On Tuesday, March 22, the government will its proposal for a taste ban for electronic cigarettes to Parliament. To mark the occasion, Vejpkollen is organizing an event to highlight the importance of flavours for vejp users.
In addition to Swedish vejpers, entrepreneurs and activists, the international action group World Vapers Alliance.
"The taste ban in Sweden risks driving 150,000 e-cigarette users back to smoking. We want to draw attention to this with this action" says Michael Landl, who leads the World Vapers Alliance.
Vape bus through Europe
The World Vapers Alliance has attracted attention through regular actions in Europe over the past year. Among other things, by visiting several cities with a pink vape bus under the slogan "Back vaping - Beat smoking". The aim at the time was to raise awareness, but also to get vejpers to tell their stories and draw attention to politicians. However, the campaign never reached Sweden.
"Now we are focusing on the "Flavors matter" campaign. The message is that a variety of flavors is crucial for adult vejp users to stay smoke-free. We are calling on politicians to stop banning flavors and for those that do exist to be changed or completely repealed" says Michael Landl.
Getting into trouble
The World Vapor Alliance was founded and is funded through Consumer Choice Center - an advocacy organization that lobbies for free consumer choice and a free market. The Consumer Choice Center receives contributions from various companies and trade associations. Even some tobacco companies. This has landed Michael Landl and the WVA in hot water. Not least when other interest groups accuse the WVA of being a front for the tobacco industry.
"It is what it is and I understand that it can cause a stir" says Michael Landl. "But we act independently, autonomously and make our own decisions. I think the goal is the important one, and that is to save lives. Weaving as a phenomenon is under attack from many quarters and we want to do everything we can to preserve it. And to do that we need funding" says Michael Landl to Vejpkollen.
"Strengthening the voices of vejps"
The organization encourages local consumer organizations to join the network that WVA is building. Today, WVA has supporting organizations in several countries, including Australia (where nicotine-containing e-liquid is prohibited for purchase without a doctor's prescription), Italy and Germany. The aim, according to the WVA, is to "strengthen the voices of vejps in the world" and to be a platform to help e-cigarette users reach into the corridors of politics.
80 million vejpers in the world
Michael Landl has previously worked on policy and political issues in the German Parliament. He regularly writes articles for the American magazine Filter, Vaporound and often debate issues of e-cigarettes and vejpning from an EU perspective, for example in The Brussels Times.
"Together, we are over 80 million people vejpar worldwide. That's amazing and proof that the technology works. Vaping is 95% safer than smoking. But it is the flavors that are crucial to successfully quit smoking, as all former smokers who now vejpar know. Flavor bans like the one in Sweden risk being a disaster for public health" says Michael Landl.
