. One of the companies, Jvapes, has publicly stated they have actually been using age verification for several years, before all of the regulations went into place. And yet, somehow, as soon as the regulations went into place, the verification failed? This company also stated that the purchase that went through happened just a couple of days after the regulations were officially in place.
It’s possible that the FDA specifically gave instructions to the minor purchasing on how to get around the software. This doesn’t seem like something that your normal teenager would know how to do or get away with on a regular basis. Truly, it looks and feels like entrapment.
Because of these regulations, many shops are having to add extra protections if they want to sell online. Some shops require that buyers send in a selfie with their ID – an extreme measure, but possibly necessary. This is costing sales, and making many vapers turn to purchasing products from outside the country. If the age verification processes in place don’t work, what else are these online shops supposed to do? Many online stores are also going out of business because they’re afraid of the regulations or simply can’t keep up with the requirements.
As more shops are hit by this, the vaping community will see a drop in the option to purchase online. In fact, regulations and the concern of issues like this is exactly why Draper Vapor doesn’t sell products online. We want to be around for the long-haul, and the best way to do that is to make sure we’re following the FDA regulations to the letter. Do we agree with the regulations? Not all of them. They’re not good for small businesses. They’re damaging, and will end up hurting a lot of people and communities in the long run, but it’s the law, and we’re going to follow it.