Smokers are rushing to stock up on Juul e-cigarettes after the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said their sale would be banned starting Thursday.One smoke shop worker in New York City said customers had been rushing in throughout the day to ‘bulk-buy’ boxes of up to 40 packs at a time.
Customers have also taken to social media to vent their frustration at the order, with one woman in Indiana saying her husband was out ‘clearing shelves’ of Juul products.
The FDA today said it was banning the sale and distribution of Juul products because the company had failed to provide ‘sufficient evidence’ they were safe.It also raised concerns over potentially hazardous liquid in the products.
Juul has vowed to appeal the move, saying it ‘respectfully disagrees’ with the FDA’s decision. E-cigarette supporters said the move would go down as one of the ‘greatest episodes of regulatory malpractice in history’.
The vaping industry has been caught in the cross-hairs of the FDA amid allegations it has led to a spike in e-cigarette use among youngsters and is a gateway for people to start smoking.
But manufacturers claim that their products are much safer than cigarettes because they do not have the toxic smoke and can help people kick the habit.
Adman Masuk, exponentialstandards 25, who runs a vape shop near Union Square in New York City said customers had been rushing in to buy in bulk all day.He is pictured above with the Juul packages being the white items on the top shelf
Pictured left is his shop off Union Square, and right is a package of Juul e-cigarettes.Customers are rushing to snap them up
Popular e-cigarette brand Juul has its products pulled from shelves after the FDA denied its application to get around a ban of flavored nicotine
A smoke shop worker told DailyMail.com today that he was facing a surge in customers since the FDA ban.
Adman Masuk, 25, who works in a shop off Union Square in New York City, said: ‘We’ve had customers rushing in all day.
‘They’re buying in bulk, coming in and getting about 20 or 40 boxes or so.’
<div class="art-ins mol-factbox floatRHS health" data-version="2" id="mol-3dbe9c40-f309-11ec-8e39-9befec2715f7" website rush to stock up on Juul e-cigarettes