Largest campaign worldwide to help smokers quit through vaping launches for fourth year
This week (Thursday 1st April) will see the launch of VApril 2021, the annual awareness campaign launched four years ago by the UK Vaping Industry Association (UKVIA) to help educate smokers on how to successfully quit conventional cigarettes by transitioning to vaping.
The 2021 VApril month-long initiative will for the second-year running be largely digitally based due to the Covid-19 lockdown restrictions. Vape businesses up and down the country, together with vaping trade associations around the world are getting behind the special month.
Smokers can visit a special campaign VApril website which provides a special guide, the Switch on to Vaping Plan, to help them make a successful switch to vape products and in doing so break their smoking habits, which many will have had for many years. They can also have their questions answered by an online expert panel. As from the 12th April, when vape retail outlets reopen, smokers can also benefit from expert in store advice in participating shops around the country.
The VApril campaign kicks off with a special debate featuring John Dunne, Director General of the UKVIA, Mark Pawsey MP and Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Vaping, Patricia Kovacevic, Global Legal and Regulatory Strategist at Andina Gold Corp and Clive Bates Director of Counterfactual Consulting and former Director of Action on Smoking and Health (ASH).
Topics of discussion will centre around the repercussions of the pandemic on the vaping industry and vapers; how the sector moves on from the events of the last 12 months; how regulatory review this year and COP9 can be a defining moment and accelerate the shift towards a vaping driven smoke free society; addressing the misperceptions of vaping which are deterring adult smokers from making the switch to less harmful alternatives; and the opportunity for the VApril campaign to take the mantle and make smoking in Britain a thing of the past in the future.
Long-term Vape user Chas Barr has said:
“I began vaping fully around six years ago. I had previously tried different nicotine substitutes without success. When e-cigarettes came on to the market, I found that vaping was the most effective for me and easy to adapt to. I’ve helped several friends and family members also switch to vaping. It really is very easy. I would recommend that smokers use the opportunity of VApril and find out what they need to make the switch from smoking.”
Says John Dunne, Director General of the UKVIA: “Vaping is at least 95% less harmful than smoking according to Public Health England (PHE). Therefore, it is not surprising that in its annual vaping review this year, PHE reinforced vaping’s hugely effective role in smoking-cessation. In every region of the country, quit rates among adult smokers were found to be higher with the use of vaping than other products, ranging from 49% success in the South West to 78% in Yorkshire and the Humber. In its review PHE also pointed to the fact that NRT use among long-term former smokers is declining, while the use of vaping products increases.
“With the disruption of the last year, there were reports that there was a smoking comeback. We are determined to get things back on track and giving smokers a real choice, starting with VApril 2021 as vape retail stores begin to reopen. If you’re a smoker and looking to quit visit our website or visit one of the participating retailers during the month.”
According to research by One Poll, 72% of smokers were aware of VApril and said the campaign had influenced their decision to switch to vaping.
Former Secretary of State for Wales and a former Brexit Minister, David Jones MP said:
“E-cigarettes are a very important tool in supporting adult smokers to quit. Communicating the health benefits of less harmful alternatives is essential; and consumer campaigns, such as VApril, can help hugely to achieve Smokefree 2030 and the Government’s commitment to levelling up.”
Vice Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Vaping, Mary Glindon MP has said:
“The UKVIA’s VApril campaign to encourage adult smokers to switch on to e-cigarettes is an excellent example of efforts taken by the industry to support ambitions for a Smokefree society. Adult smokers in the UK should seriously consider trying e-cigarettes, and there is no better time to do so than during VApril. As non-essential retail resumes on April 12th, vape retailers are well equipped to support smokers, offering expert advice to ensure a successful quit attempt.”
ENDS
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Please contact Sam Webber with any questions
sam.webber@jbp.co.uk
07788 750857
VApril launch webinar link: https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_VGjRBRcoSRGnejQVnbM3Tw