Kevin Burns, CEO of Juul Labs — the maker of the bestselling e-cigarette in the U.S. and center of federal regulators’ crackdown into what they’re calling a teen vaping “epidemic” — has a message for parents whose children are addicted to his company’s products: “I’m sorry.”
Since launching in 2015, Juul has quickly come to dominate the e-cigarette industry with roughly 40% of the market, becoming such a dominant player that
Altria, the top U.S. cigarette company, invested $12.8 billion for a 35% stake in the San Francisco-based start-up. But the company has a problem: Its vapes are
incredibly popular with teenagers.
The
Food and Drug Administration has declared teen vaping an “epidemic,” citing
federal survey data that showed nearly 21% of high school students vaped last year. Former FDA Commissioner
Scott Gottlieb and health care advocates blame the surge in teen vaping on Juul.
CNBC’s
Carl Quintanilla interviewed Burns for a documentary, “Vaporized: America’s E-cigarette Addiction,” which premiers Monday at 10 p.m. ET. Quintanilla, who toured one of Juul’s manufacturing facilities in Wisconsin with Burns, asked him what he would say to a parent with a child who was addicted to Juul.
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Despite the unknowns, some researchers say e-cigarettes could help the U.S.′ 34.3 million smokers. Regulators in the U.K. are actively encouraging smokers to give up their cigarettes in favor of e-cigarettes, while the debate in the U.S. proves far more contentious.
