InterTabac/InterSupply: Showcasing China’s Latest Product Innovations

Staff Report

It is undeniable that many of the industry’s innovations originate in China. The ingenuity of Chinese manufacturers is second to none when it comes to r&d of new products that answer the demands of both the industry and consumers. The following are but a few examples of Chinese manufacturers that have contributed to the industry’s growth and development.

Shenzhen Yukan Technology

Established in 2017, Shenzhen Yukan Technology Co., Ltd. took heat-not-burn (HNB) devices to the next level, developing a new product, a HNB device under the brand, IUOC, (which stands for “I Use Ordinary Cigarettes), that works with any conventional cigarette.

The first IUOC device was developed in response to domestic policies on tobacco and, more importantly, the need to use the company’s own heating technology to extract the active ingredients in tobacco in a harm-reduced manner. Development was based on the principals of tobacco heating and cigarette smoldering, as well as a mathematical model established by referring to the aerosol data by British American Tobacco, Philip Morris International, and China National Tobacco Corporation. The IUOC device was well-received in the market, so much so that Shenzhen Yukan Technology has launched IUOC 4.0, which is a smaller device with a more exquisite appearance and better aerosol heating.

The company has also patented its ZEBRA heating technology, which has proven to be an important part of its future HNB portfolio, along with owning 24 granted patents and 27 in the application process.

MOON Group

Headquartered in Shanghai, MOON Group was founded in 2010 and is one of China’s top manufacturers and trading group of cigarette rolling papers, specializing in manufacturing MOON brand and OEM cigarette rolling papers, RYO filters, tobacco accessories, etc.

MOON’s main markets are South America, Africa, and South Asia. Its main markets for OEM customers are also South America, Africa, South Asia, and the Netherlands.

The MOON Green series, which are 13 gsm, 100% pure hemp paper, are the flagship products for MOON RYO papers. The MOON Unbleached series are new products with the same 13 gsm of unbleached papers, which are very popular with health-conscious RYO smokers. The 12.5 gsm Moon Brown unbleached paper is premium quality, ultra-thin, slow-burning, arabic gum, and transparent. All of MOON’s low-gram papers are slow-burning. Some of the most recent innovations from MOON include their flavored papers, which are 14 gsm with food-grade printing colors and various flavors, such as apple, strawberry, chocolate, etc.

MOON Group is also researching and developing an 11 gsm rice paper and more new products, including, pre-rolled tips, cones, and cut-corner expected in 2020.

Mudanjiang Hengfeng Paper

A subsidiary of Hengfeng Group, Mudanjiang Hengfeng Paper Co., Ltd. is a leading paper manufacturer in China. Located in the southeast part of Heilongjiang province, Mudangjiang Hengfeng Paper has an annual production of 160,000 tons of paper and 3,000 tons of flax pulp. Aside from being one of the most important manufacture of cigarette-related papers, it is also the first high-tech company in the domestic paper-making industry to have been listed in the Shanghai Stock Exchange in 2001. Hengfeng Paper’s products include cigarette paper, plug-wrap paper, aluminum foil backing paper, tipping-base paper, bible paper, as well as over a hundred types of industrial specialty paper. The company now also manufactures RYO papers from bamboo pulp and recently established Hengyuan Hemp, a branch specializing in the production of hemp and hemp papers.

Shanghai Minsun

Shanghai Minsun started as a printing and packaging manufacturer. Its product line has now grown and evolved to include RYO papers, a series of new tip products, including perforated tips, gummed tips, and pre-rolled tips, and related packaging material with main markets in the US, Canada, and the Dominican Republic, along with a growing European market.

Shanghai Minsun focuses on eco-friendly, paper-based products, regardless of changes in the market and the smoking concept, starting with flat paper tips around 20 years ago at the very beginning of its inception. Being both eco-friendly and user-friendly is how Shanghai Minsun surpasses other products, especially now when environmental sustainability is an important factor to consider. Shanghai Mindun products in no way compromises the smoking experience, especially for the cigar or hemp consumers.

Different core shapes, such as the S, W, or ROSETTE shapes also differentiate Shanghai Minsun’s products from those in the market. Different shapes correspond to different filtering effects, different combinations, different absorbing coefficients.

The latest innovation from Shanghai Minsun that has caught the attention of many clients is its Rosette paper rod, introduced at InterSupply 2019. It fits perfectly in a slim factory-made cigar or hemp tube, but more than that, it is dramatic in the aesthetical aspect, giving a completely different look from a conventional filter while, ultimately, it is just a strip of 100% degradable twisted paper.

VAPORESSO

VAPORESSO was established in 2015 by parent company SMOORE, which was founded in 2006, making this company’s history one of the longest in vaping. VAPORESSO is a market leader in vaping with creative, innovative breakthroughs, owning over 1,000 patents and growing daily.

One of the latest breakthroughs is the VAPORESSO PodStick, which was quickly embraced by the market with positive consumer feedback.

The PodStick adopts a slim, stick style with metal casing which comes in six optional colors (silver, black, blue, gold, phantom, and splashed.) Under the gold power button, the PodStick uses five LED lights to inform the user of remaining battery. In line with the power indicator light is the laser-engraved PodStick and VAPORESSO logos. The details of the entire product reflect the high craftsmanship level of VAPORESSO.

To fill the pod with e-juice, users need to go through two steps to make it happen, which are slide and press-to-fill. The first step, sliding, takes a little bit of a push, but that gives it an extra level of child-proofing comfort, adopting the same PTF stop valve system that VAPORESSO has used on their old pod system devices like the Zero.

It is very easy to change the pod as the magnets are secure but not too strong to the point of needing pliers to take the pod out. PodStick has two optional coils, one is the 1.3Ω CCELL ceramic coil and the other one is 0.6Ω meshed coil. For those who prefer flavor more than the nicotine satisfaction during vaping, the meshed coil works really well as a restricted DTL or a very airy MTL. The CCELL pod has a much tighter draw, much more suited for mid-high nic salts or high nic freebase juices.

In addition to the ability to restore flavors, this seemingly simple device also allows users to adjust its output power easily. The output power level can be adjusted by pressing the switch button three times: green is the highest one, blue represents mid-level that could embrace your tongue with mild vapor, and red suggests you can just put it away and take a break.