{"id":8624,"date":"2025-08-08T13:12:55","date_gmt":"2025-08-08T11:12:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/snusforumet.se\/?p=8624"},"modified":"2025-08-08T13:12:56","modified_gmt":"2025-08-08T11:12:56","slug":"spain-resorts-to-ideological-defence-of-pouch-ban-proposal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/snusforumet.se\/en\/spain-resorts-to-ideological-defence-of-pouch-ban-proposal\/","title":{"rendered":"Spain resorts to \u2018ideological\u2019 defence of pouch ban proposal"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Spain has responded to <\/strong>Sweden\u2019s detailed opinion<\/strong><\/a> opposing proposed restrictions on nicotine pouches in a reply marked by exaggerated claims and devoid of scientific rigour.<\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis is ideological posturing, not serious public health policy,\u201d says Patrik Str\u00f6mer, Secretary General of the Association of Swedish Snus Manufacturers<\/a>.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In a lengthy 11-page reply sent to the European Commission<\/a>, Spain defends a proposed ban on flavoured nicotine pouches and a maximum nicotine limit of 0.99 milligrams per pouch \u2014 a limit that would effectively remove nearly all products currently on the market.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Spanish government argues the measures are needed to protect public health, especially among youth, citing a rise in vaping and early tobacco use, and that Article 36 of the EU Treaty allows for introducing proportionate and justified measures to protect public health. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The letter frames the proposed restrictions as part of a broader tobacco control overhaul, pointing out that Spain\u2019s national legislation hasn\u2019t been comprehensively updated in over 15 years. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAfter more than a decade without revising the regulations, together with the circumstance of the current enormous dynamism of the market for tobacco and related products, the national regulations are now greatly outdated and urgently need to be updated due to their failure to adapt to the current situation of the tobacco and related products market in Spain,\u201d the letter states. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Spain also cites other EU member states that have taken restrictive stances on nicotine pouches \u2013 including France<\/a>, Belgium, and the Netherlands<\/a> \u2013 and points to recommendations from the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC), which encourage stronger regulation of novel nicotine products. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Alarmism over analysis<\/strong> <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

However, Str\u00f6mer argues that Spain\u2019s justification lacks scientific rigour and fails to meet the EU\u2019s requirement for proportionality. Instead of grounding its argument in updated risk assessments, Spain leans heavily on alarmist language and cherry-picked references.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThey call tobacco an \u2018epidemic\u2019, which is a false analogy,\u201d Str\u00f6mer tells Snusforumet.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cTobacco use is not an infectious disease. And across the OECD, nicotine consumption is falling \u2013 not rising.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Spain\u2019s response suggests, for example, there are links between nicotine and cancer even though the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) does not classify nicotine as a carcinogen.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Spain even goes so far as to justify its 0.99 mg limit by twisting conclusions from a 2022 risk evaluation<\/a> by Germany\u2019s Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR)<\/a> that concludes nicotine pouches have a lower risk profile<\/a> than other consumer nicotine products.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe real issue here is a kind of nicotine panic, not science,\u201d says Str\u00f6mer. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIf Spain truly wanted to protect its citizens, it would copy Sweden\u2019s evidence-based regulation \u2014 not ban the very products helping people quit smoking.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Harm reduction or ideological posturing?<\/strong> <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The Spanish proposal is part of a broader crackdown across the EU, where multiple member states \u2014 including France, Belgium, and the Netherlands \u2014 have enacted bans or severe restrictions on nicotine pouches. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

But Sweden\u2019s smoking rate is the lowest in Europe, with daily use at just over 5 percent. Public health experts attribute this largely to the availability of lower-risk products like snus and pouches<\/a> \u2014 products now under threat<\/a> across much of the continent. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSpain is using outdated arguments and bypassing proportionality,\u201d Str\u00f6mer says.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis is not about protecting children \u2014 it\u2019s about pushing an ideological agenda. Flavour bans without scientific backing are arbitrary. Sweden, by contrast, bases its regulations on EFSA\u2019s risk assessments. That\u2019s the path other countries should follow.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

What\u2019s next?<\/strong> <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The dispute between Spain and Sweden<\/a> is being closely watched as the EU reviews its Tobacco Products Directive (TPD)<\/a>. Nicotine pouches currently fall into a regulatory grey zone not explicitly covered by the TPD, giving member states significant leeway \u2013 but also creating tensions over internal market rules. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

For Sweden, nicotine pouches are viewed not as a threat, but as a public health asset. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve shown that harm reduction works,\u201d says Str\u00f6mer.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cInstead of banning safer alternatives, Europe should be learning from Sweden. Protecting consumer choice is not just about trade \u2013 it\u2019s about saving lives.\u201d  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Under the EU\u2019s internal market rules, Spain must now consider Sweden\u2019s formal objections before proceeding.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

If Madrid ignores the warnings, the case could escalate to the European Commission \u2014 or even to the European Court of Justice. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis is a fight about more than just snus,\u201d Str\u00f6mer concludes.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s about whether Europe wants to reduce smoking \u2014 or just sound like it does.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Spain has responded to Sweden\u2019s detailed opinion opposing proposed restrictions on nicotine pouches in a reply marked by exaggerated claims and devoid of scientific rigour. …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":8452,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[218],"tags":[258,273,248,324,311],"class_list":["post-8624","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-regulations","tag-eu-2","tag-nicotine-pouches","tag-patrik-stromer-en","tag-spain","tag-tpd"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nSpain resorts to \u2018ideological\u2019 defence of pouch ban proposal - Snusforumet<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Spain has responded to Sweden opposition to proposed nicotine pouch restrictions with exaggerated claims and a lack of scientific rigour.\u00a0\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/snusforumet.se\/en\/spain-resorts-to-ideological-defence-of-pouch-ban-proposal\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Spain resorts to \u2018ideological\u2019 defence of pouch ban proposal - 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