Vape Product Imports Suffer Amid Coronavirus Outbreak

[dropcap class=”kp-dropcap”]A[/dropcap]mid the outbreak of COVID-19, the virulent strain of coronavirus, vape product hardware companies are reporting major delays in the supply chain due to the disruption of exports coming out of China. Bloomberg reports that cannabis hardware company Feather Co. is among some of the first cannabis-adjacent businesses to suffer the effects of the coronavirus outbreak.

Feather Co. Chief Executive Officer Pat Lehoux said his company is currently experiencing is experiencing shipment delays dragging on for two to four weeks due to coronavirus-related factory shutdowns. “When it comes to the delay a customer will actually get when dealing with a Chinese company, it really comes down to the relationship you have with that manufacturer,” Lehoux told Bloomberg. “If you’re going through a third party and you don’t have that close relationship, I think the delays will be more severe.”

Feather Co. supplies Canadian cannabis producer Organigram Holdings Inc., with hardware for vape pens for its Edison brand.

Fortunately, a bit of luck prevented Feather co.’s situation from getting worse. “We were able to convince Organigram to get that order in before Chinese New Year even hit,” said Mitch Thompson who is Feather Co.’s director of product development. “Had we waited, we’d be in a pretty bad situation right now.”

Other companies are stocking up on vape hardware from U.S. suppliers including Curaleaf Holdings Inc., the largest U.S. cannabis company by market value. Curaleaf recently stored about $2 million worth of vape parts from a U.S. supplier.

Last month, experts dismissed misleading rumors that medical cannabis provides any benefit against coronavirus symptoms.

As of early March, the global death toll of COVID-19 surpassed the 3,000 mark, with two confirmed deaths in the U.S. not including citizens abroad in Asia. So far, the Seattle, Washington area is the first regional outbreak to receive media attention. Other outbreaks have been reported in New York, Rhode Island and Florida.