Vapers Digest 21 March

Friday’s News at a glance:

Parliament Matters ~ Finland’s Flavour Ban ~ Dorset Promotes Swapping ~ E-cigarettes linked to lower cardiac risks compared to tobacco cigarettes in people with HIV ~ Is smoking cool again? ~ 3 Key Regulatory Updates for Nicotine Pouches in March 2025 ~ Vapor Technology Association Launches Broadcast Campaign Calling on President Donald Trump to Keep Promise to Save Flavored Vaping Industry ~ Bidens’ flawed nicotine limits rule is Trump’s chance to shine ~ UK and US Vaping Policy Changes Undermine Harm Reduction ~ Smoke-free nicotine products to surpass cigarettes in the US in 2025: report ~ Thailand Cracks Down Harder on Vapes. Is There Hope? ~ Netherlands set to raise legal vape age from 18 to 21 ~ Pakistan says THR is “imperative” to solving its smoking crisis ~ Denver Voters Could Overturn Flavored Vape Ban in Nov. Election ~ Europe Wages War on Nicotine Pouches ~ The Future of EU Tobacco Taxation: Insights from Member States and Best Practices for the Next Tobacco Excise Tax Directive ~ Ep. 13 – The Practical Realities of Excise Tax & Illicit Trade: Oliver Barry on Vaping Regulations ~ DESTINED TO FAIL | How Study Design Distorts Vaping Science

Three from Dave Cross, Planet of the Vapes

Parliament Matters

The Ulster Unionists in the Northern Ireland Assembly discussed the UK Tobacco and Vapes Bill. At Westminster, the DUP’s Jim Shannon was thinking about under-16s, while the Conservative’s John Hayes wanted to know more about illegal vape seizures, and Ashley Dalton provided some wordy answers.

Finland’s Flavour Ban

Finland’s plan to ban flavours in nicotine pouches risks driving smokers back to cigarettes, leading international health experts have warned. Smoke Free Sweden believes that the country ought to be looking at the success tobacco harm reduction story in Sweden rather than pushing restrictive policies.

Dorset Promotes Swapping

Public Health Dorset has pushed the vaping Swap2Stop free vape giveaway programme as part of its quit tobacco advice given out to smokers on No Smoking Day. In related matters, University Hospitals Dorset is also promoting vaping as it announced its new smoke-free policy, where all smoking will be banned but vaping will be allowed.

E-cigarettes linked to lower cardiac risks compared to tobacco cigarettes in people with HIV

University of California, Medical XPress

Electronic cigarette use may pose lower cardiovascular risks in people living with HIV compared to tobacco cigarette use, new UCLA-led research shows.

The study, published in the Journal of the American Heart Association, uses a novel laboratory model to examine the early stages of atherogenesis—the buildup of fats and cholesterol in the arteries. The findings suggest that electronic cigarettes (ECs) have a lower likelihood of causing changes associated with atherogenesis, compared to tobacco cigarettes (TCs), among those living with HIV.

Is smoking cool again?

Christopher Snowdon, The Critic

Is smoking making a comeback? The Guardian reported this week that “Smoking rates in parts of England have increased for the first time in nearly two decades”. It is wise to be wary of such claims since they are usually accompanied by demands for more taxpayers’ money to be thrown at obsolete stop-smoking services. Sure enough, both the Guardian article and the study upon which it is based call for more “investment” in “regional tobacco control”. Nevertheless, the evidence does suggest that smoking rates have been ticking up in the south of England and that there are roughly as many smokers in the country as there were in 2

3 Key Regulatory Updates for Nicotine Pouches in March 2025

Mariam Gogolishvili, Considerate Pouchers

In recent developments, several European countries have introduced significant regulatory changes affecting nicotine pouches and tobacco products. These updates have substantial implications for consumers and industry stakeholders alike.

1. Denmark’s Proposed Nicotine Content Limit

The Danish government has announced plans to restrict the nicotine content of pouches to 9 mg, with the regulation set to commence in July 2025 and full implementation by April 2026. This move aims to reduce nicotine consumption; however, experts like Clive Bates argue that such stringent limits may lead to unintended consequences, including increased smoking rates and the proliferation of illicit markets. Bates recommends an initial limit of 20 mg per pouch, subject to adjustment based on market observations.

Vapor Technology Association Launches Broadcast Campaign Calling

on President Donald Trump to Keep Promise to Save Flavored Vaping Industry

Vapor Technology Association (VTA)

Today, The Vapor Technology Association (VTA) launched a cable and digital news campaign urging President Donald Trump and his administration to uphold their promise to save the flavored vaping industry and the thousands of small businesses the industry supports. The weeklong placements are running on FOX News, FOX Business, and Newsmax during key programming slots, including “FOX and Friends,” “Kudlow,” and “The Five.”

VTA’s campaign emphasizes the trust American vapers have placed in President Trump to protect small businesses and consumer choice. The segments feature small business owners and dedicated vaping supporters who stood up for President Trump during the 2024 election and are now asking him to stand up for them.

Bidens’ flawed nicotine limits rule is Trump’s chance to shine

Katherine Weasel, The Washington Times

President Trump’s second term in office has been off to a frenzied start, with much of his actions revoking Biden-era proposals and policies. The 46th president exceeded expectations for the depths he was willing to go with last-minute, perplexing decisions such as the one to advance a Food and Drug Administration proposal to establish nicotine limits for tobacco products. It was a final disappointment in a presidency full of them and a final parting gift to cartels and lawbreakers.

