Blog - Market & Legal information in the tobacco alternatives sector

FDA hostility to flavours – even menthol – may not be bad news for heated tobacco

Written by Barnaby Page | 2nd February 2023

Flavours continue to be the main target of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the US when it comes to novel nicotine products, it seems – and that could give heated tobacco an edge...

Boom in novel tobacco products outstrips vaping growth – exactly as we foresaw

Written by Freddie Dawson | 18th January 2023

TobaccoIntelligence predicted a year ago that increasing restrictions and taxes on vaping products would drive more users to other tobacco alternatives in 2022. And it does appear that this has been the case ...

Health warning: ‘science’ so badly flawed it should never have been published

Written by Barnaby Page | 11th January 2023

There remains a worryingly large amount of research on novel nicotine products which makes casual, almost always negative, assumptions...and the occasional item so faulty it should never have been published at all ...

Of headaches, pirates, and how far weed is growing as cigarette smoking declines

Written by Aidan Semmens | 5th January 2023

Correlation is not causation, but it’s tempting to see a meaningful pattern in figures showing that US adults (particularly the younger ones) are smoking less tobacco and using more cannabis ...

A world first for New Zealand – but what does a generational cigarette ban mean?

Written by Barnaby Page | 22nd December 2022

New Zealand’s ban on cigarette sales to people born after 1st January 2009 may look like a dry run for complete prohibition. But there’s a crucial difference ...

The genie’s out of the bottle – it’s time the pros and antis got their heads together

Written by Barnaby Page | 13th December 2022

Many companies, some countries, and of course consumers in their millions are making headway in replacing combustible tobacco with safer alternatives…but what’s holding back the others? ...

Swedish Match and a cheaper Iqos – PMI’s ‘cunning plan’ begins to become clear

Written by Barnaby Page | 24th November 2022

There’s been plenty of speculation about PMI’s plans for its new business – but if I were an evil tobacco mastermind trying to prevent uptake of less risky products, very publicly buying Swedish Match wouldn’t...

How will new EU rules on batteries affect the tobacco alternatives industry?

Written by Dmytro Korchahin | 17th November 2022

The upcoming revision of the regulation of batteries in the EU may well have a profound effect the heated tobacco industry, with safety, sustainability and the environment all coming under the lawmakers' microscope ...

The tobacco giant’s officer who sees past the politicians’ global greenwash policies

Written by Aidan Semmens | 9th November 2022

Jennifer Motles, chief sustainability officer for PMI, has urged companies of all kinds to go beyond seeing ESG (environmental, social and governance) impact reporting as a tick-box exercise ...

HTP in Japan – the seldom told good news story for tobacco harm reduction

Written by Barnaby Page | 3rd November 2022

Heated tobacco has played a big part in eliminating smoking in Japan, not just nibbling away at the edges of smoking prevalence but severely reducing the presence of the combustible cigarette ...

Taxing novel nicotine products in Latin America – the WHO, the why and the how

Written by Tiziana Cauli | 19th October 2022

While nobody seriously argues that combustibles shouldn’t be taxed, the taxation of novel nicotine products has always been a controversial issue ...

Coming soon to a nicotine product near you – the correlation/causation fallacy

Written by Barnaby Page | 13th October 2022

As novel nicotine products grow in popularity, it's only a matter of time before false links are drawn between them and the use of some other substance, be it cannabis or combustible tobacco or saturated...

Pouches are to smoking as smartphones are to the earliest computers – discuss

Written by Barnaby Page | 5th October 2022

It’s fascinating to speculate on how the pouch market will develop. Who will use them, and why, and what will they replace? ...

Reduced risk or prolonged peril? Are views shifting on the nicotine question?

Written by Barnaby Page | 22nd September 2022

Is there any connection between people’s knowledge of reduced-risk products and their attitudes toward them? Our third survey of European Parliament members' views will show how any such connection may have altered ...

Tobacco may not be a vote-winning issue, but what a difference an election makes

Written by Barnaby Page | 15th September 2022

After the victory of right-wing parties in Sweden’s very close election this week, the country’s tobacco alternatives sector – and its customers – may well be breathing a sigh of relief ...

What do e-cig cases tell us about where US FDA might go on other alternatives?

Written by Barnaby Page | 8th September 2022

Another day, another judgement in the saga of the US vapour industry’s cases against the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) – but what might the conflicting decisions mean for other smoking alternatives? ...

