MAJOR supermarkets have banned the sale of some vapes over health fears.
Tesco, Morrisons and Sainsbury’s have removed the Elf Bar 600 series from sale.
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The supermarket giants have cleared the e-cig from shelves after they were found to contain 50% more than the legal limit for nicotine e-liquid.
The vapes, which would normally cost between £3.80 and £6 at the supermarkets, have been banned following a Daily Mail investigation.
The national limit for nicotine liquid in a vape is currently at 2ml – which equates to a maximum 2% nicotine strength.
But tests conducted by the newspaper found they included between 3ml and 3.2ml each.
An Elf Bar spokesperson told the paper that some batches have been “inadvertently” overfilled in the UK and apologised for the inconvenience.
Sainsbury’s told The Sun it has removed all Elf Bar products from stores “whilst our suppliers investigate this matter further”.
Morrisons said it is investigation the issue and has removed all flavours of the e-cig.
A Morrisons spokesperson said: “As part of our ongoing investigation into the legal compliance of Elf Bar 600 disposable electronic cigarettes with Trading Standards, we have made the decision to remove all flavoured variants from sale.
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“The products will only be returned to sale once stock that fully complies with UK legislation becomes available.”
Elf Bar and Trading Standards has been contacted for comment.
Tesco has also removed some Elf Bar products from sale, the Mail reports. The Sun has approached the supermarket for comment.
Elf Bar, a China-based company, sells up to 2.5million Elf Bars 600s every week in the UK, according to the report.
Normally, single Elf Bars from the 600 series cost £3.80 from Tesco, £5.99 from Morrisons and £6 from Sainsbury’s.
We’ve asked all three supermarkets if they will offer refunds to anyone who has bought the product and will update when we hear back.
Shops often offer refunds when items are recalled, but these are usually after official notices from the Food Standards Agency (FSA).
Last year Trading Standards officers found the illegal e-cigarettes with nicotine levels twice the UK legal limit being sold in corner shops.
The Geek Bar Pro vapes were not authorised to be sold by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA).
Recent data from Action on Smoking (ASH) revealed that the number of kids vaping has increased.
The number of children that admitted to trying the products has risen from 14% in 2020 to 16% in 2022.
Across the UK, vaping and e-cigarettes come under the same law as smoking.
This law states that it’s illegal to sell any tobacco products to someone under the age of 18.
Recent data from NHS Digital found that kids under the age of nine are being taken to hospital with breathing conditions linked to vaping.
In December Waitrose announced it would stop selling single-use vaping products, including two types of e-cigarettes.
Tesco, Morrisons, Sainsbury’s, Asda and Co op still sell single-use vapes.
