Post featured image

Nicotine e-liquids require urgent regulation in Australia

Posted on October 20, 2020


THERE ARE NO MANDATORY safety or quality standards for nicotine liquids in Australia as there are for all other consumer and medical products. This leaves users at risk from unsafe products and children at risk of poisoning from unsafe containers.

Vaping nicotine is legal under current laws and new guidelines proposed by the Health Minister. The Minister has raised concerns about ‘imported products of dubious safety and quality'. However, there has been no attempt to correct this glaring void in consumer safety.

Over half a million Australians are vaping and regulation is urgently needed for their protection

ATHRA has prepared a discussion paper on regulating nicotine e-liquids to begin this conversation. The document is based on the regulatory model adopted by the United Kingdom and New Zealand with input from Australian and New Zealand toxicologists. The full discussion paper is available for download here and feedback to improve it is welcome.

Safety standards are needed to ensure that high quality vaping liquids are available for adult smokers who wish to switch to vaping as a substitute for deadly smoking. Standards can also reduce access of e-liquids for young people and further reduce the rare risk of poisoning in children.

A lack of product regulation was responsible for the outbreak of EVALI, a serious lung injury resulting in over 60 deaths in North America. An illicit supply chain distributed blackmarket THC oils for vaping which were contaminated with Vitamin E Acetate. The condition was not caused by nicotine vaping.

Regulation of vaping products

Many reputable manufacturers have introduced their own standards to protect customers, however mandatory guidelines are required across the whole industry. ATHRA proposes the following key steps

1 Exempt nicotine e-liquid in concentrations ≤ 5% for vaping from the Poisons Standard

Nicotine is addictive but is relatively benign in the low concentrations used for vaping and does not meet the criteria required for inclusion in the Poisons Standard.

2 Regulate nicotine in concentrations ≤5% as a consumer product

Low concentrations of nicotine e-liquid are consumer products designed to replace a far more harmful consumer product, combustible tobacco. Nicotine e-liquids are not medicines and do not make therapeutic claims. They should be regulated by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, not the medicines regulator, the Therapeutic Goods Administration.

3 Minimise youth access by strict age verification, prohibited youth-friendly packaging, restricted advertising and public health messaging

Regulation should minimise the opportunity for youth to access vaping products, but it should be balanced so as not to indiscriminately affect adults (for example through flavour bans, nicotine limits or taxes).

4 Introduce laws and guidelines specifying minimum standards for the manufacture and safety of vaping liquids

Guidelines should be developed for manufacturing standards, regulation of ingredients, elimination of toxic components and emissions testing.

5 Introduce mandatory standards for labelling, refill containers and health warnings

Labelling standards and appropriate health warnings are essential for consumer safety and informed decision making. Mandatory refill container requirements include child-resistant caps and protection against breakage, leakage and spilling.

6 Prohibit descriptive flavour names that specifically appeal to youth and unsafe flavouring chemicals

Restricting flavours will likely have minimal effect on youth uptake but will make vaping less appealing to adult smokers. Appeal to youth could be reduced by banning flavour names that may be especially appealing to young people.

7 Establish a notification scheme for pre-market registration

Manufacturers should declare that their products are compliant with applicable health and safety standards prior to marketing and sale.

8 Regulate the sale of nicotine e-liquids in vape shops, other retail outlets and online

Vape shops should be licensed and strict age-verification guidelines introduced for sales from retail and online sources.

9 Permit vaping in specified public spaces and allow owners and managers of premises to set their own regulations

There is no evidence that vaping poses a material health risk to bystanders and a blanket ban in public places is not justified on health grounds.

10 Use public health messaging to raise awareness of the health risks relative to smoking tobacco

Health warnings should accurately convey the relative risk compared to smoking and frame vaping as a cessation aid for adult smokers.

11 Establish a system for reporting harmful effects and recall of unsafe products

A system should be established for reporting and recalling products which are unsafe, not of good quality or not compliant with regulations.

Resources

Regulation of nicotine e-liquids for vaping in Australia - a discussion paper. ATHRA. September 2020


Leave a Reply to Matthew Landau Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

3 Replies to “Nicotine e-liquids require urgent regulation in Australia”

Hamish Bowly

Would you look at that, works done for the powers that be instead of all the game playing & misinformation. Spot on. Red tape get out of the way in the interest of public health… Opens the country for new industry, jobs and global export as well.
As someone who has been a consumer for 8 years spending thousands overseas this is in line with the western world.

Chris Parkinson

S2 and s3 respectively for eliquid and concentrate nicotine.
We as responsible people are responsible for safe storage of many chemicals and nicotine should be no different

Matthew Landau

Sensible & workable Product Regulation is "Key" to laying the Foundation of Policy Change and formerly recognizing a "Harm Reduction" pathway to Smoker Cessation in Australia.

We need Leadership that Reflects what the People WANT & NEED!
Saving Lives of Millions is at stake here – & so is the Solution….

A Smoke Free Australia can be achieved thru Harm Reduction Alternative Nicotine Delivery Systems that support the end Game – Helping Aussie Smokers Quit Toxic Combustible Tobacco & Regain their Lives!

The right Change is centered around a Balanced Argument with a Very Simple Narrative…

Social media

Go to Top