The Supreme Prosecutor’s Office of Israel does not recommend a total ban on e-cigarettes. It is recommended that the Ministry of Health supervise the manufacture and sale of the vape.
Ten days ago, the Israeli Ministry of Health revealed that JUUL e-cigarettes contain a variety of harmful ingredients that may pose serious health risks. However, it did not indicate that the ban on the sale of its products in Israel would be completely banned.
Just a week later, the Israeli Ministry of Health is currently issuing policies to support the ban on the sale of JUUL e-cigarettes, and the ban applies to all e-cigarettes containing nicotine. Only the attorney general’s seal of approval is needed to enforce the ban now.
JUUL e-cigarettes look like USB drives and have a variety of colors. After becoming popular among young Americans, the product successfully entered the Israeli market in May this year and was listed in the UK in July subsequently. With its simple appearance and convenient operation, JUUL quickly became popular in the United States. With a market capitalization of US$15 billion, JUUL is the world’s largest e-cigarette startup.
In the past year, JUUL has developed well in the United States. According to data released by the Nielsen of market research firm, JUUL’s sales have increased by nearly 800% in the past year, and the company now controls about 71% of the US e-cigarette market.
What is currently known is that Israel has not banned e-cigarette advertising, which is different from the regulation of cigarettes, and the country allows the sale of e-cigarette products to minors. The product also sells 5% nicotine in Israel and 1.7% in the UK, which is in compliance with European regulations.
Glen Winter, president of JUUL Labs’ Middle East and Africa region, responded to the Israeli Ministry of Health’s approach in an interview last month. The UK was selected as the seventh market after the United States and Israel. Part of the reason is because it has the most supportive government in the world, which encourages smokers to use e-cigarettes to quit smoking. On the other hand, the Israeli government seems to be opposed to reducing harmful tobacco products. The official attitude is too important for a multinational company. There is no policy mandate, and it is actually taking risks.
The original intention of JUUL e-cigarette research and production is to reduce the dependence on traditional tobacco for heavy smokers, but now JUUL e-cigarette seems to have encountered difficulties in Israel, although they are observing their duty to ensure that all products are within legal requirements, it is difficult to let Israel’s government buy their own account.
Juul, the Hit E-cigarette, Debuts in Israel With No Restrictions on Sales
The country of Israel seems to be born with a high degree of vigilance against foreign affairs. From the approval of a taxation measure for iqos of Philip Morris International heating and non-burning tobacco products in March this year. They required iqos to pay 65% tax on retail prices, and the tax is basically the same as cigarette products. For enterprises, this is actually a trade barrier in disguise. The result will only make most companies miserable. When these companies can’t hold on, they will naturally withdraw those countries.
