SANTA ANA, Calif. (KNX) — The sale of all flavored tobacco products will be banned in Santa Ana beginning next month.
The city council unanimously voted Tuesday night to adopt a new law prohibiting the sale of menthol, fruit, and candy-flavored products known to appeal to potential youth smokers.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration conducted a youth tobacco-use survey last year, finding that about one in eight high school students in the U.S. said they used a tobacco product in the prior 30 days.
“It’s a matter of health,” Councilmember Nelida Mendoza said Tuesday night.
Santa Ana has become the largest Orange County city to pass an outright flavored-tobacco ban without exceptions — including products used in hookah lounges. The city banned lounges in 2008, though the water pipe used may still be sold.
But the ban has drawn criticism for its inclusion of hookah products, which are part of important cultural traditions among Middle Eastern, North African, and South Asian peoples.
“Many immigrant small business owners have built their business doing what they know from their home country. It is unfortunate that the Santa Ana city council did not amend the ordinance to include a cultural exemption for hookah,” Thomas Laton, government affairs director for Fumari, a San Diego-based hookah and tobacco dealer, told The Orange County Register.
The FDA survey found that of those youths who reported using tobacco in the past 30 days, e-cigarettes (vapes) were the favorite, with hookah accounting for less than 1 percent.
Retailers who fail to comply with the ordinance by next month could face seizure of their products and potential loss of tobacco licenses.
Related
Follow KNX News 97.1 FM
Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | TikTok