"We risk a tax shock and a flavour ban on white snus. One million Swedish users should speak out immediately."
So says Snusbolaget's Head of Communications Markus Lindblad, as plans for new EU legislation on new nicotine products approach a critical stage.
Swedish retailer Snusbolaget urges its customers to protest against the EU's planned minimum tax for new nicotine products. As Vejpkollen has previously reported, the EU Commission is likely to make a proposal before the end of the year.
"Traditional tobacco snus is protected, but the outlook is bleak for white snus. The tobacco-free snus risks a tax shock of several hundred percent, while the flavours may be limited", writes Markus Lindblad, communications manager at Haypp group (which runs Snusbolaget) in Snusjournalen.
More younger users
The debate on white snus has been raging for some years. In Sweden, use has increased, especially among young people, which has attracted the attention of both the media and politicians. According to Swedish Public Health Agency 18% of women and 12% of men in the 16-29 age group reported using so-called nicotine snuff daily or occasionally.
At the same time, smoking in the same group has steadily declined over the same period and is now below 5 per cent. In the rest of the EU, the average is almost 23 per cent.
"If the EU decides on an excessively high mini-tax on tobacco-free snus, it will become a much less attractive alternative to smoking. This limits Sweden and the EU's ability to use economic incentives to promote less harmful products." writes Markus Lindblad in Snusjournalen
Prohibition and restriction of flavours
In Sweden and several other EU countries, it is mainly public health authorities and state-subsidised lobbying organisations who are critical of the increasing use of nicotine pouches. And they have influenced policy internationally. In several countries, such as The Netherlands and Belgium, the products will soon be completely banned. In others, as in Finland, the government is leaning towards limiting flavourings.
While the Swedish government and a majority in the Riksdag is investigating the possibility of possibly regulating smoke-free products more leniently than cigarettes, this goes against the wishes of the Swedish Public Health Agency. FHM believes that white snus should be regulated like cigarettes and other smoking tobacco, with high taxes and a ban on flavours.
"There is a need to regulate these products in a way that is more similar to the protective legislation on tobacco smoking, including a ban on flavourings, regulation of nicotine content and a marketing ban," says Director-General Karin Tegmark Wisell. in a press release.
Improving public health in the EU
According to Mr Lindblad, this is a dangerous path to take, not only in Sweden but throughout the EU.
'Tobacco-related mortality in Sweden is half the EU average. This is because we have had the opportunity to use safer nicotine alternatives for a very long time and snus has displaced traditional cigarettes. Tobacco-free snus has a huge potential to contribute to improved public health in Europe. If Europeans replaced cigarettes with snus to the same extent as Swedes, hundreds of thousands of deaths could be prevented every year. "
"Smokers prefer fruit flavours"
He also believes that the Folkhäslomyndigheten's view of flavours and young users is grossly oversimplified.
"We know that smokers who switch to tobacco-free snus often prefer sweet fruit flavours, they are happy to swap the tobacco flavour for something that does not resemble tobacco at all. We also know from our sales data that there is no major difference between age groups. So there is no particular flavour that attracts a certain age group - regardless of age, people like the taste of strawberry, mint and orange."
"Clear signal from snus users"
The snus company believes that the one million Swedes who use snus and nicotine pouches can make a difference in the upcoming EU negotiations.
"In a survey among our customers, 91 % responded that they would have a negative attitude towards continued EU membership if white snus was subject to substantial tax increases, and 80 % if the EU introduced a flavour ban on snus. This is a clear signal from Sweden's 1 million snus users." says Markus Lindblad.
Thousands of signatures already
Snusjournalen recently launched a petition that (in September 2023) attracted 30,000 snus users to sign the message. Something that Markus Lindblad is very pleased with.
"Everyone wants to help with this. And more answers are coming in all the time," says Markus Lindblad.
Leave the snuff behind!
Stop the drugs instead!
Yes, let the people sniff and vape ❤️❤️
There is no MEP who uses snuff... guess which drug they use instead....
My snus will stay! 🤬
My snus should remain
Stop all the other crap but fuck our snus.
Now the elected representatives must do their duty. Put the EU in place. The snus MUST STOP.
No way. For God's sake, leave Swedish snus as it is.
Leave our snus alone
Give a damn about our snus .....👿👿👿
Fuck our snus
Surely enough is enough. Should everything in Sweden be banned or? I don't use snus myself, but let people decide for themselves what they want and don't want.
forget about the snuff, arseholes
Don't touch my snus!
Aren't the already expensive prices enough?!
Leave the snuff alone, nothing to do with it.
Don't touch our snus !!!
Leave our snus alone! There are other ways to make money.
I can't believe that adults are not allowed to decide for themselves.
