Tobacco firms may own the e-cig market this year

For some, the year 2018 may bring about the biggest change to the tobacco industry as Philip Morris and other tobacco players will possibly eat up the largest share in the electronic cigarette (e-cigarette) market.

Per Channel News Asia, this prediction comes as the Giant tobacco firm’s e-cigarette, which it calls the iQOS, is set to undergo the scrutiny of the Food and Drug Administration.

Once the product secures the agency’s nod, it will be available on the market and might even topple Reynolds American's Vuse from its reign as the best-selling e-cigarette.

The iQOs has already been introduced to other countries such as Japan. The giant tobacco firm has so far won 11.9 percent of the Asian country’s market share for e-cigs. Philip Morris has been boosting production in preparation for the possible approval from the FDA. By the end of 2016, its iQOS has totaled 15 billion units. Production estimates for 2017 will put the total easily to 60 billion.

Competition heating up

Tobacco firm British American Tobacco has also created its own e-cig it named iFuse glo.

The company said the device is a heat-not-burn e-cig, which prevents any burning accident due to overheating of the device. the company claims the product has won 2.7 percent of Japan’s e-cigarette market. The firm is also set to submit the product for FDA’s proposal to introduce it to U.S. commercial markets.

Earlier, British American Tobacco said it acquired South Africa's biggest vaping firm‚ Twisp, per The Sunday Times. The Cape Town-based firm was established in 2008. It offers several vaping devices and various flavors across 66 shops in the country.

Developments like these among tobacco firms are firming up the wider notion that smokers, in the next few years, will be shifting to what more and more studies have been proving as a healthier alternative.

Such moves from Tobacco Companies are boosting valuations of several e-cig companies, as well as vape liquid producers.

This proves true for manufacturer and marketer of quality vape liquid, PotNetwork Holding, Inc. (OTCMKTS: POTN). The firm has been positioning itself to be a market leader in terms of providing affordable devices without sacrificing quality. Under the company’s premium brand, Diamond CBD, the firm offers cannabidiol-infused vape liquids, vaping pens, vaping tank and vape additives.

The liquid comes in different flavors such as strawberry, jungle juice, and watermelon. They are also bestsellers when it comes to their vape product lines that consist of Diamond CBD, Chong’s Choice (as in celebrity Tommy Chong), Liquid Gold and the newly-launched Full Spectrum.

Health concerns remain

With the detrimental effects of cigarettes, vaping is the reasonable alternative and PotNetwork’s healthy infusion of CBD to its vape liquid products will address the problems of Americans who are struggling to drop their smoking habit.

Studies have been showing that smokers who would like to quit should turn to e-cigs for a healthier alternative. This is what tobacco companies will have to prove to get the nod of the FDA. Unlike e-cigs, tobacco is made up of hundreds of harmful chemicals that e-cigs and vaporizers do not have. According to the Financial Times, the risk of smoking an e-cig is estimated to be less than five percent of smoking tobacco.

Plus, tobacco smoking has proven itself as a killer as it is the world’s top cause of cancer, a disease that killed nearly nine million people in 2015, as noted by the World Health Organization.