Regulating nicotine pouches is an unmissable opportunity for the government to unlock its smoke free 2030 ambition

England has a golden opportunity to be one of the very first countries globally to bring its smoking rate to below 5 per cent, thereby meeting the World Health Organisation’s definition of ‘smoke free’.

The government has set itself the ambitious, and laudable, target of reaching this important milestone by 2030. At BAT we have similar ambitions. Our purpose is to create A Better Tomorrow™ by Building a Smokeless World. The way we will do this is by switching as many smokers as we can to our smokeless products, including nicotine pouches – small tobacco-free nicotine pouches placed between the lip and the gum.

But with less than seven years to go and more than five million smokers to help move to less harmful alternatives*, there is clearly still much work to be done and no time to waste.

The proposed introduction of a regulatory framework for nicotine pouches, which is expected to be published shortly, is potentially a hugely significant moment in terms of putting Smoke Free 2030 back on track.

As a starting point, UK public health officials recognise that nicotine pouches are less harmful to health compared with cigarettes.

Last year, a report commissioned by the Office of Health Improvements and Disparities, concluded that ‘the use of oral nicotine pouches, as recommended by the manufacturer, as a replacement for combustible cigarette smoking is likely to be associated with a reduction in overall risk of adverse health effects’.

Nicotine pouches may currently have less prominence in the UK than other alternatives to smoking, such as vaping, but elsewhere in the world they have proven their value in helping drive down national smoking rates.

With an official smoking rate of 5.6 per cent, Sweden is on the brink of becoming the first European country to be officially smoke free. Oral nicotine products, such as snus (traditional tobacco pouches) as well as modern tobacco-free nicotine pouches, are widely credited with helping the Nordic country get to the brink of smoke free status.

Dr Javed Khan, author of the Independent Review on Tobacco Control, commissioned by the government and published in 2022, recommended the need to ‘facilitate access to safer alternative nicotine products such as nicotine pouches… maximising their value to help smokers to quit’.

By far the most effective way to maximise the full potential of pouches as a less harmful alternative for English smokers is to introduce sensible regulation.

As things stand, nicotine pouches are only governed by the General Product Safety Regulations (GPSR) and not by nicotine specific rules. This means there are, for example, no limits on nicotine strength, nor age of sale restrictions for pouches which BAT has long been calling for.

In the absence of regulation, BAT UK has joined other responsible manufacturers to govern the marketing, packaging and labelling of these products.

But while voluntary standards are a start, they are not a viable long-term alternative to a properly regulated market.

Hence it is welcome news that the government is set to introduce proposals to regulate nicotine pouches. Proposed measures include imposing a ban on sales to under-18s, restricting flavours, restricting packaging and product presentation and other measures.

In line with this, BAT fully supports a ban on flavours that appeal to the underage, such as those that resemble desserts, candy, energy drinks or soft drinks, while not unnecessarily taking choice away from adult smokers on other flavours such as mint or fruits that play an important role in helping smokers to transition away from cigarettes. It is imperative that this is backed up by strong underage sales measures, including retail licensing and stringent punishment for those that sell pouches to the underage.

There is a moral consensus that nicotine-containing products, including pouches, should absolutely not end up in the hands of the underage.

The UK’s remarkable progress to date in driving down national smoking rates has been driven, first and foremost, by the willingness of public health officials and lawmakers to be guided by the evidence and to find sensible, nuanced paths forward.

Pouches could yet be the difference in making Smoke Free 2030 happen, and 2024 is looking like a decisive year in that journey.