Canadian health organizations are calling on the federal government to suspend the sale of flavoured nicotine pouches until protections can be put in place to prevent youth consumption and addiction.
In a press conference Tuesday, groups including the Canadian Cancer Society and the Canadian Lung Association said "immediate action" is needed from Health Minister Mark Holland and Mental Health and Addictions Minister Ya'ara Saks to either reclassify these pouches as a prescription product or suspend their sale.
"These are approaches that can be done swiftly without regular regulatory amendment. They can just simply be done administratively," said Flory Doucas, co-director and spokesperson of the Coalition québécoise pour le contrôle du tabac.
Health Canada approved the sale of Zonnic-brand flavoured nicotine pouches in July as a licensed natural health product for nicotine replacement therapy. The small tobacco-free pouches are placed between the cheek and gum where they release nicotine, which can ostensibly help reduce dependence on smoking.
Imperial Tobacco Canada began selling these products in October.
Health Canada approved the sale of Zonnic-brand flavoured nicotine pouches in July under the Natural Health Product Regulations as a nicotine replacement therapy smoking cessation product, which is a product that replaces some of the nicotine one is used to getting from smoking so they don't feel as uncomfortable after quitting.
In October, Imperial Tobacco Canada began selling these products.
"With attractive flavours such as Tropic Breeze, Chill Mint and Berry Frost, and with colourful, small packages that might well hold candy, of course youth will want to buy them," said Rob Cunningham, senior policy analyst at the Canadian Cancer Society. "The devastating result is that youth will become trapped into nicotine addiction."
The federal Tobacco and Vaping Products Act prohibits the sale of tobacco products and vaping products to anyone under 18 and restricts promotion of these products. All provinces also have legislation prohibiting the sale of tobacco products and vaping products to youth, as each province's age limit differs.
"We continue to believe that it's important to put less harmful alternatives to smoking on the market," Imperial Tobacco legal and external affairs vice president Eric Gagnon told CTV News. "We're selling this product like any other cessation product in Canada. We respect every rule and regulation and we just feel we're singled out because we’re a tobacco company, and it's not the first time that these health groups do that."
As it stands, the authorization for Zonnic nicotine pouches also states that they should not be used by anyone under 18.
But according to the concerned health organizations, it is completely legal for these nicotine pouches to be sold to children of any age, since federal and provincial legislation does not apply to nicotine products approved under the Natural Health Product Regulations. This, the groups argue, argue is a “regulatory gap.”
When asked about the impact these pouches have on young people, Cynthia Callard, executive director of Physicians for a Smoke-Free Canada, said statements from the Canadian Paediatric Society show the younger one begins using nicotine, the more difficult overcoming addiction becomes later in their life.
“Another major element is that essentially nicotine addiction is a pediatric disease. Most people who become addicted to nicotine do so during their adolescence,” said Callard.
"Given the increase in youth vaping, how is it possible that Health Canada would allow a new category of nicotine product on the market, sold by a tobacco company, with massively inadequate regulations in place?"
Health Canada's Licensed Natural Health Products Database lists Zonnic as "a Nicotine Replacement Therapy that can be used anytime, anywhere to temporarily control or satisfy nicotine cravings fast."
In a statement to CTV News, a Health Canada spokesperson said the product should not be sold to minors, but it is ultimately up to provincial and territorial regulators to impose age-related purchasing restrictions.
"Marketing directed at youth would be deemed deceptive advertising and could trigger post-market compliance actions," the spokesperson added. "As part of its regulatory responsibilities, Health Canada monitors compliance, undertakes enforcement activities and works to prevent and address non-compliance."
The spokesperson said nicotine pouches should only be used by those who want to stop smoking, and that flavours are similar to those found in other smoking cessation products like nicotine gums and sprays.
"Health products are authorized based on the evidence supporting their safety, efficacy and quality," they said. "This authorization gives Canadians who wish to stop smoking access to one more tool to quit smoking, with the assurance that it meets the same high standards for safety and efficacy as other products that have been authorized as nicotine replacement therapies."