Click to visit Danish Vapers Association

UK and US Vaping Policy Changes Undermine Harm Reduction

Roger Bate, Substack

Vaping is the most effective method for adults wanting to quit smoking. But because of concern that young people may vape, vaping policies are increasingly restrictive in US and even in UK, which until recently took a permissive approach to vaping. This paper looks at how policy changes may be affecting the legal and illicit market for vaping products. Through discarded pack samplings and interviews with product sellers, it finds that nearly all products in Philadelphia, US are illegal and that illicit sellers are increasing their sales of these products. In London, UK the number of illegal products has jumped in the past year from a low base probably due to regulatory restrictions. While the original data presented are from very small samples, they do indicate a likely change, which is both bad for health and bad for legal sellers of these products.

Smoke-free nicotine products to surpass cigarettes in the US in 2025: report

Snusforumet

Consumption of smoke-free nicotine products—such as nicotine pouches, snus, and vapes—will surpass that of combustible cigarettes in volume in 2025, according to a new analysis from investment bank Goldman Sachs.

“Expanding beyond combustible products to smoke-free alternatives is an imperative for the industry,” the authors write in the report, reviewed by Snusforumet.

Thailand Cracks Down Harder on Vapes. Is There Hope?

Kiran Sidhu, Filter

Thailand’s government recently ordered a crackdown on nicotine vapes under a national prohibition, resulting in numerous police raids.

Fears of youth vaping and adulterated products—fostered, ironically, by prohibition—are behind the latest enforcement efforts, along with a new report highlighting police corruption. But there is a sliver of hope for change in a newly formed committee, including members who vape, presenting its policy recommendations to parliament.

Two from Ali Anderson, Clearing The Air

Netherlands set to raise legal vape age from 18 to 21

The Netherlands has drafted a new law to raise the legal age limit for buying cigarettes and vapes from 18 to 21.

The Ministry of Health says it also plans to impose higher fines for anyone caught selling vapes illegally.

The Dutch government says the proposals are in response to an increase in the number of young people vaping in recent years.

Pakistan says THR is “imperative” to solving its smoking crisis

Promoting nicotine alternatives such as vapes and pouches is “imperative” for Pakistan to cut its alarmingly high smoking rates, an MP has said.

Pakistan’s Minister of State for Finance and Revenue Ali Pervaiz Malik said tobacco harm reduction (THR) policies are vital for protecting future generations from the risks of smoking and for reducing the country’s spiralling healthcare costs.

Two from Jim McDonald, Vaping 360

Denver Voters Could Overturn Flavored Vape Ban in Nov. Election

Last December, the Denver City Council passed an ordinance banning the sale of flavored vapes and nicotine pouches (except for tobacco flavor), along with menthol cigarettes, and flavored cigars and smokeless tobacco. The ordinance took effect on March 18.

Now a group of vape businesses and other retailers in the city are challenging the law. Smoke-Free Alliance Colorado has gathered more than 17,000 petition signatures from Denver citizens who support a referendum to overturn the flavor ban.

RELATED: Denver store owners submit petitions to remove flavored tobacco ban

Europe Wages War on Nicotine Pouches

Nicotine pouches are under attack in Europe, with multiple countries imposing bans and restrictions, and others planning to do so. Meanwhile, no European country has banned the sale of combustible cigarettes, which kill hundreds of thousands of Europeans every year.

The impetus for sales restrictions and limits on flavors and nicotine strength comes from tobacco control groups and public health organizations, which carried outsized influence among elected officials in many European countries and in the European Union (EU). They see pouches as a wolf in sheep’s clothing—a seemingly innocuous product used by the devious tobacco industry to initiate young people into nicotine use and then lifelong addiction.

The Future of EU Tobacco Taxation: Insights from Member States

and Best Practices for the Next Tobacco Excise Tax Directive

Adam Hoffer, Jacob Macumber-Rosin, Tax Foundation

Key Findings

An update to the EU’s Excise Tax Directive that embraces harm reduction principles would save lives and provide a steady stream of revenue to support public health expenditures.

Taxing tobacco products according to the risks they pose to consumers encourages smokers to switch to less harmful products.

One EU country, Sweden, has embraced alternative tobacco products, which has driven the nation’s smoking rate to the lowest level in the EU.

Ep. 13 – The Practical Realities of Excise Tax & Illicit Trade: Oliver Barry on Vaping Regulations

VSML South Africa

DESTINED TO FAIL | How Study Design Distorts Vaping Science

Global Forum on Nicotine

Are vaping studies destined to fail? Research on e-cigarette health effects often includes former smokers—skewing results and misleading the public. Dr. Arielle Selya explores why flawed study designs, academic incentives, and NIH funding pressures shape the science on vaping and tobacco harm reduction.

On this Day…2022

A look back at how things have moved on or otherwise…

Snus

Dr. John Oyston

Snus are small pouches of tobacco that have been processed and sometimes flavoured. The pouch is held in the mouth, against the user’s gum, and it releases nicotine. They are a much safer source of nicotine than cigarettes, so switching from smoking to snus reduces a smoker’s health risks. They are very popular in Sweden, where they have been used for over 30 years, contributing to very low smoking rates and cancer rates in that country.

New Powers

FDA Gains Authority Over Synthetic Nicotine | RegWatch (Live)

Congress granted FDA the authority to regulate synthetic nicotine in a crass attempt to ameliorate the moral panic over teen vaping. A problem that many researchers say is waning if it existed at all.

Visit Nicotine Science & Policy for more News from around the World