Area resident Dalton Keys outside a local vape shop recently. The minimum age for vaping and smoking has now gone up to 19. (Angela Brown/battlefordsNOW Staff)

By Angela Brown

Smoking/vaping age now 19

Vaping/smoking age increase sees mixed reaction

Nov 14, 2023 | 2:00 PM

With the vaping and smoking age now increased from 18 years of age to 19 in Saskatchewan, some local people are saying it might partly discourage younger people from taking up the habit. Others say there are more deterrents that should be highlighted.

The province recently announced the age increase now in effect aligns with most other provincial age restrictions.

The Government of Saskatchewan said in a release it’s committed to ensuring tobacco and vapour products are inaccessible to school-aged youth, and that “Saskatchewan youth are not targets of advertising for these products.”​

“Tobacco and vapour products should have no place in Saskatchewan schools,” Saskatchewan Health Minister Everett Hindley said. “That is why we are taking steps to protect students from being exposed to these products.”

The province added the change to its legislation aligns age restrictions for smoking and vaping with existing restrictions on liquor and cannabis sales in Saskatchewan.

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Ashten Pambrun, who works at Premium Vape Shop in North Battleford, thinks it’s a good thing the province decided to increase the minimum age to purchase vape and tobacco products.

“We have a fair amount of younger [people], the 18-year-olds who come in here,” he said.

Pambrun said he hopes the new legislation may just help discourage younger people from taking up vaping or smoking.

“I hope so,” he said. “Hopefully, it will have an impact on it.”

Pambrun noted people always need to provide proof of their age with photo identification to purchase any vape products at the shop where he works, so the age increase will be properly enforced.

Local resident Dalton Keys was purchasing vaping products in North Battleford recently. He said he is not sure if increasing the vaping age by one year will make much of a difference.

The 24-year-old said he has taken to vaping to try to quit smoking cigarettes.

“I started smoking when I was 15,” he said. “I don’t know if [the age increase] will discourage [vaping and smoking], or not. We all know it’s bad.”

He believes the high cost to purchase smoking products is a bigger deterrent than increasing the age.

Keys said officials should say: “This is what happens, and this is how much it costs,” to show both the health risks and the hit to one’s pocketbook.

Keys noted during a recent purchase he spent about $80 on vaping products for just two weeks of use.

“It’s ridiculously expensive,” he said.

Keys related that smoking cigarettes is more expensive than vaping, but both tobacco and vaping are extremely expensive habits.

“If you look at it the way my parents talked about it,… it’s not just the dollar [value], but how many hours did it take you to make that money?” he said.

Keys added the cost factor should particularly hit young people who work at jobs making only minimum wage.

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Angela.Brown@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @battlefordsnow