UNDATED, MI (WKZO AM/FM) — A crackdown against the Juul E-cigarette company was announced Monday by the FDA for misleading claims in its advertising.
The FDA claims that Juul, one of the most popular E-cigarette manufacturers in the country, has made claims that its product is safer than regular tobacco cigarettes.
The FDA says that these claims have not been verified and that it is unlawful to make them.
Canless Air CEO John Scherer says the FDA should go even further with the crackdown.
“I think the FDA is absolutely correct in what they’re doing,” Scherer said. “I think the FDA needs to take it further, I’ll be surprised if Juul gets off the hook. Anything you put in your lungs is going to hurt you, it’s certainly not going to help you.”
Scherer adds that the idea of a safe alternative to smoking is purely a marketing ploy.
“They want the business, they’re in a business to make money,” Scherer said. “I read their mission statement…their mission is to improve the lives of 12 billion adults that smoke by eliminating cigarettes. They don’t want anybody to smoke cigarettes, they want them to smoke their stuff.”
Although praising the FDA’s move, Scherer says the crackdown is overdue.
“The FDA, as far as I’m concerned, is a little late, but at least they’re on it,” Scherer said. “Kids are smoking these things all day long. The advantage of course is that it could taste like watermelon or apple pie, so it’s better than a cigarette as far as taste goes, but other than that, it’s just as dangerous.”
Juul has 15 days to respond to the FDA’s notice, and is reportedly preparing a reply.
The news of the crackdown against Juul comes following Governor Whitmer’s State-wide band on flavored E-cigarette products as health officials investigate several vaping-linked lung illnesses.