Banned as a novel food? One day tobacco might be accepted as a super-food

Written by TobaccoIntelligence | 18th August 2022

While nicotine pouches are classed in the EU as food products with an unauthorised ingredient, it could be argued that there is nothing novel about tobacco, or nicotine, in food – and it could have...

Who, and where, is the science on novel tobacco products coming from?

Written by Barnaby Page | 10th August 2022

Scientific research into novel nicotine alternatives has so far largely focused on vaping, but that is likely to change as the products become more widespread ...

Could Japan be leading the way towards the end of the combustible cigarette?

Written by Aidan Semmens | 4th August 2022

The latest financial report from Japan Tobacco International tells a tale that should make bedroom and boardroom reading for government officials, public health departments and regulators everywhere ...

Does the latest in the premium cigar case reveal flaws in the FDA’s judgement?

Written by Barnaby Page | 15th July 2022

You can almost hear the judge’s sigh as he wrote his latest opinion in the long-running litigation between the FDA and the cigar industry over the latter’s treatment by the 2016 final deeming rule. Here...

Malaysian minister grabs more headlines with birthdate plan to phase out nicotine

Written by Aidan Semmens | 13th July 2022

Trust a politician to come up with a memorable soundbite, a catchy slogan or a simple statement that leaps out at you from the headlines. Top prize this week to Malaysia’s health minister Khairy Jamaluddin...

Could other countries take UK’s Khan review as a blueprint for change?

Written by Barnaby Page | 7th July 2022

Could the Khan report, which endorses the UK's positive attitude towards e-cigs also have lessons for the rest of the world, even for countries where there is far more hostility toward novel tobacco products? ...

Now it’s official – but does US nicotine cut apply to more than just combustibles?

Written by Barnaby Page | 24th June 2022

Some headlines notwithstanding, it doesn’t sound like Joe Biden actually sat in the Oval Office and signed off mandatory nicotine reduction while photographers recorded the historic moment ...

How nicotine levels could become a hot issue for smokers and politicians alike

Written by Barnaby Page | 16th June 2022

Rumours circulating this week that the Biden administration is about to put its weight behind mandatory nicotine reduction in combustibles will have been music to the ears of 22nd Century Group, if few others ...

Novel nicotine products can’t escape WHO’s focus on environmental impact

Written by Barnaby Page | 9th June 2022

Of course it was only to be expected that the World Health Organization (WHO) would include novel nicotine products in its annual condemnations for World No Tobacco Day, but the approach it took this year...

How much are tobacco companies really doing to support harm reduction?

Written by Barnaby Page | 31st May 2022

Most tobacco companies are keen to be seen supporting the concept of harm reduction, especially through reduced-risk products like e-cigarettes, heat-not-burn and pouches. But how far is their support for the idea actually having an...

WHO’s antagonism to tobacco-based vaccine could hinder anti-Covid efforts

Written by TobaccoIntelligence | 25th May 2022

The World Health Organization (WHO)'s rejection of a new Covid-19 vaccine on anti-tobacco grounds will almost certainly end up having a negative impact on public health – particularly in the developing world ...

Are novel nicotine products a ‘huge distraction’ from the real problem?

Written by Barnaby Page | 19th May 2022

Speaking at the launch of the seventh edition of the Atlas, US public health scholar Jeffrey Drope suggested that new nicotine technologies are “a huge distraction” which have “confused governments, the public health community and...

What would PMI’s takeover of Swedish Match mean for the sector?

Written by Barnaby Page | 12th May 2022

The $16bn takeover of Swedish Match by Philip Morris International (PMI) now seems more likely to happen than not (at least as of today; these things are never certain until the last signature is signed)...

As US FDA moves towards a menthol ban, what might it mean for novel products?

Written by Barnaby Page | 5th May 2022

The long-mooted proposal to prohibit menthol is the most dramatic step the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has taken since the 2009 Tobacco Control Act exempted menthol from a general ban on flavoured tobacco...

Why we don’t always get the science we need – and what can be done about it

Written by Barnaby Page | 20th April 2022

Is the present system of peer-reviewed journal publication of scientific papers the best way to get the best science – particularly in the controversial world of tobacco? There are those who think it may not...

Steady as she goes – nothing much is set to change at the CTP on Mital’s watch

Written by Antonia di Lorenzo | 13th April 2022

What will Michele Mital’s reign as acting director of the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Center for Tobacco Products (CTP) mean in terms of policy? ...

Change is afoot at the US CTP and CDC – but what will it mean for tobacco?

