Norway prohibits all flavorings in vejp products. The exception is so-called "tobacco flavors". The ban applies regardless of whether the e-liquid contains nicotine or not.
"It's absolutely absurd. The government is saying that those who use e-cigarettes to stay smoke-free now have to use flavors that remind them of smoking." So says Frank Tinmansvik, vejpare and active in the consumer movement for harm reduction in Norway.
For over eight years, Norwegian vejpare has been waiting for nicotine e-juice to become legal to sell in the country. Now comes instead a regulation that certainly allows nicotine-containing e-liquids, but at the same time only allows flavors that should remind you of cigarette smoke.
"Our politicians have basically thrown us like vejpar under the bus. They haven't understood what e-cigarettes mean for us adult users. They are banning a product that is already illegal for children and young people to buy. It is absolutely senseless" says Frank Tinmansvik to Vejpkollen.
More people shopping in Sweden
Currently, Norwegians can buy nicotine-free e-liquid in the form of shortfills in Norway and then import nicotine liquid from Sweden. This is provided they have a prescription from a doctor. The idea behind the new law was to allow Norwegian vejpshoppers to sell the nicotine without a prescription and otherwise comply with EU legislation. The nicotine liquid to be sold in Norway must either be tasteless or taste of some kind of smoke essence.
"Very few EU countries have banned flavorings. Finland and Denmark have done so, but not Sweden. Many more people will cross the border to buy the flavors they need. Many will probably try to mix them themselves and that can go badly. Not all flavors can be vejpa, but not everyone may have that information." says Frank Tinmansvik.
White snus survived
Frank Tinmansvik notes that sister products such as nicotine inclusions (the Norwegian variant of nicotine pouches containing a fraction of tobacco) and regular snus fare much better under the new legislation. Online sales will be allowed to continue and the restriction on flavorings first proposed by the government was removed from the draft law.
"It was a matter of there being enough snus to go around. The government understood that there would be a lot of lost revenue and anger if they went too hard on white snus. It was easier to sacrifice us as vejpar instead" says Frank Tinmansvik.
"Many who contacted politicians"
Markus Lindblad, Head of Communications at one of the largest retailers of snus and nicotine pouches in the Nordic region, Snusbolaget (owned by the Swedish Haypp group), agrees.
"In the end, it was probably the pressure from all snus users that made the government change its mind. We know that many of our Norwegian customers contacted politicians and made demands. This was of course gratifying for us. At the same time, it is unfortunate that there is no consistent policy to discourage smoking in Norway. E-cigarettes and various forms of oral nicotine products have a very low harm profile and governments in all countries should use this to drive down smoking to the same low levels as we see in Sweden and soon also Norway," says Markus Lindblad to Vejpkollen.
E-cigs help heavy smokers quit
Norwegian researchers have long debated snus and e-cigarettes. The debate has heated up ahead of the upcoming legislation. Some researchers at the Norwegian Institute of Health were recently accused of misleading communication in the context of a study on the risks of snus use. In addition, in the fall of 2023, new studies showed that snus has competition as the most popular way to quit smoking. E-cigarettes were found to be the quitting tool that attracts many of those who still smoke in Norway. According to the Karl-Erik Lund, senior researcher at the Norwegian Institute of Health, it is likely that most smokers who would consider trying snus have already given up cigarettes.
"Those who still smoke have probably never liked the idea of snus, but may consider vejpa. We also know that a majority of smokers who have switched to e-cigarettes in Norway use fruit and berry flavors. Banning these flavors risks greatly reducing the chances of more smokers quitting," said Karl-Erik Lund in Vejpkollen at the time the study was published.
"They don't know what to do now"
It is not yet decided when or how the Norwegian ban on flavorings in e-cigs will be implemented. Frank Tinmansvik states that he, together with other organized vejpers, will try to influence the situation as much as possible.
"Neither the government nor the authorities have any idea how this will work or how it will work in practice. We already have an 18-year limit for e-cigarettes in place and it seems that shops are doing well with age checks. The black market will not be tackled with more bans. But since they didn't listen to this, we'll have to do what we can to maybe keep ways to flavor our e-juice with what we want, without having to break the law." says Frank Tinmansvik to Vejpkollen.
"But what bothers me most is that not all current smokers will have access to e-cigarettes as a tool to quit smoking. Flavors are crucial, and without the ability to find the right flavor, many will continue to smoke instead." says Frank Tinmansvik.
