AUTHORITIES swooped down on a Paranaque City establishment posing as a milk tea shop but actually selling vape products, confiscating P25 million worth of banned Flava brand items on April 24, 2024.

The store, situated near Baclaran Elementary School, was found to be vending Flava vape products, which the Department of Trade and Industry’s Fair Trade Enforcement Bureau (DTI-FTEB) had previously prohibited due to their flavor descriptors appealing to minors.

The DTI, responsible for implementing the Vape Law of 2022, mandated the confiscation of the Flava vape products for violating Republic Act No. 11900, or the Vaporized Nicotine and Non-Nicotine Products Regulation Act of 2022, which prohibits e-cigarette sales to minors or near schools.

DTI-FTEB operatives, in collaboration with the Philippine National Police, shuttered the store, which used a milk tea shop facade for distributing vape products.

Previously, the DTI had banned the Flava vape brand for containing flavor descriptors prohibited by the Vape Law.

“The DTI will not shirk from its responsibility of enforcing trade, industry and consumer protection laws to help legitimate businesses and promote consumer protection,” DTI Secretary Fred Pascual said in a previous statement.

Pascual ordered the FTEB to confiscate non-compliant products from the market as he underscored the agency’s commitment to enforcement, supporting legitimate businesses and ensuring consumer safety.

He also cautioned manufacturers, importers, distributors and retailers against peddling illicit vapes and other prohibited items.

Fhillip Sawali, Director of DTI-FTEB, disclosed that the joint operation confiscated illegal vape products valued at P25 million. The store, located just 20 meters from the school, violated RA 11900, which bans vape or e-cigarette sales “within 100 meters of any point of the perimeter of a school, playground, or other facilities frequented by minors.”

Prior to the raid, the DTI-FTEB had suspended the sale, manufacturing, import, and distribution of Flava Corporation’s vape products on March 15 for violating RA 11900.

Sawali cited several violations of RA 11900 by the establishment, including Section 9, prohibiting vape sales within 100 meters from a school, and Section 12, which restricts flavor descriptors in vape products.

Recent operations by the Bureau of Customs and the Philippine National Police’s Criminal Investigation and Detection Group have revealed widespread vape product smuggling in the country.

RA 11900, or the Vape Law, regulates the importation, assembly, manufacture, sale, packaging, distribution, promotion, and sponsorship of vape products, their devices, and novel tobacco products. Its goal is to ensure a healthy environment, prevent sales to minors, and combat illicit trade.

Retailers and manufacturers should ensure compliance with relevant regulations and guard against illegal products under the Vape Law and its implementing rules.

The DTI has regulatory jurisdiction over vapes and other novel tobacco products. Pascual emphasized the agency’s heightened monitoring and enforcement efforts, both physically and online, to prevent the sale and illegal trade of vape products, particularly those targeting minors.