The Independent British Vape Trade Association (IBVTA) has called for “balance” when reporting on the sector.
IBVTA CEO Gillian Golden said the sector had already made some progress when it came to sustainability, an issue which has contributed to the impending ban on single-use vapes.
This comes as research from Material Focus found that 8.2m vape devices are thrown away or incorrectly recycled every week in the UK, up from 5m last year. The research claimed a move towards ‘big puff’ devices that won’t be affected by the ban on disposable vapes was a contributor to the increase in the number of vape products thrown away.
Addressing the Material Focus research, Golden told Convenience Store:
“We have some doubts about some of the statistics that Material Focus have presented for 2024. This is contrary to our views on those they presented in 2023, which were broadly in line with our own understanding of the sector and waste issues.”
She went on to say that the entire industry shouldn’t be targeted. “Commentary and media attention wrongly accusing producers who develop refillable and rechargeable products of somehow circumventing current and future regulation have no foundation. Post-ban, adult consumers will need as many refillable and rechargeable product options as possible,” said Golden.
“One of the greater frustrations held by the IBVTA and its members is that blanket criticism of industry and its products very often fails to make the distinction between the responsible businesses across the UK who are doing the right thing, and the illicit trade dealing in non-compliant illicit products. Illicit vape traders ignore wider legal obligations in many areas, not in the least environmental responsibilities.
“The compliant vape sector has invested significant resources to meet environmental compliance targets, through government mandated waste electrical Producer Compliance Schemes and retail take-back. We applaud the efforts of those retailers doing the right thing. The vape industry stands ready to work with government to ensure businesses can meet their obligations in time for the June 2025 deadline.”
Golden went on to appeal for “balance” when it comes to the perception of the vape category.
“The illicit trade in single use vapes has been the driver of both increased access by young people, and negative media headlines. However, it cannot be ignored that a large number of adult smokers have found their way to vaping through convenient and accessible products. A balance needs to be found.
“So, while banning an entire category of vapes is likely to fuel public misperceptions about the relative safety of vaping to smoking, there needs to be clear messaging from government to encourage those adults not to simply revert to smoking, and to recycle all of their used vapes.”
When asked for a response to the IBVTA’s statement, executive director of Material Focus, Scott Butler, said:
“We have been researching and reporting on the environmental and fire safety challenges being caused by vapes for over three years. Our most recent research was conducted by Opinium who surveyed a nationally representative sample of UK adults (16plus) to gather their experiences of buying and disposing of vapes. The research did provide data to show that there had been improvements in recycling - more people are recycling their single-use vapes in store: 20% this year compared to 8% last year. But given over eight million vapes a week are being binned and littered, increased and improved communications and much more easily accessible recycling options need to be in place, with 77% of UK vapers feeling there is not enough information on how to recycle vapes. All of this information was included in our press release.”
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