Brussels, Belgium (October 22, 2025) — We Are Innovation, a global network with more than 50 partners around the globe, just published a new Position Paper on “The Global Case for Nicotine Pouches.” The document evaluates the role nicotine pouches can have in the process of building a smoke-free society, highlighting the importance of evidence-based regulation.
In the present day, smoking remains one of the world’s most pressing public health problems, claiming more than 8 million lives every year. Although several tobacco control measures have been implemented – such as taxation, restrictions or cessation programs – many regions are currently struggling with stagnated smoking rates. A significant case is the European Union (EU), with a smoking rate of 24%. Moreover, some Low and Middle Income countries (LMICs) are witnessing an increase in their number of smokers.
In an effort to redefine anti-smoking strategies, Innovative Nicotine Products (INPs) are being increasingly recognized as safer alternatives to smoking. The nicotine pouch is one of the products that stands out the most, due to its ability of simultaneously addressing various policy dimensions such as public health, environmental concerns, as well as social and gender neutral suitability.
Nicotine pouches are the INPs with the lowest health risk. In a paper where a risk score from 0 to 100 was calculated for different nicotine products, nicotine pouches were classified with a risk of 0,1 – while cigarettes were calculated with a risk of 100. Another study accessing the number of potentially toxic substances in nicotine products found nicotine pouches to have 5 of these substances, while cigarettes had 84. In addition, the absorption of nicotine takes longer with pouches than with smoking, which reduces dependence and eventually helps quitting.
Besides health, nicotine pouches also appear to be better for the environment. Unlike cigarettes, pouches are not associated with the persistent pollution caused by filters, butts, smoke, ash and residual pollutants. While compared with other INPs, like vapes, their environmental impact remains low, as they do not produce any electronic waste.
Another argument for nicotine pouches are real success stories, mainly the one coming from Sweden. Sweden is currently smoke-free – with a smoking rate below 5 percent – which coincides with an evidence-based approach that makes INPs accessible, affordable, and acceptable.
Nicotine pouches, in particular, had a significant impact in the decline of smoking rates among Swedish women, mainly because of their adaptability to social contexts. The absence of smoke, stained teeth and overall mess makes pouches way more immune to social stigma than cigarettes.
In addition, LMICs find in nicotine pouches an opportunity to arrange a solution to tackle smoking despite infrastructure limitations. Since they are simple to distribute and maintain, pouches can become a cost-effective nicotine alternative for these countries, as well as helping reduce future healthcare burdens. They can also end up replacing unregulated and carcinogenic oral smokeless products that are popular in some parts of Africa and Asia, like nasvay, gutkha and khaini.
The co-authors of the report share their insights on nicotine pouches:
- Federico N. Fernández, the CEO of We Are Innovation, claims, “The future of the fight against smoking may well depend on our collective ability to embrace innovation as a powerful ally—and to craft policies that unleash its potential to accelerate progress toward smoke-free societies.”
- Dr. Karl Fagerström, a founding member of the Society for Research on Nocotine and Tobacco and the creator of the Fagerström test, explains, ”In a paper where a risk score was calculated for different nicotine products, cigarettes were set to 100, and no nicotine use was set to 0. The risk for cigars was set to 30, snus to 6, and nicotine pouches to 1. In another study from the UK, harmful and potentially harmful constituents were measured, and no difference was found between NR lozenges and gums and four different nicotine pouches.”
- Carissa Düring, the Director of Considerate Pouches Sweden, shares, “One of the most potent things I hear from pouchers – especially women – is that they finally feel in control. Nicotine pouches offer precise dosing, no social stigma, and no mess. They fit into professional settings, family life, and public transit – all without friction.”
- José Alberto León, Project Director at Fundación Internacional Bases and We Are Innovation, adds, “For policymakers worldwide developing comprehensive environmental strategies, this zero-electronics approach offers particular advantages. It aligns with circular economy principles by eliminating complex waste streams and avoiding the growing challenge of electronic waste management.”
- Beatriz Santos, the Chief Communications Officer of We Are Innovation, says, “The Swedish experience proves that ‘smoke-free’ is not just a slogan. Innovation is already delivering safer alternatives to smoking, now regulation must rise to meet them. With nicotine pouches, the EU has an unprecedented opportunity to plummet its 24 percent smoking rate and accelerate its progress towards its goal to become smoke-free by 2040.”
- Tetiana Rak, the Chief Operations Officer of We Are Innovation, comments, “Nicotine pouches represent a rare public health innovation that matches scientific evidence with real-world feasibility. For low- and middle-income countries, they offer an infrastructure-independent alternative to smoking, capable of preventing millions of deaths if policies follow evidence.”
Indeed the evidence shows that nicotine pouches have multiple benefits while compared to cigarettes – whether for public health, for the environment, for social harmony or for economy. Yet, they keep facing multiple misconceptions fueled by misinformation.
We Are Innovation hopes its new report highlights the case for nicotine pouches, in order to help building smart regulatory frameworks, making Innovation stand out against prohibition and working towards a smoke-free future.
ENDS
ABOUT WE ARE INNOVATION
We Are Innovation is a dynamic network of individuals and institutions who deeply believe in innovation’s power to drive progress and solve the world’s most pressing problems. With over 50 think tanks, foundations, and NGOs based worldwide, We Are Innovation represents the diverse voices of a global civil society committed to advancing human creativity, adopting new technologies, and promoting innovative solutions. Through our collaborative approach and cutting-edge expertise, we are driving global transformative change. To learn more about our work, visit us at https://www.weareinnovation.global/
ABOUT PATH TO SMOKE-FREE
Path to Smoke-Free is a comprehensive analytical platform developed by We Are Innovation that reveals how countries can harness innovation to defeat smoking and accelerate their journey toward smoke-free status. Drawing from Sweden’s remarkable success in dramatically reducing smoking rates far below global averages—we identified three key elements: Accessibility, Acceptability, and Affordability of innovative nicotine products. Our platform combines comprehensive policy data with real insights from Swedish ex-smokers, offering interactive tools to compare how countries are harnessing innovation to defeat smoking. The platform features powerful forecasting charts that project smoking prevalence and when countries will reach smoke-free status under three scenarios: current policy trajectories, outcomes if countries matched Sweden’s success rate, or results following the combined pace of leading nations. Policymakers, researchers, and health professionals can explore evidence-based strategies that could help their countries reach smoke-free targets faster, guided by proven success stories. Discover how your country could accelerate its journey to smoke-free status at https://pathtosmokefree.global/.
