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JOHNSON CREEK - The statewide smoking ban could boost business for smoking alternatives. One Wisconsin company is poised to reap those rewards.

We visited Johnson Creek Smoke Juice in Jefferson County, a company which produces the nicotine-infused liquid used to power e-cigarettes, or electronic cigarettes.

Electronic cigarettes look like real cigarettes, but rather than burning, they create a vapor mist that delivers nicotine.

"It mimics the effects of smoking a cigarette so you feel like you're smoking a cigarette," Christian Berkey showed us. Berkey left his job at Apple to start his own company, Johnson Creek Smoke Juice. It is the only producer of that nicotine fluid in the United States.

"There were no companies in the US making smoke juice from scratch, that's when I decided that I knew we could do it better," Berkey said. He sank his life savings into the company and after strenuous testing, finally developed the perfect recipe for his smoke juice.

"They're what we believe to be a far superior alternative to traditional cigarette smoking," Berkey, a former three-pack-a-day smoker, added.

The e-cigarette is shaped like a cigarette and you inhale, just like when smoking. When you exhale, a smoke-like mist leaves your mouth. The chemical that creates that mist has come under fire from health experts.

It's called propylene glycol, and it's used in some windshield wiper formulas and antifreeze alternatives.

Doctor Michael Miller, who is with Rogers Memorial Hospital and spoke on behalf of the American Lung Association, said that chemical is not necessarily safe.

"That belongs in your car. The various products that get volatilized when you turn on an e-cigarette can be a variety of toxic products." Miller said.

The American Lung Association wants more research done on electronic cigarettes because at this time, they are not regulated and not FDA approved.

"Nobody really knows if e-cigarettes are safe," Dr. Miller added. "None of them are approved by fda or any regulator. The way e-cigarettes work vary from manufacturer to manufacturer so you really don't know what you're getting when you use an ecigarette."

Dr. Miller said the goal should be to help people quit smoking altogether, rather than swapping cigarettes for the electronic type.

"Nicotine addiction is a terrible disease, there certainly are treatments that are effective, and stopping smoking at any age is a healthy thing to do," Dr. Miller added.

But as more states enforce smoking bans, Johnson Creek Smoke Juice is getting lots of new business. The company expects to add a couple dozen employees this year, and move out of its cramped offices.

Marketing expert Bob Spircoff says the easiest way to spread the word is to use e-cigarettes in public and answer questions about them.

"Once people find out they can smoke without having to bother anyone around them, it's gonna be huge," he opined.

At its annual meeting this week, the American Medical Association recommended that e-cigarettes be classified as a drug delivery device. That will make them subject to FDA regulation.