Category: Nicotine Pouches

  • PMI to Pay $1.2 Million for Violating D.C. Flavor Ban

    PMI to Pay $1.2 Million for Violating D.C. Flavor Ban

    VV Archive

    Philip Morris International’s subsidiary Swedish Match North America (SMNA) will pay $1.2 million to settle an investigation into violations of Washington D.C.’s flavored tobacco ban.

    The District of Columbia attorney general’s office said it had found evidence that SMNA facilitated online sales of “tens of thousands” of flavored Zyn nicotine pouches to D.C. consumers between October 1, 2022, when the ban was enacted, and June 30, 2024.

    PMI, which acquired a 90% stake in Swedish Match for $16 billion in November 2022, must now monitor its distributor’s compliance with D.C.’s ban quarterly and stop sales of flavored Zyn pouches through Zyn.com and related e-commerce platforms, the AG’s office said on Friday.

    Nicotine pouches became the second most commonly used tobacco product in the U.S., according to a report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

    The tobacco giant suspended sales on Zyn.com after it had been issued a subpoena by the D.C. attorney general earlier this year, according to Reuters reports.

    Swedish Match would continue to focus on its brick-and-mortar stores, PMI said in an emailed statement. Sales of Zyn, which PMI says does not contain tobacco, have surged, growing 41.1% in PMI’s most recent quarterly results.

    The company, which has been looking to move beyond traditional cigarettes, has also expanded production to counter Zyn supply shortages in the U.S. amid a budding black market for nicotine pouches.

  • Tucker Carlson Launches Nicotine Pouch Brand

    Tucker Carlson Launches Nicotine Pouch Brand

    Tucker Carlson has launched his own nicotine pouch brand, ALP, which the conservative American commentator touts as “the first nicotine pouch brand made by and for adults who unapologetically love nicotine.”

    ALP will be sold, marketed and distributed through ALP Supply Co., a newly formed 50/50 joint venture between the Tucker Carlson Network and Turning Point Brands. The product comes in three nicotine strengths—3 mg, 6 mg and 9 mg—and in four distinct styles, including Chilled Mint, Mountain Wintergreen, Refreshing Chill and Tropical Fruit.

    “There’s no reason consumers should be forced to buy nicotine pouches from soulless, pronoun loving, politicized conglomerates that despise them and their culture,” said Carlson in a statement. “With ALP, they now have an alternative that is delicious and far better than Zyn, which in case you haven’t noticed is as dry as a teabag.”

    A portion of ALP profits will go to charities that align with the values of its consumers, such as forest restoration, protecting former K9 servicemembers and funding trade school scholarships for Americans.

    According to an earlier article in The Wall Street Journal, Carlson decided to enter the tobacco business because of the way Zyn manufacturer Philip Morris International responded to an off-color remark he made in 2023 about America’s bestselling nicotine pouch.

    Until recently, Carlson styled himself as an unofficial spokesman for Zyn. He talked up the brand on frequent podcast appearances. “The truth is, Zyn is a powerful work enhancer and also a male enhancer, if you know what I mean,” Carlson told comedian Theo Von in an interview last October.

    Carlson’s representatives then pitched PMI on forming a partnership with the brand. The multinational declined, citing Carlson’s commentary.

    “While we understand that these may be Mr. Carlson’s views or made in jest, these statements lack a scientific foundation,” the tobacco company wrote. “Given Mr. Carlson’s popularity and reach, these statements could promote a misunderstanding and misuse of our products.”

    Carlson said the message enraged him.

    “Of course I wasn’t making a medical claim about their product. I was just joking,” he told The Wall Street Journal. “So I thought: ‘I’m going to launch my own product that’s not controlled by, you know, humorless, left-wing drones.’”

  • France to Ban ‘Dangerous’ Nicotine Pouches 

    France to Ban ‘Dangerous’ Nicotine Pouches 

    French Health Minister Geneviève Darrieussecq said in an interview with the newspaper Le Parisien published on Wednesday that nicotine pouches “are dangerous products because they contain high doses of nicotine.” She added that a ban will be announced in the coming weeks.

    In Germany, while tobacco-free nicotine pouches are officially banned, they remain accessible and popular among young people, according to experts from the Tobacco Outpatient Clinic at Ludwig Maximilian University in Munich.

