According to an article in The Atlantic on October 30th, starting from October 31st, the province of Quebec in Canada will enact legislation prohibiting the sale of flavored e-cigarette products. This move follows three other provinces and the Northwest Territories in implementing this ban. However, experts have noted that similar bans in provinces like New Brunswick and Nova Scotia have not yielded the desired results.
In response to this, Eric Gagnon, the vice president of legal and external affairs at Imperial Tobacco Canada, stated:
I understand the government’s reasoning behind this decision, but there is no concrete evidence to suggest that this will effectively combat the trend of youth e-cigarette usage.
The Quebec government’s ban on the sale of e-liquid flavors that appeal to teenagers is intended to discourage them from developing smoking habits. However, implementing this ban is proving to be more complicated than expected, according to Kristin Farnam, the manager of the New Brunswick Anti-Tobacco Alliance.
The ban on flavors has not been successful as scheduled in these provinces, largely due to the illegal activities of e-cigarette retailers in our region.
In September 2021, the sale of e-cigarette liquid products was banned in New Brunswick. Over two years later, experts indicate that the issue of smoking among both young people and adults continues to worsen.
Gan Nong, according to government data from 2022, stated that the youth smoking rate in Nova Scotia is approximately 22%, while in New Brunswick it is approximately 18%. This suggests that the ban has not reduced the trend of youth smoking. Nong believes that a balance needs to be struck between preventing youth smoking and providing smoking alternatives for adults.
Despite the ban being in effect, people can still obtain these products through alternative channels such as local e-cigarette stores that continue to sell them, online shopping, and the black market. It is unanimously agreed that smoking is harmful to young people, and the current approach has not been effective.
