Indiana Clears Hundreds of MR FOG and Lost Mary Vape Products After Initial Restrictions

Indiana regulators have revised their enforcement notices to allow hundreds of MR FOG and Lost Mary product entries back onto store shelves, offering some relief to retailers affected by the state's new vaping-product restrictions. However, the decision is limited in scope: several other products named in earlier removal orders remain prohibited unless state officials issue additional changes.

The Indiana Alcohol and Tobacco Commission (ATC) revised its position after receiving compliance evidence for certain products. The changes show how a product's status can shift under Indiana's evolving regulatory system, while raising continuing questions about what evidence businesses must provide to secure clearance.

There is also an important distinction for the industry: permission under Indiana's enforcement process does not automatically mean a product has received marketing authorization from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

How Indiana's Enforcement Campaign Started

The ATC began its crackdown on September 9, directing tobacco certificate holders to remove products manufactured by Shenzhen iJOY Technology Co., Ltd. The affected items included iJOY Bar, several XP models, and LIO devices. Retailers were warned that Indiana State Excise Police could seize products covered by the notice.

On September 14, the commission issued another removal notice involving Shenzhen iMiracle Technology Co., Ltd., which markets products under names including Elf Bar and Lost Mary. A separate order targeted MR FOG products associated with Dongguan HT Technology Co., Ltd.

The enforcement actions stem from Senate Enrolled Act 185, whose relevant provisions took effect July 1. The law restricts certain e-liquids, ingredients, and filled vaping products manufactured by or sourced from countries designated as foreign adversaries, including China.

The law does not apply identically to every item associated with vaping. It excludes vaping-device hardware from its definition of covered products and provides exceptions for certain products with FDA authorization or qualifying pending applications. Understanding these distinctions is important for businesses trying to determine which products can legally remain in inventory.

MR FOG Receives Clearance for 257 Product Entries

The first major revision came on September 22. In an updated MR FOG notice, the ATC identified 257 product entries that retailers could sell, including products from the SWITCH and NOVA ranges.

The revision represents a partial reversal of the original restrictions, not a blanket approval for the brand. Products omitted from the updated list remain prohibited under the state's current instructions unless regulators make further changes.

The commission has not publicly detailed exactly what evidence supported its decision to clear the 257 entries. As a result, retailers can identify which products received clearance, but the full reasoning behind the decision remains unclear.

For businesses, this makes product-level verification especially important. A retailer should not assume that every item from a manufacturer or product family is permitted simply because selected entries have been cleared. The specific listing matters.

Lost Mary Receives Additional Clearance

 followed with a separate revision. The ATC initially cleared 57 product entries, then reported receiving compliance evidence for another 20 products.

The commission's September 24 notice lists 77 entries from the VIZ, MT35000 Turbo, and NERA ranges.

One detail deserves attention when interpreting the figures: 11 entries repeat product names that appeared in earlier notices. The combined total of 334 MR FOG and Lost Mary entries should therefore not be mistaken for 334 distinct products.

The ATC confirmed that it had received compliance evidence for the additional Lost Mary entries but did not identify the supporting documents. That leaves some uncertainty about precisely what materials were submitted and how they satisfied the state's requirements.

The broader takeaway is that these revisions apply to specific product entries. Retailers need to review the actual notices rather than relying on headline totals or assuming that an entire brand has been cleared.

Why Indiana Clearance Does Not Mean FDA Authorization

The distinction between state clearance and federal marketing authorization is central to this story.

The FDA maintains a separate regulatory framework for tobacco products, including electronic nicotine delivery systems. A product's inclusion in a revised Indiana enforcement notice does not, by itself, establish that the product has received FDA marketing authorization or is permitted for sale nationwide.

Indiana's law provides exceptions for certain products with FDA authorization or qualifying pending applications, but those exceptions depend on the applicable legal criteria. A state-level decision should not be interpreted as a substitute for checking federal requirements.

For manufacturers and distributors selling across multiple states, this creates an additional compliance responsibility. A product may be treated differently under different regulatory provisions, and a change in one jurisdiction does not automatically resolve its status elsewhere.

FDA Reviews Its Premarket Application Rules

Federal regulation could also evolve. On September 28, the FDA said it would continue reviewing premarket tobacco product applications, commonly known as PMTAs, and issuing decisions under existing law while considering a replacement regulatory framework.

The review may eventually affect how applications are processed, but the agency's announcement did not suspend current legal requirements. Companies must continue operating under the rules currently in effect.

Indiana has also established another checkpoint for businesses. The ATC's latest Lost Mary notice states that its temporary list is not formal authorization under the state's separate product-directory provision. After December 31, the commission says its Authorized E-Liquid Product List will determine which products are authorized for sale in Indiana.

That means the recent reversals may not be the final step in determining which products can remain on store shelves.

What Retailers Should Watch Next

The revised notices offer some relief to retailers carrying affected MR FOG and Lost Mary products, but businesses still need to monitor the situation carefully. Checking the latest ATC notices, verifying individual product entries, and reviewing the state's authorized-product list before the December 31 deadline are practical steps to reduce compliance uncertainty.

Manufacturers and distributors should likewise maintain documentation supporting product compliance and assess state and federal requirements separately.

Indiana's partial reversal illustrates how regulatory decisions can change as officials review additional evidence. Some MR FOG and Lost Mary products have been cleared under the revised notices, while others remain restricted. For businesses, the safest approach is to follow the precise language of the current rules rather than treating a partial clearance as an all-clear for an entire product line.