While some of the new FDA regulations are set to take effect here on August 10th, we’re still about two years out from when the worst parts kick in. In two years we will see the moment when all non-FDA approved vaping products will be banned, aka the Vapepocalypse. Some vaping companies have used this window of time to start the fight early by suing the FDA for their illegal, deadly regulations.
Since the e-liquid companies will be the hardest hit due to the fact that they will have to pony up about a million bucks per variation of their product (and let’s face it, most of these companies are close to being broke due to the amount of competition), it’s no surprise that they are leading the charge in the legal battle against the evil FDA regulations.
On May 10th Nicopure Labs LLC filed a lawsuit against the FDA alleging that the FDA’s rulemaking process violated the Administrative Procedure Act and that the regulation violates the First Amendment.
Jason del Giudice, the company’s chief technology officer and co-founder, said the following:
“FDA’s rule does not protect the consumer from low quality products; instead, it places a disproportionate and unjustified regulatory burden on compliant companies such as ourselves, who are determined to drive the industry to the highest standards of quality and innovation.
Then on May 19th Lost Art Liquids LLC filed a lawsuit in the Central District of California that challenges the FDA’s purported authority to deem and regulate e-liquids and other vapor products as “tobacco products” under the Tobacco Control Act and asserts claims against FDA for violations of the Regulatory Flexibility Act, the 1st and 5th Amendments, and the Administrative Procedures Act.
Lost Art Liquids’ CEO Brian Worthy made the following statement about their lawsuit:
“Lost Art Liquids is and has always been committed to producing the highest quality, safest, and most innovative premium e-liquid products and in serving as a voice for the vapor community. FDA, with its deeming regulation, has ignored our voice and the voices of millions of others, leaving us no choice but to seek judicial relief. We are disappointed that the FDA continues to confuse and conflate vapor products with tobacco and chooses to ignore years of well-established research that shows the relative safety of the products compared to combustible cigarettes and the public health benefit they may offer to millions of Americans who use them as an alternative to tobacco.”
I have a feeling that this is just the tip of the iceberg. The overwhelming majority of e-juice companies will be put out of business in two years if these regulations aren’t overturned, so they are literally fighting for their life and having nothing to lose. A tiger that’s been backed into a cage has nothing to lose by lashing out and fighting back, so we can expect to see many more lawsuits in the coming months. Hopefully one of these or any other future lawsuits will stick and will help save the industry.
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