The FDA is asking 180 stores to stop selling Elf Bar vapes and other e-cigarettes

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has ordered more than 180 stores nationwide to stop selling fruit and candy-flavored e-cigarettes.

Eleven Bars – the most popular disposable brand in the US – and Esco Bars came under fire because of their appeal to youth.

Unapproved for use by the FDA, e-cigarettes have previously been linked to health problems, including lung damage and heart problems, and may lead teens to try other drugs.

Eleven Bars – the most popular disposable brand in the US – and Esco Bars came under fire because of their appeal to youth.

Brian King, director of the agency’s Center for Tobacco Products, warned, “This latest action should be a wake-up call for retailers.” If they are waiting for a personal request to comply with the law, they may simply receive it in the form of a warning letter or other action from the FDA.”

As part of the raid, letters were sent to businesses in as many as 30 states between June 5 and 16 this year following a “nationwide inspection operation.”

The FDA has cracked down on the use of flavored disposable e-cigarettes like Elf Bars

Shops were ordered to immediately withdraw the illegal products from sale.

dr Robert Califf, FDA Commissioner, said, “The FDA stands ready to use all of its authority to ensure this and other illegal and child-friendly products are kept out of the reach of children.”

“We are committed to a multi-pronged approach that leverages regulation, compliance and enforcement, and education to protect our nation’s youth.”

Last month, the agency also issued orders allowing customs officials to seize shipments of Elf Bars and Esco Bars in US ports.

They also warned 30 stores about their sellout of the bars.

The FDA has tried to crack down on the sale of flavored e-cigarettes due to the surge in their use among teenagers.

A 2022 agency survey found that over nine percent of American teens use e-cigarettes.

More than 14 percent of high school students in the US – approximately 2.14 million teenagers – currently use e-cigarettes.

In 2020, the FDA restricted the use of flavors in reusable e-cigarettes to only menthol and tobacco — which are more appealing to adults.

This has led to an explosion of products in the disposable vaping industry that continue to use the flavors.

Data shows that more than 2.5 million children in the US are using e-cigarettes — a half-million increase from the previous year and a reversal of the downward trends of recent years

The market was initially led by Puff Bars, which sold hundreds of millions of e-cigarettes nationwide until the FDA cracked down on the business.

Sales data now shows that Elf Bars, made in China by iMiracle Shezhen, is the market leader and has become the country’s third most popular e-cigarette.

Single-use vapes now account for 52 percent of sales, compared to 24.5 percent in early 2020.

At the same time, the popularity of e-cigarettes increased by almost 50 percent during the pandemic due to popular flavors.

A report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that over 7 million more e-cigarette products were sold in America in December 2022, compared to 15.5 million in January 2020 (an increase of almost 47 percent).

While sales of menthol variants – the formerly most popular flavor – fell slightly, sales of fruit and sweet flavors increased from 29 percent to almost 41 percent.