    “I am very concerned because poisoning centers are receiving more and more calls from young people with acute nicotine symptoms related to the use of pouches,” said the French minister.

    These include vomiting, shaking spasms, low blood pressure and impaired consciousness, she said.

    The minister warned that “the marketing of this product is directly aimed at young people. ” She added that young people need to be protected.

    Michael Landl, director of the World Vapers’ Alliance (WVA), criticized the move as being detrimental to public health.

    “By banning nicotine pouches, Minister Darrieussecq is closing off an effective, far less harmful path for millions who struggle to quit smoking. Pouches have proven to help smokers transition away from cigarettes in other countries and are considerably safer,” he said. “Rather than offering options, France risks pushing people toward smoking or the black market.”

    The French health minister plans to ban similar products, such as chewing gum or balls, in addition to the pouches.

  • Canada Flavored Pouch Ban Begins Wednesday

    Canada Flavored Pouch Ban Begins Wednesday

    Canada’s federal government will impose new restrictions beginning Aug. 28 on nicotine pouches, making it illegal to sell them anywhere but from behind a pharmacy counter.

    The pouches, which carry the brand name Zonnic, will be completely banned from convenience store and gas station shelves. Berry Frost and Tropic Breeze flavors will be recalled, and only menthol—and mint-flavored pouches will be allowed in pharmacies.

    “All the stuff that’s clearly designed to target youth — it’s over,” Health Minister Mark Holland told CBC News.

    Ottawa has been promising to crack down on sales of nicotine pouches for nearly 10 months. National health groups have warned about the risk of teenagers using them and becoming addicted to nicotine.

    “It has been so deeply disturbing to see so many young people becoming addicted to these nicotine pouches who’ve never had any interaction with cigarettes,” Holland said.

    Holland has accused Imperial Tobacco, the cigarette manufacturer that makes the pouches, of using a loophole in Canadian law to get approval from Health Canada.

    The federal government says it will give Imperial Tobacco six months to change its packaging and advertising. The new containers must include an addiction warning on the front label and any advertising that could appeal to youth must be changed by the end of February.

    Holland said the new measures may come too late for some.

    “I’m very concerned that there are kids who are already addicted. I am very concerned that tobacco companies have already achieved their goal,” he said. “It repulses me.”

    Eric Gagnon, vice president of corporate and regulatory affairs at Imperial Tobacco Canada, believes Holland has a “personal vendetta” against the company, which went through a two-year approval process to legally sell nicotine pouches.

    “Apparently, because we’re a tobacco company, we’re treated differently than anybody else,” he told CBC News. “The biggest losers right now are the adult smokers that have been using Zonnic.”

  • Schumer Wants Crackdown on Zyn Nicotine Pouches

    Schumer Wants Crackdown on Zyn Nicotine Pouches

    Image: Tobacco Reporter archive

    U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer is calling for a crackdown on Zyn nicotine pouches, arguing that the product will be the next “trend in addiction for teens,” according to USA Today. He has asked the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the Federal Trade Commission to take action on the company’s marketing practices and the product’s health effects.

    “Amid federal action against e-cigs and their grip on young people, a quiet and dangerous alternative has emerged, and it is called Zyn,” said Schumer. “I am delivering a new warning to parents because these nicotine pouches seem to lock their sights on teens and use social media to hook them.”

    “The amount of nicotine is highly addictive, and much more needs to be done to understand and communicate the health risks for young people,” Schumer said.

    Zyn’s parent company said that it both meets and exceeds industry regulations.

    “The FDA remains concerned about any tobacco product that may appeal to youth,” said Brian King, director of the FDA’s Center for Tobacco Products, in response. “The FDA uses a variety of surveillance tools to monitor the evolving tobacco product landscape and to identify emerging threats to public health.”

    King noted that the FDA closely monitors “those in the supply chain for compliance with federal law.”

    “As always, we are committed to holding those accountable who sell unauthorized tobacco products, including those labeled, advertised and/or designed to encourage youth use,” said King.

    The Federal Trade Commission did not comment, noting that it “does not publicly speculate on external requests for investigations or comment on letters from member[s] of Congress,” according to USA Today.