the “puff”, this electronic cigarette which targets the youngest

Cotton candy, iced watermelon, frosted blueberry or strawberry flavors… We are not talking about chewing gum, but about multicolored electronic cigarettes, called “puff”, which are attracting more and more young people, at the risk of developing addictions from an early age. “It’s very attractive, the colors and everything, it’s a disposable product, it’s accessible“, says a 17-year-old teenager, met on a Parisian terrace. The market is booming, and will be discussed at annual congress of the confederation of tobacconists, which is being held this Friday, October 21.

The subject is sensitive because the product is very attractive to young people while it remains prohibited for those under 18 years old. “There are many tobacconists who sell to minors, notes a teenager. I am 17 years old, I took it mainly to quit smoking. But many people take it not to quit but to start. You have to be careful with nicotine, there is an addiction that can develop very very early” A little further, a girl, non-smoker, just 14 years old, experienced the puff on social networks: “In fact, it was on Tik Tok, and we saw a video, it influenced me a lot.”

With a few searches on the app, posts pop up. “It smells super good, it’s super good“, repeats a young man in a video, which has more than 200,000 views. The phenomenon worries tobacco specialists who see it as marketing aimed primarily at a minor public, prey to quickly becoming dependent.Clearly the puff makers are targeting young people“, denounces the Professor Yves Martinet, President of the National Committee against Smoking (CNCT). It is sold in supermarkets, you have department stores, chains that sell puffs.”

The product becomes commonplace and even becomes king in some tobacconists, with dedicated stands. “It is clearly a commercial phenomenon, it has revived the vaping activity which was beginning to slow down, explains Cyril behind his counter in the 15th arrondissement. We are at 8.95 euros per puff, the equivalent of two packs of cigarettes. I can only reproach any commercial approach, if there is one, which targets a minor clientele. It is clearly prohibited for those under 18, in the same way as games, vaping and tobacco. We have a fairly strict policy of asking consumers for ID when in doubt.“

This tobacconist adds that the puff represents 50% of his vaping sales. The CNCT does not give precise figures on overall puff sales. The only certainty is that the electronic cigarette market globally weighs 140 million euros out of 3.6 billion euros in annual gross turnover.