Understanding Concerns About E-juice Manufactured In China

When looking for a new brand of e-juice a lot of vapers will run across the controversy over e-liquid manufactured in China or from ingredients in China.  While plenty of people have plenty to say, it is increasingly difficult to sort out speculation from fact.  Here at Royal Vape Juice we only use USP grade VG, flavorings, and PG.  Our nicotine is 99.9% pure pharmaceutical grade.  Have you ever wondered why so many brands go to such effort to make similar statements about their quality?  Or have you ever wondered exactly there is so much skepticism about e-juice from China (besides the nearly non-existent production regulations which the U.S. also mostly doesn't have)?  

First, why does anyone prefer Chinese E-Liquid?

E-juice and e-cigs from China have a major advantage: Price.  Manufacturers there have access to significantly less expensive food grade ingredients and other materials, never mind how cheap the cruddy stuff is.  Cheap materials, cheap labor, cheap facilities, and cheap shipping mean that they can charge consumers way less than U.S. brands.  This also means that vape shops and online stores nation wide can buy bulk and double their money and still charge less than sources that only sell juices or e-cigs that are made in the U.S.  

I'm not sure that any vaper reading this honestly doesn't want to save a buck, so that's exactly why those juices are SOOOOO tempting!

So are Chinese e-liquids really bad or not?  

The biggest factor that really confuses this issue is that all Chinese brands are NOT bad.  They regulate themselves and use quality ingredients.  Self-regulation can be a beautiful thing, but it isn't enough.  There has always been a large regulatory gap in Chinese and American manufacturing.  In fact, the NY Times did a great article and video that really illustrates the problem here .  Some main points:

• No regulations exist to prevent dangerous manufacturing practices in China.
• While some manufacturers regulate themselves others may purchase in bulk and then mix knockoffs from shady companies into the shipment to increase profit.
• While some companies may regulate themselves, if the materials they purchased to make their e-liquid was contaminated their e-juice will also be contaminated.
• They actually have found dangerous chemicals like those found in anti-freeze and up to 4 times as many carcinogens than are found in traditional cigarettes in e-juice and e-cigs made in China.

So what does it mean?

It means that while quality varies even in the U.S. and the long-term health risks of vaping have yet to be really established, if your juice is from China you run a higher risk of negative health effects.  The pricing may be tempting, but here at RVJ we recommend using only e-juice that is made in the United States, even if you don't pick ours.  

Questions? Comments?  Let us know in the comments section!

The Royal Vape Juice Support Team