There has been a lot of news in the smoke & vape community through the beginning of 2023. A few stories have really stood out and we aim to go into detail about them!
Elfbar: Elfbar has actually been under fire twice this year! Early in the year, Elfbar 600s made in the UK were being recalled for containing 50% more nicotine than the UK’s legal regulations allowed. This was only due to the disposable vapes being overfilled, though they are still recalled from shelves around the UK.
In the US, you may have noticed that Elfbars are now going by the name EBDESIGN. This is due to a copyright infringement lawsuit between iMiracle (the company that manufactures Elfbars) and VPR Brands- another company which produces e-cigarettes. VPR obtained the registered trademark on the name ELF back in 2018, and iMiracle filed for the trademark ELFBAR in 2020 but that didn’t proceed any further “due to a lack of trademark office communications from the filer”. iMiracle still holds a valid copyright on the Elfbar name in China and the UK, so the name change is special to the US.
RAW: The RAW suit has definitely been circulating quickly, though it’s not as intense as people may think. As of May 2023, the lawsuit against RAW had to do with false claims on the origins of their products and their charitable contributions. This started because RAW allegedly engaged in unfair competition when they claimed OCB papers (made by a rival company, Republic Brands) were a knock-off of RAW’s Organic Hemp papers. Republic Brands filed a federal lawsuit against HBI International, the company that distributes RAW products, and aside from having to stop making claims about other brands, this is how that played out.
We’ve all seen the promotional “Alcoy, Spain” stamp on RAW papers since Alcoy is the “birthplace of rolling papers”, even their Organic Hemp papers, which is one issue here. RAW has been transparent on this since going to court; their Organic Hemp papers are made in Benimarfull, Spain sourcing certified organic hemp from southern France. Even though Benimarfull is less than 10 miles from Alcoy, this still violates the Illinois Uniform Deceptive Trade Practices Act and RAW cannot use the “Alcoy Stamp” on their products as of May 31st, 2023. The subject of harmful substances and questionable sourcing in RAW papers was also brought up, but this only has to do with bootleg RAW products and not RAW themselves.
As for their misleading charity practices, some seasoned RAW users may have heard of The RAW Foundation. During the court ruling, it was found that this specific organization has never existed. RAW did state that they have given over 2.5 million dollars to charities using the donations to The RAW Foundation, as well as brought up partnerships with organizations like Water Is Life International, Trees for the Future, Wine To Water, and CarbonFund.org. They no longer claim to run their own organization, though still accept donations to funnel to charities under the name RAW Giving.