Why is the FDA attempting a Geek Bar ban and Other Vapes Being Blocked at the U.S. Border?
In recent months, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), in coordination with the FDA, has dramatically escalated enforcement efforts against “unauthorized” vape imports, especially targeting popular brands like Geek Bar Pulse. This crackdown has led to millions of dollars’ worth of disposable vapes, especially those imported from China, being seized at U.S. ports. The FDA states that a staggering $136 million in illegal e-cigarettes have been confiscated since 2023, including a May 2025 seizure in Chicago involving nearly 2 million units valued at more than $33 million. FDA officials vowed earlier this year to “stop unauthorized e-cigarettes at the border”, a promise that is now coming to fruition.
Geek Bar is a widely-used disposable brand whose popularity has made it a primary target for enforcement. Shipments of Geek Bar have plummeted from approximately 1,200 per month last year to only 71 in May 2025. These seizures are driven by both FDA seizures and steep tariffs ranging from 30% to 145% on Chinese-made vapes. Today we now have widespread shortages, rising prices, and panic among adult consumers who rely on these products as their most effective smoke-free alternative.
Ironically, while FDA and CBP are aggressively stopping vape imports, traditional cigarettes are sold freely across the U.S. This ridiculous discrepancy has sparked outrage among harm-reduction advocates, small vape businesses, and adult users alike across the USA. Clearly the government is protecting Big Tobacco’s profits while dismantling a much safer alternative created by independent innovators. On top of that, misinformation is being spread suggesting that Chinese-manufactured vapes are somehow dangerous, even though most vaping hardware (even from U.S. brands) has been manufactured in China for well over a decade. It’s almost like people are being forced to go back to smoking cigarettes again!
Today’s vaping industry is largely composed of small and medium-sized businesses. These businesses are now being driven out of the market due to the FDA’s selective enforcement and near-impossible to follow regulations. This crackdown will affect millions of adult vapers, many of whom turned to these devices to finally quit combustible tobacco. Interestingly, over 60% of adult vape users are women, who have increasingly embraced vaping for its accessibility and proven harm-reduction benefits.
This is a public health and consumer choice crisis! The question everyone wants the answer to is: Why are cigarettes still protected, while vapes are being wiped off the shelves?
As enforcement intensifies, vape users, retailers, and industry leading voices are calling for fair, science-based regulation, and for someone to finally draw a clear line between public health and corporate interest, instead of the underhanded methods that are presently in motion.