McFakin’ it: How e-cigarette vaping companies are targeting children with sugary flavours and packaging that mirrors McDonald’s milkshakes
- E-cigarette companies are going to greater lengths to target kids by selling nicotine liquids packaging that mirrors McDonald’s milkshakes
- Sale of liquids, aimed at young people, is part of a growing problem health chiefs are trying to stop
- Businessman Peter Walker has been flooding the UK with illicit liquids looking like McDonald’s shakes with mango and pineapple and strawberry flavour
- He admitted his McVapes packaging which mirrors McDonald’s milkshakes is ‘a bit naughty’
- Teenagers who vape are six times more likely to take up smoking than those who have never tried it, scientists have warned
- McVapes are not on the approved list of products held by the Government’s Medical and Healthcare products agency
E-cigarette companies are going to greater lengths to target children by selling nicotine liquids in packaging that mirrors McDonald’s milkshakes, MailOnline can reveal.
The sale of liquids, aimed at young people, is part of a growing problem health chiefs are trying to combat with teenagers getting hooked on nicotine despite never smoking.
Packaging of vaping products, costing as little as £1, include brightly-coloured labels on flavours such as ‘gummy bear’ and ‘cotton candy’.
One of the worst examples is ‘McVape’, which comes in mango and pineapple and strawberry flavours.
The £11.49 bottles are sold in packaging to make them look like milkshakes from the fast food giant.
MailOnline tracked down company boss Peter Walker, 34, who has been flooding the UK market with the bottles that even feature the ‘I’m vapin’ it’ slogan and the McDonald’s ‘golden arches’ logo.
E-cigarette companies are going to greater lengths to target kids by selling nicotine liquids packaging that mirrors McDonald’s milkshakes
Businessmen Peter Walker, 34, (pictured) has been flooding the UK market with bottles that even feature the ‘I’m vapin’ it’ slogan and the McDonald’s ‘golden arches’ logo
Mr Walker has sold the addictive, sugary flavoured vape liquids with colourful packaging that appeals to teenagers from his parents’ £69,000 terraced home in Ferryhill, Co. Durham
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McVapes have been illicitly sold in the UK by Second Vape Ltd from Mr Walker’s parents’ £69,000 terraced home in Ferryhill, Co. Durham.
The e-liquids are not on the approved list of products held by the Government’s Medical and Healthcare products agency.
Only flavours and packaging approved by the MEHA can be sold in the UK.
Mr Walker sold McVape to a MailOnline reporter, who entered a fake date of birth on his website.
When asked if the McVapes packaging is targeted at children, the businessman replied: ‘Yes, that branding is a bit naughty.’
He added: ‘But I have to say that the health benefits in helping people stop smoking outweigh the bad points.
‘We don’t sell to under 18s. Some of these products might appeal to teenagers but if they are under age they cannot buy it from us.
Meanwhile Juul, one of the world’s biggest vaping companies, has attacked the sale of e-cigarettes with flavours that appeal to children, saying it would never sell flavours such as ‘gummy bear’ or ‘cotton candy’ which are ‘clearly’ targeted at kids.
Among Mr Walker’s range are bottles that look like Haribo sweet packets, blueberry jam flavour, cookies and Sours based on Sourz sweet fizzy drinks.
Deborah Arnott, chief executive of ASH (Action on Smoking and Health) has called for the products to be banned.
She told Mail Online: ‘I’d warn anyone who sees McVapes for sale not to buy them as they’re not on the list of notified products and that means that there’s no guarantee they meet the necessary standards and they shouldn’t be on sale in the UK.
‘I’m concerned as well that whoever’s selling them may well not be checking that they’re not selling to under 18s which is also illegal. Sales need to be stopped and now.’
With the increasing popularity of vaping, products on sale in the UK must be registered with the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency.
The Government agency’s website lists all the hundreds of liquids that can be sold, but McVapes is not among them.
The MEHA website also contains a comprehensive list of products that have been withdrawn from sale and almost all have names that are based around sweet flavours, such as juicy fruit and vanilla custard.
When asked by a MailOnline reporter if the McVapes packaging is targeted at children Mr Walker replied: ‘Yes, that branding is a bit naughty.’ But he said vapes help people quit smoking
These unregulated, illicit vape liquids being sold through Mr Walker’s Second Vape company appeal to teenagers and Deborah Arnott, chief executive of ASH, urged for them to be recalled
Some nine million people still smoke in the UK despite a big rise in e-cigarette use. In 2012, there were 700,000 vapers in the UK whereas now that figure is closing in on 3m. Market research group Euromonitor estimates that the number of adults who vape will reach almost 55 million by 2021.
Teenagers who vape are six times more likely to take up smoking than those who have never tried it, scientists have warned.
Those who experiment with e-cigarettes are at higher risk of smoking within two years than those who have never tried the device, a study in the US found.
The investigation, which looked at the smoking habits of 18-year-olds, added weight to the argument electronic cigarettes can act as a gateway to tobacco products for teenagers.
The US, Japan and the UK are the world’s biggest markets with vapers in the three countries spending a combined equivalent of £14bn on smokeless tobacco and vaping products in 2016.
One British firm – not responsible for specifically targeting children – reported £6.9m pre-tax profit for year to March 2017 up from £6m in the previous 12 months. Its sales rose to £71m from £59m in the previous year.
The industry’s claim that vaping brings benefits to health – especially in young people – is hotly disputed.
Those who are attracted to colourful packaging like this and experiment with e-cigarettes are at higher risk of smoking within two years than those who have never tried it, studies found
Mr Walker, who sells thousands of McVapes, added: ‘We don’t sell to under 18s. Some of these products might appeal to teenagers but if they are under age they cannot buy it from us.’
In the US the Food and Drug Administration has announced plans to require strict limits on the sale of most flavored e-cigarettes, including age verification controls for online sales.
The move is an attempt to curb what health experts in the US are calling ‘an epidemic of underage vaping’ with FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb vowing: ‘What I can’t tolerate is another year of this level of growth.’
Last month researchers from Duke University in North Carolina found that flavourings react with vaping liquids to create dangerous compounds that can trigger severe irritation when inhaled.
Dr Sven-Eric Jordt, a senior author of the study, said: ‘These individual ingredients are combining to form more complex chemicals that are not disclosed to the user. ‘When inhaled, these compounds will persist in the body for some time, activating irritant pathways. ‘Over time, this mild irritation could cause an inflammatory response.’
A spokesman for McDonalds declined to comment.
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