HAVE TO DO WITH WHERE THEY GET THE PRODUCTS AND NOT VAPING.
JANIS MACKEY FRAYER IS IN CHINA.
>> Reporter: THIS IS THE WORLD’S
VAPING HEARTLAND.
VAPING HEARTLAND. A FIVE-SQUARE MILE DISTRICT, THE
SOURCE OF 90% OF THE VAPING
SUPPLY CHAIN.
SUPPLY CHAIN. WHERE HUNDREDS OF CHINESE
FACTORIES WITH MAKING, TESTING
AND EXPORTING NEARLY EVERY
VAPING PRODUCT ON THE PLANET,
FROM CIRCUIT BOARDS AND
BATTERIES TO LIQUID-FILLED PODS.
IT LOOKS LIKE BUSINESS IS
BOOMING.
BOOMING. >> OH, ABSOLUTELY.
BUSINESS IS SO GOOD AND THE
MARKET IS GROWING SO FAST.
>> Reporter: WE WERE GIVEN
SPECIAL ACCESS TO PRODUCTION
LINES AND TESTING LABS HERE TO
SHOW WHERE IT ALL BEGINS BEFORE
REACHING STORE SHELVES AND VAPE
SHOPS.
SHOPS. CHINA MADE THE FIRST E-CIGARETTE
IN 2003.
IN 2003. NOW VAPING IS MORE POPULAR THAN
EVER.
EVER. THIS FACTORY ALONE MAKES 200,000
OF THESE EVERY SINGLE DAY.
A $12 BILLION GLOBAL MARKET THAT
IS LARGELY UNREGULATED.
THE VAPING MONOPOLY CENTER HERE
HAS BOOMED WITH LITTLE
OVERSIGHT.
OVERSIGHT. >> IF IT’S A LOW QUALITY
PRODUCT, WE WON’T BE ABLE TO
SURVIVE IN THE MARKET.
>> Reporter: ONLY NOW WITH THE
VAPING SCARE SWEEPING THE U.S.
IS CHINA’S GOVERNMENT
CONSIDERING RULES TO EASE EVEN
ITS OWN SAFETY CONCERNS.
CHINESE E-CIGARETTES VARY IN
QUALITY AND MAY POSE SAFETY
RISKS SUCH AS LEAKAGE, UNSAFE
BATTERIES AND UNSAFE
INGREDIENTS.
INGREDIENTS. CHINA IS A COUNTRY OF SMOKERS.
LIKE HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS OF
PEOPLE CONSUMING TRILLIONS OF
CIGARETTES A YEAR.
THE BIGGEST CIGARETTE MAKER ON
EARTH IS OWNED BY THE CHINESE
STATE AND GENERATES SERIOUS CASH
FOR THE GOVERNMENT.
ROUGHLY 11% OF THE COUNTRY’S TAX
REVENUES.
REVENUES. E-CIGARETTES COMPETE WITH THE
REAL ONES.
REAL ONES. AMERICAN HEALTH EXPERTS LOOKING
INTO HUNDREDS OF VAPE-RELATED
ILLNESSES IN OVER 30 STATES AND
AT LEAST 7 DEATHS SAY THEY CAN’T
POINT TO ANY ONE PRODUCT.
CHINESE OR OTHERWISE AS THE
CULPRIT.
CULPRIT. >> MOST USERS ARE NOT GOING TO
KNOW WHAT IS IN THE E-CIGARETTES
OR VAPING PRODUCTS THAT THEY
BUY.
BUY. WE’RE RECOMMENDING PEOPLE NOT
BUY PRODUCTS OFF THE STREET AND
NOT MODIFY THEM FURTHER BEYOND
WHAT IS INTENDED BY THE
MANUFACTURER.
MANUFACTURER. BUT THERE ARE DIVERSE CHEMICALS
AND SUBSTANCES IN E-CIGARETTES
AND VAPING PRODUCTS.
WITH THE LACK OF REGULATION IN
CHINA, E-CIGARETTE MAKERS SAY
THEY HAVE THEIR OWN STRICT
CONTROLS, AND STANDARDS REQUIRED
BY THE FDA AND EUROPEAN
REGULATORS.
REGULATORS. YOU CAN SEE WE’RE VERY STRICT
ABOUT PRODUCTION, HE SAYS.
MANAGEMENT, SAFETY AND QUALITY
CONTROL.
CONTROL. QUALITY IS OUR LIFE LINE, HE
ADDS.
ADDS. SMALL WORKSHOPS AND
COUNTERFEITERS USE WHATEVER THEY
CAN, MATERIALS THAT COULD BE
UNSAFE TO HUMAN HEALTH.
IT’S UNCLEAR HOW MANY CUT-RATE
WORKSHOPS MIGHT BE OUT THERE.
LAST YEAR JUUL LABS TOOK FEDERAL
LEGAL ACTION IN THE U.S. AGAINST
30 CHINESE ENTITIES KNOWN TO BE
COUNTERFEITING THEIR DEVICE AND
SELLING THEM ONLINE.
AS FOR THOSE NEW RULES, CHINA’S
GOVERNMENT SAYS THEY’RE
OFFICIALLY IN THE WORKS BUT IT
COULD BE MONTHS BEFORE THEY TAKE
EFFECT AND NOBODY IS SAYING HOW
THEY’LL GO ABOUT ENFORCEING THEM
ARE YOU WORRIED ABOUT MORE
REGULATION?
REGULATION? >> NOT AT ALL.
I THINK REGULATING MARKET IS A