In February 2025, New York Attorney General Letitia James filed a lawsuit against 12 e-cigarette companies, accusing them of illegally selling nicotine products to minors through fruit-flavored products, cartoon packaging and social media marketing, and demanded hundreds of millions of dollars in compensation. The brands involved include Puff Bar, Elf Bar, Geek Bar, etc., and their product names such as “Strawberry Donut Milk” and “Tropical Rainbow Storm” are accused of deliberately catering to teenagers’ preferences. The lawsuit emphasizes that these companies not only violated New York State’s 2020 ban on flavored e-cigarettes, but also supplied retailers around schools through informal logistics channels, exacerbating the nicotine addiction crisis among teenagers.
This case marks a further tightening of U.S. regulation of the e-cigarette industry. New York State requires companies to bear liability for public health damages and set up a special fund to deal with the surge in e-cigarette use among teenagers.
Although VEEHOO was not listed as a defendant in this lawsuit, as a global e-cigarette manufacturer, it issued a statement on February 25 in response to the incident, emphasizing that “technological innovation is the only way to balance the market and regulation.” The company put forward three claims:
Full-link age verification system: implant a biometric module on the hardware side, and users need to verify their age through face recognition before activating the device, blocking the possibility of minors using it;
Ingredient transparency: trace the ingredients of the e-liquid through blockchain technology to ensure that the product does not contain FDA-banned additives, and actively submit a third-party toxicology report;
Quit controversial marketing: promise to stop using social media influencers for promotion, and instead cooperate with medical institutions to develop smoking cessation aid products.
VEEHOO specifically mentioned that its “Smart Temperature Control 2.0” technology launched in 2024 has passed FDA review. The technology can accurately control the atomization temperature in the range of 180°C-210°C, reducing formaldehyde release by 99%. This case is regarded as a benchmark for companies to respond to regulation with technological upgrades.
Regulatory loopholes highlighted: The companies involved evaded law enforcement by changing brand names (such as Elf Bar changed its name to EB Design) and cross-border warehouse logistics; Supply chain responsibilities are dispersed: The responsibilities of manufacturers, distributors and retailers are vaguely defined. For example, Magellan Technology, as the general distributor of the Hyde brand, continued to supply despite the rejection of its PMTA application; Global coordination problems: Countries such as the Philippines and Colombia are promoting e-cigarette tax legislation, but multinational companies often use tax rate differences for “regulatory arbitrage”.
Internalization of compliance costs: Referring to the VEEHOO model, technical inputs such as age verification and ingredient testing are included in production cost accounting; Regionalized product strategy: Develop nicotine-free atomization equipment for the European and American markets, while retaining compliant nicotine product lines in Southeast Asia; Public health compensation mechanism: Inject funds into government medical funds in proportion to sales for youth smoking cessation intervention projects.
VEEHOO’s CEO emphasized in a statement: “E-cigarettes should not be a zero-sum game between regulators and companies, but a dynamic balance between public health goals and technological innovation.” As the FDA plans to release a new generation of e-cigarette standards in the third quarter of 2025, companies that actively embrace rule reshaping may dominate the market reshuffle.
This incident shows that the e-cigarette industry is shifting from “barbaric growth” to “responsible competition.” VEEHOO’s response provides the industry with a reference compliance framework, but how to transform technological commitments into actions across the entire industry chain remains a core challenge for companies to win regulatory and public trust.
Tags: illegal sale of nicotine products, flavored e-cigarettes, teen nicotine addiction, veehoo vape