Written by Barnaby Page | 8th April 2022

Michele Mital’s appointment as acting head of the Center for Tobacco Products (CTP) is not bad news for the industry, even if it’s not quite good news. And there may be bigger change at the...

How a popular tax on nicotine products could turn out to be bad for the children

Written by Aidan Semmens | 6th April 2022

A no-doubt well-meaning ballot measure enthusiastically taken up by voters just 18 months ago now has General Assembly members in the US state of Colorado tied up in a knot of their own making ...

Harm reduction is a difficult but vital message to convey to the world’s poorest

Written by Barnaby Page | 31st March 2022

Broadening the appeal of tobacco harm reduction (THR) products in low- and middle-income countries can be an uphill struggle, though it arguably matters more there than anywhere else ...

Plenty of food for thought as nicotine researchers get their heads together

Written by Barnaby Page | 24th March 2022

The Society for Research on Nicotine and Tobacco (SRNT) published a huge number of research abstracts to accompany its annual get-together – here are some of the highlights ...

‘World leader’ Britain fails at the first post-Brexit hurdle on novel tobacco

Written by Freddie Dawson | 16th March 2022

When it comes to taking advantage of Brexit's opportunities for tobacco reform, the UK appears to have balked worse than a horse at its final Olympics pentathlon ...

New study on nicotine pouches stresses importance of understanding products

Written by Barnaby Page | 10th March 2022

As the market for nicotine pouches swells, there is – just as with heated tobacco a few years ago – a risk that regulatory interest outpaces scientific research ...

What science should we be following on novel tobacco products – and how far?

Written by Barnaby Page | 2nd March 2022

“Following the science” is one of the most misleading, clichés of the pandemic, and both advocates and enemies of novel tobacco products need to be cautious of claiming to do the same thing ...

Do sin taxes achieve the desired effect, or do they add up to a temptation to sin?

Written by Aidan Semmens | 17th February 2022

Whatever the motives behind it, punitive or would-be persuasive taxation has many of the same drawbacks as prohibition ...

Changes to Norwegian rules unlikely to have much impact on the market

Written by Freddie Dawson | 9th February 2022

Recent changes to Norwegian regulations are unlikely to have a significant impact on the country’s tobacco alternatives market ...

How the success or failure of VLNCs could affect regulation of alternatives

Written by Barnaby Page | 3rd February 2022

Acceptance by the US FDA of very-low-nicotine cigarettes as a modified risk product may be controversial, even bizarre, but it will be worth seeing how they perform in the market – and how that may...

Are heated tobacco products a threat to vaping or a complementary product?

Written by Antonia di Lorenzo | 20th January 2022

Some vapers appear to be switching to heated tobacco products, but should vaping and heated tobacco be viewed as complementary alternatives or competitors ...

Meta-analysis study emphasises the lack of high-quality research into HnB

Written by Barnaby Page | 13th January 2022

The heated tobacco sector has, compared with its cousin vapour, always suffered from a lack of scientific research and from the perception that most of what does exist is industry-funded ...

Why does Switzerland lag behind its neighbours on tobacco control issues?

Written by Freddie Dawson | 7th January 2022

Switzerland faces two referendum votes crucial to the future of tobacco product advertising in the country ...

New Zealand’s cunning birthdate-based scheme to wipe out smoking for good

Written by Aidan Semmens | 22nd December 2021

New Zealand has designated a cohort of young people – those who will be 14 or younger when the government’s proposed law comes into effect – who will never be old enough to smoke ...

F1 moves on from tobacco promotion as PMI and Ferrari go their separate ways

Written by Aidan Semmens | 16th December 2021

It’s the end of an era as tobacco sponsorship of Formula One racing comes to an end – again. Or does it and is it? ...

How will TPD3 deal with newly emerged products? Our survey offers a few clues

Written by Barnaby Page | 2nd December 2021

Sooner or later the EU will have a new Tobacco Products Directive (TPD), and one of the big questions will be how it treats new product categories which barely existed at the time of TPD2...

What caused a scrap in the Philippines government over tobacco alternatives?

Written by Antonia di Lorenzo | 24th November 2021

Conflict between public health and political-economic interests seems to be the main reason behind an internal dispute between the Philippine delegation to COP9 and officials at the country’s Department of Health ...

Califf may hit the ground running – but which way will he go on nicotine?

Written by Barnaby Page | 18th November 2021

Robert Califf's expected return to head the US FDA has excited plenty of attention in the world of e-cigarettes, but there’s been much less talk about the likely impact on heated tobacco, pouches and other...

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