https://www.cidrap.umn.edu/public-h...uthorized-e-cigarettes-united-states-december
Public Health Alerts: Sales of unauthorized e-cigarettes in the United States, December 2025
Jim Wappes
Today at 12:07 p.m.
Public Health Alerts
Public Health
The report’s authors—scientists from the CDC Foundation—analyzed retail scanner data from Circana, a market research company that collects point-of-sale data, to estimate the proportion of unauthorized sales of e-cigarette products in US stores last December.
Public Health Alerts, a collaboration between NEJM Evidence and CIDRAP, fills a gap in reliable data, offering expert-reviewed reports that translate frontline observations into actionable public health evidence. An NEJM Evidence editorial explains the initiative further. Read all Public Health Alerts reports here.
69% of sales unauthorized
The report authors note that the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act of 2009 requires a manufacturer to receive a marketing granted order (MGO) from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to legally market a new tobacco product in the United States. As of December 2025, 39 e-cigarette products had MGOs, making them authorized. “However,” the authors add, “thousands of unauthorized e-cigarette products continue to be sold in the United States.”
They note that 7.0% of US adults, 24.8% of young adults (18 to 24 years old), 7.8% of high schoolers, and 3.5% of middle schoolers use e-cigarettes.
The investigators assessed Circana sales data from 48 states, not including Alaska and Hawaii. Sales occurred at convenience, grocery, drug, retail chain, club, and dollar stores; gas stations; mass merchandiser outlets; and military bases.
A total of 146 products, accounting for 30.6% of e-cigarette sales, were matched to authorized products in December 2025. The remaining 69.4% of sales for 4,421 products were unauthorized.
Disposable e-cigarettes in flavors that may appeal to young people comprised the majority of unauthorized sales.
Among all tobacco-flavored e-cigarette sales, 93.1% were FDA-authorized, compared with 26.1% of menthol flavored sales. None of the other flavored product sales, such as fruit, sweet, candy, or mint, were authorized.
The authors conclude, “Disposable e-cigarettes in flavors that may appeal to young people comprised the majority of unauthorized sales.”
They add, “Insufficient public data regarding which tobacco products are legally marketed presents compliance challenges for retailers and complicates research.”
Public Health Alerts: Sales of unauthorized e-cigarettes in the United States, December 2025
Jim Wappes
Today at 12:07 p.m.
Public Health Alerts
Public Health
More than two-thirds of US sales of e-cigarettes are illicit, with most targeting young people, according to a Public Health Alerts report today.The report’s authors—scientists from the CDC Foundation—analyzed retail scanner data from Circana, a market research company that collects point-of-sale data, to estimate the proportion of unauthorized sales of e-cigarette products in US stores last December.
Public Health Alerts, a collaboration between NEJM Evidence and CIDRAP, fills a gap in reliable data, offering expert-reviewed reports that translate frontline observations into actionable public health evidence. An NEJM Evidence editorial explains the initiative further. Read all Public Health Alerts reports here.
69% of sales unauthorized
The report authors note that the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act of 2009 requires a manufacturer to receive a marketing granted order (MGO) from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to legally market a new tobacco product in the United States. As of December 2025, 39 e-cigarette products had MGOs, making them authorized. “However,” the authors add, “thousands of unauthorized e-cigarette products continue to be sold in the United States.”
They note that 7.0% of US adults, 24.8% of young adults (18 to 24 years old), 7.8% of high schoolers, and 3.5% of middle schoolers use e-cigarettes.
The investigators assessed Circana sales data from 48 states, not including Alaska and Hawaii. Sales occurred at convenience, grocery, drug, retail chain, club, and dollar stores; gas stations; mass merchandiser outlets; and military bases.
A total of 146 products, accounting for 30.6% of e-cigarette sales, were matched to authorized products in December 2025. The remaining 69.4% of sales for 4,421 products were unauthorized.
Disposable e-cigarettes in flavors that may appeal to young people comprised the majority of unauthorized sales.
Among all tobacco-flavored e-cigarette sales, 93.1% were FDA-authorized, compared with 26.1% of menthol flavored sales. None of the other flavored product sales, such as fruit, sweet, candy, or mint, were authorized.
The authors conclude, “Disposable e-cigarettes in flavors that may appeal to young people comprised the majority of unauthorized sales.”
They add, “Insufficient public data regarding which tobacco products are legally marketed presents compliance challenges for retailers and complicates research.”