Vape smuggling in Vietnam
Vape, also known as electronic cigarettes , is currently a matter of concern to society due to its safety level as well as the product outbreak in the Vietnamese market.
Is it as harmful as traditional cigarettes? Is it a way to quit traditional cigarettes ? Or is it a new addictive drug that replaces traditional cigarettes? These are still questions that consumers and scientists are still looking for answers to. Authorities have not yet reached a consensus on the conclusions as well as the laws related to the import, sale and use of electronic cigarettes.
Laws relating to tobacco in Vietnam
In Vietnam, many laws have been enacted.
Article 9 of the Law on Tobacco Harm Prevention stipulates prohibited acts, including the following: “Producing, trading, importing, storing, and transporting counterfeit cigarettes, products with designs or shapes like cigarette packs, packages, or cigarettes; trading, storing, and transporting tobacco materials, and smuggled cigarettes”. According to Joint Circular No. 01/2007/TTLT-BTM-BCN dated January 10, 2007 of the Ministry of Trade and the Ministry of Industry (now the Ministry of Industry and Trade), only State-owned enterprises (Vietnam Tobacco Corporation - Vinataba) are allowed to import tobacco products in the form of vapes and cigarettes made from nicotine-containing substances to replace tobacco.
Quote from Nguyen Cuong's facebook: "In other words, Vinataba has the exclusive right to import and distribute all things related to cigarettes. Besides, no one else is allowed to import them. Even with Vinataba's authorization, they are not allowed to sell them."
The reality of vaping in Vietnam
Vape appeared in Vietnam from around 2007-2008. Since then, a series of vape advertising websites appeared. There are almost no direct vape stores, but almost only online sales.
According to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, for vape products and cigarettes in general, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism (MCST) is responsible for licensing advertising for businesses. The Ministry of Industry and Trade only manages advertising and promotion activities of licensed units. If violations are detected, the Trade Promotion Department will coordinate with the Market Management Department, the Ministry of Industry and Trade and the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism to impose penalties according to the law.
The "hotness" of vape can be felt when there are too many people exchanging information about buying, selling, and sharing experiences of using it through social networking sites. Advertising activities for vape products are flooding the internet, but the management agency has no way to control them. But that does not prevent Vietnamese people from searching for and buying vape devices , most of which will not know their origin. The owner of a tobacco shop on Trung Kinh Street, Cau Giay District, said that vape production technology is currently available in many countries such as the US, Canada, UK... These countries are mostly linked with China to produce components and assemble, so the goods are imported directly from China to Vietnam. Prices are quite flexible, some are only about 400,000-700,000 VND/set, the most expensive is 1.6 million VND/set. The essential oils here are labeled "made in USA", but when asked if the product is "genuine" American goods, the staff did not dare to confirm and only said: "All information and documents related to the import are held by the supplier, this is just a retail agent".
The impact on consumer awareness and the vape community
Vape, now has been gradually gaining positive acceptance in the world. The appearance of products of unknown origin, from unreliable stores as well as a variety of statistics on concentrations, reports on substances in essential oils have increased consumer concerns about vape in Vietnam. Because even though people know the positive research results about vape in the world, buying and using fake and poor quality products will still have a significant impact on the reputation of investors and developers of vape in Vietnam. The effects on customers' health are the most concerned issue, so selling poor quality products that are harmful to consumers will deal a big blow to the vape community, which means killing vape.
From there, vapers as well as non-vape users should have an objective view and have clear information screening before the current outbreak of related products. Vapers should Vape culturally and also equip themselves with full knowledge about vaping.
Be smart consumers!
