Canada to restrict sale of nicotine pouches nationwide

AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews

Health Minister Mark Holland announced on Thursday that new restrictions would be put in place against nicotine replacement therapies (NRTs) in an attempt to curb their accessibility.

The measures will come into effect on August 28 and will include advertising restrictions, the prohibition of certain flavours, and limiting sales to behind the counter at pharmacies.

“As of next Wednesday, there’s a couple of things that are going to happen. The first is these products are going to be moved behind the counter. They’re going to pharmacies and they’re going to only be available on the other side of the counter,” Holland told Global News in an interview.

“The second thing is these nonsense flavours targeting our kids are gone … so Tropical Breeze and Cool Berry Splash … whatever they have, it’s over. Those products will be recalled and unavailable.”

Nicotine pouches are tobaccoless oral pockets designed to help users stop smoking. They have been approved for use in Canada since October 2023 and are regulated under the Food and Drugs Act.

Nicotine is found in cigarettes and chewing tobacco sold in Canada, and a Canadian consumer can get a prescription for nicotine, so why not allow for over-the-counter sales of Zyn?

FULL REPORT by @TheMenzoid: https://t.co/B9Gg4yDN8o

— Rebel News (@RebelNewsOnline) August 11, 2023

Health Canada has approved the sale of Zonnic, similar to brands like Zyn in the United States, which is produced by Imperial Tobacco. The brand sells flavoured pouches like Tropical Breeze and Berry Frost.

Although nicotine pouches are not approved for use by individuals under 18, Health Canada has acknowledged that these products have become increasingly popular among young people, raising concerns about potential addiction. Last year, the arrival of nicotine pouches in the Canadian market prompted immediate alarm from health organizations such as the Canadian Cancer Society. The society expressed fears that without stringent regulations similar to those applied to cigarettes, children could be at risk of developing addictions to these products.

While nicotine does not cause cancer, this has not stopped the government’s mission to stomp out any alternatives to smoking.

Last November, following Canada's approval of nicotine pouches for sale, Holland pledged to address the regulatory gap that enabled their introduction. Since then, these nicotine pouches have been sold widely across the country, including at gas stations and convenience stores, without the limitations of over-the-counter sales.

Their sale has been limited in both British Columbia and Quebec, where buyers are made to go to a pharmacy to receive the pouches.

“We’ve been deeply disturbed by what the tobacco companies have done. They used a loophole that was supposed to be there to help people stop smoking to addict kids to nicotine pouches,” Holland said.

Measures being implemented include banning advertising and packaging appealing to youth, restricting new nicotine replacement therapies (NRTs) like nicotine pouches to sales by pharmacists and behind counters, limiting flavors to mint or menthol, mandating front-of-package nicotine addiction warnings and clear smoking cessation indications, and requiring manufacturers to submit label mock-ups for approval to prevent youth appeal.

“And one of the things that we did that’s so important is we maintained a power that we can deploy now — before we had to get legislation. This is why it took so long. We had to legislate these powers,” Holland said.

“Now they’re in place. So if [tobacco companies] slink out of some new loophole, if they try to come out of some new crevice, we have the ability to act immediately using these powers to shut them down.”