Elf Bar and other e-cigarette makers dodged US customs and taxes after China’s ban on vaping flavors

By MATTHEW PERRONE
Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — Until recently, the Chinese manufacturer behind Elf Bar e-cigarettes was able to slip its products passed U.S. customs officials. That’s according to public records reviewed by The Associated Press. The colorful vaping device has become the most popular disposable e-cigarette in the world. It has generated hundreds of millions in sales and quickly emerging as the top choice of underage U.S. teens who vape. But Elf Bar is not alone. Records show makers of rival disposable electronic cigarettes also routinely mislabel their shipments from China, thwarting efforts by U.S. officials to intercept products that have been declared illegal.