First, they came for the fruit-flavored tobacco inserts and then the entire Juul itself. In a surprising decision, the FDA ordered Juul to stop all sales and distribution, as well as remove all products that are currently on store shelves. As no other e-cigarette has been affected, Juul plans to challenge the decision.
NBC NEWS: FDA orders Juul to stop selling e-cigarette products
Aria Bendix and Dana Varinsky; June 23, 2022
The Food and Drug Administration has ordered Juul to stop selling its e-cigarette products, citing a lack of data and evidence to assess their potential health risks.
Under the FDA order, Juul must stop selling and distributing its e-cigarette devices, along with all four types of Juul pods, which come in Virginia tobacco and menthol flavors. Products already on store shelves must be removed and taken off the market.
So far, the FDA has not found evidence that the e-cigarettes or pods pose an immediate health threat. However, the agency said there was “insufficient and conflicting data” about the products’ toxicity and about “potentially harmful chemicals leaching from the company’s proprietary e-liquid pods.”
“The FDA is tasked with ensuring that tobacco products sold in this country meet the standard set by the law, but the responsibility to demonstrate that a product meets those standards ultimately falls on the shoulders of the company,” Michele Mital, the acting director of the FDA’s Center for Tobacco Products, said in a statement.
“As with all manufacturers, Juul had the opportunity to provide evidence demonstrating that the marketing of their products meets these standards,” she added. “However, the company did not provide that evidence and instead left us with significant questions.”
The FDA order does not prevent consumers from possessing or using Juul products they already own.
“We respectfully disagree with the FDA’s findings and decision and continue to believe we have provided sufficient information and data based on high-quality research to address all issues raised by the agency,” Joe Murillo, Juul Labs’ chief regulatory officer, said in a statement.