Degradation of juice at vendors

[Wimmas]

Lately I have been on a mission to explore new vape juices since I left the DIY juice endeavour behind me. I have been visiting multiple vape shops, tasting a variety of juices, buying a variety of juices and repurchasing a variety of the juices I like. One thing I have learnt throughout my two years of vaping and making my own juice in the past, is that direct light and even worse, direct sunlight, degrades juice. It changes the juice's color and certainly does affect the juice's overall quality / taste.

Now, what I have noticed in many vendors is that all the juices on display are hit by direct light and/or sunlight all day every day. Many times I look at the color of juices I am very familiar with and see the discoloration. What drove me to initiate this thread - The other day I went to a local vape shop, bought a juice I am very familiar with and when I vaped on it, I noticed it tasted different (In a bad way). I also noticed the juice appeared a lot darker than what I remember it when I bought at directly from the manufacturer/owner at vapecon last year. Today I went back to that same vendor to buy some cotton and when I went into the shop, I noticed that all juice was being hit by direct sunlight.

Seeing as juice is so expensive and consistency in taste is important to the consumers splashing out money on these juices, I think it's important to address this issue....Or is it just me who thinks it's an issue?

Many manufacturers are using black bottles nowadays which probably helps protect the juice being exposed to light and retain the quality and consistency of the juice, but not all manufacturers want their juices in black bottles.

Manufacturers take great care to ensure their juices are produced in high standard facilities, and steeped in dark places for the correct period. The vendors should take the same care for the product once received to ensure the quality is maintained until it's in the consumers' hands. We should remember this is a product which is perishable and can be spoiled if exposed to the wrong environmental conditions.

Am I crazy? Your thoughts?

 

[Silver]

I dont think you are crazy @Wimmas

I agree, its important that juice in the retailer is not on display in direct harsh sunlight

However, retail does require that customers can see the product clearly so lighting is important. Its a tricky one. I suppose one could have an empty bottle on display and when someone wants that juice, you fetch the same from a dark cool cupboard - but in a busy retail environment I am not sure how practical that would be.

I have also bought quite a bit of juice over the years from retailers. I haven't had a bad experience so far - but I do think this is an important issue that is worth discussing

 

[Rob Fisher]

100% agree @Wimmas! I shudder every time I see the juice in a shop sitting in direct sunlight! Some juice like a bit of steeping but a lot don't. Personally, I think fruity juice prefer not steeping! Also when I leave any juice in my car for any length of time I fee it degrades the juice no matter which juice it is!

In fact my Red Pill and other fruity juices I store in a fridge! The others are in a closed box.

 

[Wimmas]

@Silver 100% agree, it's tricky one. I studied marketing and come from marketing background and some of the key things I understand is critical especially in vaping, is the visual appeal, ambience and so forth in a vaping store as well as the products.

My suggestions would be:

• Tint the store windows to protect from UV
• Ensure in-store is quite dark
• I am sure there is special lighting which can be used to emphasize the juices in display (No need for empty bottles)

There are quite a few shops I have been in which does this very well, but it seems some take no care at all. Below is an example of a shop which looks lit, but lighting is controlled:

 

[Wimmas]

100% agree @Wimmas! I shudder every time I see the juice in a shop sitting in direct sunlight! Some juice like a bit of steeping but a lot don't. Personally, I think fruity juice prefer not steeping! Also when I leave any juice in my car for any length of time I fee it degrades the juice no matter which juice it is!

In fact my Red Pill and other fruity juices I store in a fridge! The others are in a closed box.

@Rob Fisher I actually looked at the Red Pill on shelf at the shop I was in today, and the juice was so dark.... Still thought about you when I saw it!

In my earlier days of vaping I accidentally left a 100ml of one of my favourite DIY juices outside under a gazebo for a short while because we were outside having a braai. Color and taste changed so much that I threw it away.

 

[Hooked]

I've also often wondered about the juice in vape shops, because obviously there is bright lighting in the shops.

Some time back I posted a rather funny video of a break-in at a vape shop in the USA and the video showed the robbers grabbing juice and throwing it in a bag. However, the shop owners had the last laugh because the "juice" was just containers, for display purposes only.

Perhaps vape shops should consider doing the same. Have empty bottles for display purposes and an extra bottle under the counter for tasting.

To be perfectly honest, I think that it's time for vapers to grow up. We don't need visual appeal - we're not children. The bottom line is the flavour.

At home I take great care with my juice. I'm fortunate enough to have a dedicated vape room and it's always cool and dark. The blinds are kept closed and, as an extra precaution, I had the windows tinted.

 

[zadiac]

This is one of the main reasons I only DIY. I can control everything about my juices. If it spoils, then it's my fault.

 

[ARYANTO]

A lot of my favourite juices come in boxes , does this protect them from sun ?

 

[Hooked]

A lot of my favourite juices come in boxes , does this protect them from sun ?

@ARYANTO International juice is often in a box and I would think the box protects them from shop lights. I still wouldn't leave juice in a box in the sun though. Even though it's not directly exposed to sunlight it's still going to get warm and juice is supposed to be kept cool.

 

[CaliGuy]

Great topic @Wimmas and worth discussing.

From my experience not all shops stand their juice on shelves in direct light, for example a vape store I frequent often that’s down the road from where I live have these narrow slots that that allows the juices bottles to lie on their sides with the caps facing outwards. This kind of protects them from light and they have a dark tint on their windows.

I can relate to not wanting to purchase juice that has been on the shelf for to long either which is why I steer clear of any juices sales I’m general. But do understand juice sales are their to clear stock before its to old but who really know how old that juice is. It does help to purchase from a reputable store that you stop past frequently.

I feel strongly that it should be compulsory for juice manufactures to put a batch number, date of manufacture along with an expiry date. This isn’t a requirement currently and until it becomes a industry standard we the consumers are at the mercy of the industry players. Unsuspecting vapers especially the Newbies are very prone to purchasing old or expired juices which isn’t fair to anyone.

To prevent this for myself I only purchase from stores that I stop in at least once a week to see how stock is moving. I have two specific store in my area that moves a lot of juice and they are always receiving new replacement stock and they let me know when new stock arrives via social or a news letter or in-store chats. So my advise is to buy from a store that takes care of you and wants you to have the best experience.

Old juice aside, the worst though is finding a dead insect inside your newly purchased bottle of juice, this has happened to me twice now from two different manufacturers. Needless to say I will never purchase from those two manufacturers again.

 

[CaliGuy]

Forgot to add something and I may come across as hypercritical with this next bit but it’s not intended.

Was just thinking that it doesn’t hurt for us the consumer to try make a store that doesn’t take care of their juice stock properly aware that they should consider changing things to improve the situation.

Not every store owner has the finances or means to improve right away but it better to give your opinion to a store owner or manager in the hope that your suggestion is well received.

Distributors and Manufacturers should also be willing to advise shops to store their juices in a certain way and I’m sure that most do.

@Silver summoned it up nicely in his post that retails have a tricky decision to make when it comes to displaying stock versus protecting it. But it can be done and I like to believe that a larger percentage of stores do actually do this.