Washington, D.C. -- (ReleaseWire) -- 06/10/2013 --The Smoke Free Alternatives Trade Association (SFATA), an electronic cigarette industry trade organization, supports efforts made by various states to ban the sale of electronic cigarettes to minors and supports the efforts of family and public health groups to keep electronic cigarettes out of the hands of minors.

SFATA believes electronic cigarettes (e-cigs) should be available to consenting adults seeking to enjoy an alternative product and is working to educate regulatory and legislative bodies on e-cigs in an effort to influence possible future regulation at the state and federal levels.

Anti-tobacco groups such as The American Cancer Society Action Network (ACS CAN) oppose state age verification bans as part of their strategy to force the FDA to regulate access to e-cigs at the federal level instead. This stance can be seen in a letter to Arizona Senator Adam Driggs.

Despite widespread awareness of electronic cigarettes, a recent fact sheet released by Action on Smoking & Health states “Among children regular use of e-cigarettes is extremely rare.” According to the report, of minors who had heard of e-cigarettes, 7% had tried them. Two percent of those surveyed reported using them monthly or weekly, all of which were already smoking. When only taking minors who had never smoked, 99% reported having never tried e-cigarettes. The remaining 1% of non-smoking minors who had tried e-cigs reported only having tried them once or twice.

The report summarizes, “We found no evidence of regular e-cigarette use among children who have never smoked or who have only tried smoking once.”

“We believe consenting adults should enjoy unfettered access to this lifestyle product and will work with the appropriate entities to ensure the product remains available to the market demographic for whom it is intended” says SFATA executive director Cynthia Cabrera.

Many consider an outright ban of electronic cigarettes as the way to protect youth from accessing the products. A heavy handed approach of that type is unnecessary. There is not sufficient evidence to justify applying indoor and public space smoking bans, high taxes, flavor restrictions, and advertising bans to electronic cigarettes. Age verification processes are the best way of ensuring e-cigs are restricted solely to those who should be enjoying them.

SFATA is a trade organization dedicated to advocacy, awareness, and education for the electronic cigarette industry. SFATA is taking an active role in policy discussions in hopes of laying the foundation for a successful and responsible market. For more information, please visit SFATA.org or email info@sfata.org.

About SFATA
The Smoke Free Alternatives Trade Association is dedicated to the advocacy, education, and reputation of the electronic cigarette industry. Through its membership, SFATA builds the networks necessary to support campaigning and research endeavors paramount to the future of the industry. SFATA's primary concern is the fair regulation of electronic cigarettes in a way that creates an even playing field for all companies in the market. For more information, visit SFATA.org, email info@sfata.org or call 218-22-SFATA.