DEBATE. By being overzealous and deliberately misinterpreting the new law as being about nicotine pouches, the Swedish Consumer Agency risks harming public health. This is the opinion of Karl-Åke Johansson, chairman of the consumer-driven association NNA Sweden.
This is a debating article. The opinions are those of the named writer. Comment or contact editors if you want to reply!
After some reflection on Vejpkollen's article about the Swedish Consumer Agency's hunt for manufacturers and sellers of nicotine pouches, I have had some contact with Astrid Hjertaker, a lawyer at the Swedish Consumer Agency. She is the sender in their report.
We had a short discussion about how the agency interprets the new law. According to the Swedish Consumer Agency, the law stipulates that "Marketing of tobacco-free nicotine products may not be directed specifically at or depict children or young people who have not reached the age of 25".
This is what the law says businesses should stick to. Fair enough!
However, in the report the Consumer Agency claims that the marketing of nicotine pouches "is widely used in social media and that in most cases the marketing has been designed in a way that risk of attract a younger target group”
Big difference in interpretation
That's where it starts to get problematic.
There is a big difference between marketing being "directly aimed at" and marketing can "risk attracting a younger target group"!
This kind of reinterpretation by authorities is very worrying and shows a lack of respect for our parliament who have made the laws. This is the flip side of the coin of Swedish authorities being free from direct "ministerial control", where they can essentially ignore the intention of the legislators in favor of their own interpretation.
Convicted for wrong font
At this point, I couldn't resist asking Astrid some questions about boundaries.
Astrid Hjertaker believes that "it is a matter of assessment on a case-by-case basis whether a marketing measure can be considered to be specifically targeted at children or adolescents under the age of 25." and that "Aspects that can be taken into account in an individual assessment may, however, be the use of letters, motifs, colors and styles associated with youth culture"
You can be convicted for using the wrong font. That's how vague the rules are that the industry must adhere to. It also sounds as if the Swedish Consumer Agency intends to go "all in" with controlling this. The risk is that the agency will conduct an overzealous review of these products.
Women attracted by nicotine pouches
But why is this so worrying?
Snus has meant a lot to Swedish public health. We have one of the lowest smoking rates in the world, thanks to snus. This benefit has mainly applied to men, as women have found it difficult to take up regular tobacco snus. But since the introduction of nicotine pouches, statistics on the number of women smoking have also shown a significant decline.
After all, nicotine (without the smoke) is a fairly harmless drug, and there are not even statistics showing any long-term harmful effects that could shorten life.
Becomes counterproductive
Preventing smokers (in particular women) from getting adequate information about products that could lead them away from a guaranteed deadly habit, which smoking actually is, is not only serious but counterproductive from a public health perspective. This is true even if one wants to protect the very small proportion of young people who may be exposed to the "lure" of trying something that is actually quite harmless.
Is nicotine worse than alcohol?
In this context, alcohol is a much more troublesome substance, causing social exclusion, harm and shortening lives. Yet our state monopoly is allowed to describe the Breezer Tropical Watermelon soft drink (really a youth-oriented product) as a social drink with "Fruity taste with sweetness and distinct watermelon character, hints of blood orange and herbs. Served chilled'. In addition, the manufacturer is free to promote the product as much as it likes via social media.
As with nicotine pouches, we have a clear age limit at the sales stage, which is probably also considered for alcohol. I cannot understand why it would be more serious for someone to be tempted to become a snus user than for someone to risk becoming an alcoholic.
Stop the free samples
Of course, scrutiny is good. In the case of nicotine portions, where we have had a period of totally unregulated products, a proper review is probably necessary. Free samples of various addictive substances, for example, are something that should not be allowed. In fact, pharmaceutical companies and pharmacies are the biggest culprits here: sample bags with their nicotine pouches are lying around in baskets for anyone to pick out. We must get rid of that.
Review carefully but wisely
So feel free to review, but there is no need to over-interpret the law as it can have a very negative effect and affect smokers' chances of finding a good way to quit smoking. There is a heavy responsibility on the Swedish Consumer Agency. The risk is that the agency will cause great harm, especially from a public health perspective, if companies cannot market their products properly.
