The Fair Trade Enforcement Bureau (FTEB) has ordered the ban on Flava vapes and the suspension of the operations of its distributors for illegal marketing to minors and tax evasion.
FTEB on March 15 ordered Flava Corp.; Lilac’s Vape Shop and; Lilac Sison Tayaban, Flava chief operating officer, to refrain from manufacturing, importing, selling, packaging and distributing imported Flava vapes for violating
Republic Act (RA) No. 11900, or the Vaporized Nicotine and Non-Nicotine Products Regulation Act.
All of Flava’s commercial activities must immediately stop once the Sampaloc, Manila-based business receives the preliminary order issued by FTEB.
FTEB issued the preliminary order on March 15 to confiscate Flava products that violate RA 11900 for the purpose of preventing the disposition or tampering of evidence and the continuation of the acts being complained of.
In earlier reports, the House Ways and Means Committee estimated as much as P728 million in foregone tax revenues from the alleged technical smuggling of P1.4-billion worth of illicit Flava devices last year.
The reports also noted the House panel had found out after laboratory testing Flava had underdeclared the vapes it imported from China. Flava had mislabeled its ingredient as freebase nicotine, which is being slapped with a lower excise tax than nicotine salt — its real ingredient.
The House committee discovered Flava aggressive marketing of its flavored vapes to minors, most especially on social media — a violation of RA 11900.
