NYC flooded with illegal flavored vapes from China despite ban to protect kids: study

The Big Apple is being flooded with illegal flavored e-vapes made in China after banning the smokes’ sale in 2020 to prevent youths from getting hooked on their addictive nicotine, a new study shows.

Altria, which sells disposable legal vapes under the label Njoy, commissioned the market research group WSPM to survey more than 100 locations and neighborhoods through the city’s five boroughs.

The workers collected empty discarded packets from the street and garbage bins from Feb. 1 through March 21 of this year.

Of the 2,000 discarded vape samples collected, 99% were exported from China, and 99% were flavored — which is outlawed.

China-based Air Bar Disposable’s vapes accounted for half of all of the disposed packs collected, said the survey, which was obtained by The Post.

Other discarded packets of e-cig brands found included EBCreate  with 6.8% of the total,  BREEZE SMOKE with 5.3% and LAVA Plus with 4.6%.

“This study shows how illicit flavored disposable vapes have flooded the entire state, including brands cited as most popular with kids,” said Altria spokesman David Sutton.

“We strongly support greater enforcement efforts in New York to get these illicit products out of the market,” he added.

The illicit sales take a chunk of the legal market for companies playing by the rules, such as Altria and convenience stores who sell allowed vapes.

The survey collected samples of discarded vape packets from 82 zip codes and 106 locations throughout the city — including 612 from Brooklyn, 510 in Queens, 380 from Manhattan, 368 from the Bronx and 150 from Staten Island — but industry experts said the issue is even more widespread.

“We’re not just having this problem of banned vapes being sold in the city — it’s the entire state,” said Kent Sopris, president of the New York State Association of Convenience Store owners.

“We can’t have products banned when there is no enforcement mechanism. They have done nothing on the vape front. I don’t know why,” Sopris said.

The city’s sheriff office and the NYPD, as part of their crackdown of illegal cannabis shops, have discovered that some of the illicit operators are also selling the banned flavored vapes.

Sopris said he hopes law enforcement and cannabis regulators will make enforcing the ban on illegal vapes a priority, too.

A NYSACS poll released earlier this year found a majority of Empire State residents said government officials were doing a crummy job in enforcing the flavored-vapes ban.

Federal regulators also sent warning letters last year to Chinese-based firms responsible for two popular flavored disposable e-cigarette products —Shenzhen Innokin Technology Co. Ltd., which make Esco Bars products and Breeze Smoke, LLC, which import and distribute Breeze products.

“These firms have been manufacturing, distributing, and/or importing unauthorized tobacco products in the United States,” the FDA said.

Brian King, director of the FDA’s Center for Tobacco Products, said, “The science clearly shows that a majority of youth who use e-cigarettes report that the products they are using are disposable and flavored.

“Given their appeal to youth, these products are a priority for FDA compliance and enforcement action.”

An Adams spokesperson said the administration is on the case.

“We are facing an epidemic of e-cigarette and vape use among young people, and we will not stand by while manufacturers and wholesalers supply our city with illegal, harmful products that target our most vulnerable New Yorkers — children,” the City Hall spokesperson said.

“The city has already taken action against 15 wholesalers for their part in the illegal sale of flavored disposable e-cigarettes, and, just yesterday, the Sheriff’s Office and NYPD tackled a major distributor with millions of dollars worth of illegal vape products from foreign distributors that were ending up in bodegas, smoke shops, and other retailers across the city. We know where these illegal products are coming from, and we are doing our part to stop them.”

“Part of protecting public safety means protecting the health of New Yorkers, including our most vulnerable – our children – and this administration is committed to enforcing the law when it comes to illegal vape sales,” Adams said when announcing the lawsuit last month.

“We will not stand by and allow this greedy, harmful, and openly illegal behavior to continue.”

A spokesperson for Gov. Kathy Hochul responded, “We take this issue seriously and will work closely with our partners at the city level to review and address it.”

Hochul’s office noted the use of vapes/e-cigarettes among high school-aged youth in New York declined from a peak of 27.4% in 2018 to 18.7% in 2022, per state Department of Health data.

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