Leading vape tech manufacturer gives green light to industry’s first expert environmental panel

A new independent panel has been launched by SMOORE, the world’s largest atomisation technology company, to provide expert advice to help the company and wider industry address the environmental impact of the vape sector and establish ‘best sustainable practices’.

The move comes as concerns over the environmental footprint of vaping products is increasing and there are growing calls to ban single use vapes in particular on environmental grounds.

Heading up the panel is Joshua Fischer, an ID Creative Director of international vape brand VAPORESSO – a subsidiary of SMOORE – who leads on material choices and, critically, environmental philosophy, when developing products.

Fischer is joined by experts in consumer behaviour, sustainable packaging solutions and the waste management industry. These include:

• Stewart Price, the Scheme Manager for Waste Experts – a leading nationwide electrical waste processor;
• Chris McNeill, co-founder of Fibrepac, and packaging industry consultant in sustainable materials;
• Pieter Vorster, Managing Director of Idwala Research, a provider of research and advisory services aimed at accelerating tobacco transformation and harm reduction. A current Idwala project, “A Blueprint for Global RRP Waste Management”, entails the development of a Waste Management Protocol for Reduced-Risk Tobacco and Nicotine Products in the UK. This vital project is being funded by a grant from the Foundation for a Smoke-Free World.

Speaking on the panel, Fischer said, “Minimising environmental impact should stand shoulder to shoulder with reducing harms to smokers as a key objective of the vape industry.

“To achieve this, we need to have a deep understanding of the waste management challenges posed by vapes, consider how we can increase the recyclability and reusability of vape products and enhance sustainability across the supply chain.

“We also need to find ways to encourage the proper disposal of vaping products so they don’t end up in the wrong waste streams, or worse, discarded in the street, which is the critical issue in vape waste management.”

He added, “The vape category has proven instrumental in reducing the burden of smoking and continues to help adults move away from deadly combustible tobacco, but we can’t allow the planet to pay the price for this public health success.”

Fischer commented the independent panel creates a ‘platform for collaboration’, informing critical debate and shaping thinking on effective action to minimise the environmental impact of the proven stop smoking tool.

Key focus areas of the panel include advising on:

•  the reduction of the sector’s overall carbon footprint;
• an effective and efficient system for dealing with vape waste;
•  product and packaging innovation to maximise the recycling potential of e-cigarettes;
•  strategies to change consumer behaviours so they engage in recycling vape products.

Fischer concluded, “Addressing the environmental impact of our industry is very much at the top of the agenda for SMOORE and we are investing in continued product development, including our new FEELM 2.0 disposable, which incorporates new coil technology that maximises utilisation of e-liquid, increases lifetime of the product by doubling the puff count and reduces waste.

“We believe the environmental panel will provide insights for us to lead the way on this critical topic and inform new best-practices for the industry and policymakers so that vapes can continue to do what they do best – helping smokers to quit – without unintended consequences on the environment in the future.

“I look forward to collaborating with the panel on this key topic to find ways we can reduce harms to both adult smokers and the planet.”

The SMOORE environmental panel was formed alongside a separate harm reduction panel as part of the company’s new ‘Responsible Vaping Think Tank’ – an initiative developed to drive ‘best-in-class’ developments across these two ‘business-critical’ areas.