Brussels, 4 October — Earlier this week, a leaked report from the European Commission circulated among the Members of the European Parliament with the shocking position of the EU legislators on the future of harm reduction in Europe. According to the post on X from MEP Charlie Weimers, “there are two notable writings: praise for how successful the snus ban has been and a recommendation that the EU should extend the snus ban to the tobacco-free white snus (nicotine pouches).” The report, that is supposed to be officially presented to the Members of the EU Parliament later this week, gravely diminishes the Swedish smoke-free success and threatens lives of many former and current smokers in the EU, says World Vapers’ Alliance.

Michael Landl, director of the global consumer movement, commented:

“Swedish smoke-free success is not a miracle — it is a result of the nation-wide evidence-based policy in support of the less harmful alternative to cigarettes. Since the world started celebrating Swedish success in reaching the 5% smoke-free goal, all eyes went on the EU as a driver of harm reduction and innovation. If the EU Commission moves on to further extend the snus ban to nicotine pouches, it will not only jeopardise its own smoke-free goals but will put smoking-cessation efforts under threat worldwide.”

While Sweden has managed to significantly cut its smoking rates in the past decades thanks to the snus ban exemption from the EU, nicotine pouches do not receive the same treatment and are therefore also under threat in Sweden.

“Unfortunately, the Swedish exception for tobacco snus does not apply to nicotine portions. If the EU Commission and the Member States accept the report’s recommendation, white snus will also be banned in Sweden. Men have largely opted out of smoking in favour of snus, while women looking for less dangerous alternatives choose white snus more often. Therefore, such a ban would hit women extra hard.” commended MEP Weimers in his Twitter post.

Last month, Sweden announced its plans to reduce the tax on snus, a smokeless tobacco product, by 20% while increasing the tax on cigarettes and smoking tobacco by 9%. This step represents Sweden’s leadership role in tobacco harm reduction, setting an exemplary standard for the EU to follow, commented World Vapers’ Alliance in its earlier release.

“We strongly encourage the European Commission to follow science-based evidence that nicotine is not the enemy of public health, cigarettes are. Following Sweden’s incredible success, the EU has a chance to assume the role of the leader of smoking cessation and set a global example. Yet, this report is yet another step backwards,” a conclu Michael Landl.