E-cigarette seller wants say in Sask. regulations

Saskatchewan is currently the wild west when it comes to e-cigarettes with no regulations, but one user and seller is looking to change that.

Chris LaFonte owns Bakken Vapes. His stores are in Weyburn, Estevan, and Swift Current with another opening soon in Moose Jaw. He’s already contacted an MLA to discuss legislation to regulate e-cigarettes.

LaFonte isn’t trying to hamper vaping in Saskatchewan, he said he’s trying to stop legislation from being put in that’s too harsh.

“We want to have the legislation reflect the realities, and some fact-based legislation, rather than working off emotion as it’s happened in some of the other provinces and municipalities.”

Currently LaFonte only has two specific points. The first is that e-cigarettes not be sold in minors.

“There isn’t a reputable shop in Saskatchewan, and likely all of North America, (that) will openly sell to under 18, and I’d like to think that the vast majority of us just won’t whether it’s openly or not.”

LaFonte’s other point is that e-cigarettes shouldn’t be used indoors where minors can be, such as in restaurants or movie theatres. Adult establishments like bars, LaFonte said, should be able to decide for themselves.

Last year, the Canadian Cancer Society called for e-cigarette regulations in Saskatchewan, wanting them to be treated the same as tobacco cigarettes, whether they use tobacco or not.

However, that is exactly what LaFonte doesn’t want. He switched from cigarettes to e-cigarettes last year, and said it’s improved his health and energy. He sees e-cigarettes as a healthier alternative to tobacco cigarette, and a way for people to stop smoking.

“Once you’ve lived it and made the switch, to be called a smoker, to be lumped in with them, it just, it really seems unfair and unjustified.”

LaFonte said that while e-cigarettes aren’t healthy in-and-of-themselves, they are healthier than tobacco cigarettes. And though he said there’s not a single study that concludes there’s danger in second-hand vapour, a study published in February in the U.K. concluded that e-cigarette vapour could cause lung damage and weaken immune systems on mice.

LaFonte is waiting for a meeting with the government to discuss the proposal. In the meantime, he and other stakeholders are gathering information to support their case.