Fuck my snus
Something that has been around since the 1800s in Sweden, I think you can still give a damn!
If they don't understand anything, snusing clears your lungs, you don't get K.O.L. or cancer in your lungs, so these damn political scrotum devils better get their act together or we sensible people will take over.
Let Snuset exist.....We have democracy in Sweden, right? Or maybe NOT...🤬?
Leave snus alone - lower the tax. A can should contain 50 grams of snus....
Stop all this bloody taxing 🤮!
Leave our snus alone!
Me stop now. Leave the spice of life, the snuff, behind. And stop worrying about everything. Southern treasure country.
Leave our snus alone!!!!!
Fuck our snus!!!
That's enough! 😡!
Ban the drugs instead. They have more side effects.
Now you have to give your power abuse
When we joined the EU, they promised NOT to touch our snus. So why should they go in and poke around? Fuck our snus!!!
!
Can we take care of our own country? !!!! SWEXIT....!!!
Let my snus stay, I've gone from cigarettes to fruit-flavoured white snus.
Swedish snus use is an old and deeply rooted tradition.
Should people in other countries decide what kind of snus we should have or whether we are even allowed to have it?
I don't want to be the politicians in Sweden who sign this!!!
Risk of a difficult situation, so to speak.
When we joined the EU, this was on the agenda and our politicians promised that snus would not be in danger.
Now it's time to prove it.
But as usual, our politicians are busy being good brothers abroad and stomping on their own people.
But remember that we are MANY!!!
Leave my snus alone, it's already expensive enough.
Leave our snus alone. It is the cigarettes that are more dangerous. I quit smoking 20 years ago, after a few months I started using nicotine-free snus. Then I switched to regular snus. Let it stay, otherwise I think many people will start smoking again.
Leave my snuff alone
You don't touch the only thing that makes you happy.
Our snus is our snus 🖕🏻🖕🏻🖕🏻
Fuck my snus
Leave the snuff alone
Fuck snus, focus more on drugs and all the other crap there is. We snusers don't smell bad, and we don't behave like drug addicts.
Don't touch our snus!
Leave the snus, take care of all the drugs instead & the damn crime we have in Sweden!!!!!
Keep the snus and get rid of the drugs!
Leave our Swedish snus alone! The EU or no other country should be able to decide this!!! Hope more people sign up. I am a snus user myself.
Let's become a bloody prohibitionist society.
Don't mimic the shitty laws of other countries.
We have our own laws and regulations. Show that you can resist other countries' rubbish laws and bans.
Make sure you concentrate and focus your resources on more important things.
Drugs alcoholism poverty crime.
Today, people are beginning to realise how dangerous alcohol is. But you can advertise on TV. Have the same text on alcohol bottles as on snus in that case. Seriously damages your health.
Leave our snuff alone...
Let snus be cheap, we who have had heart attacks due to cigarettes have many now this instead.
Leave our snus alone....
Leave my snuff alone and find a way to stop drugs and drug dealers etc. Do something about the other world like war and that we don't all have to follow EU rules. They think they are in charge of the whole of Europe. Let's keep the snus!!!
My snus should stay mint
Now that I have finally stopped smoking and started snuffing, please don't take my snuff.
Leave our snus alone 😡 Make sure we stop drugs and other nasty stuff instead 😡.
Leave the snus behind
Enough with the paternalism ... let's stop the drugs instead ...
Fuck our snuff and quit the fucking EU membership, it's just making a fucking mess.
SWEDEN OUT OF THE EU NOW !!!!
FUCK OUR SNUS !!!!
FUCKING IDIOTS......🖕
Leave our snus alone from the EU or our politicians all snus users protest NOW
Leave out the flavoured white snus. It has helped me become smoke free and the risk of getting COPD. Can help so many more young people to avoid the poison sticks!!!
Don't touch my snuff!
FUCK MY GENERAL SNUFF!!! 😡😡
Spend your time and money on fighting the legalisation of dangerous substances and drugs instead of our SNUS! Fucking idiots 😡.
Fuck the snuff
Fuck my snuff!
Fuck my snuff!!!
Fuck the snuff!
Can't something be right in this country?
Leave this ridiculous EU
Stay away from snuff!
Leave the EU and get off the snuff!
Do not touch our snus. It is a Swedish cultural heritage.
Fuck our snus
Fuck our snus!
Fuck our snuff!
Fuck our snus
Fuck our snus
Fuck the snus! 😡😡😡 if it becomes more expensive, Sweden must leave the parasites EU 🇪🇺 Sweden cannot tax more!
Fuck our snus
Leave the snuff alone.
But is it democracy? Can't people decide for themselves whether to use snus or vape?
Stay away from snuff!
Fuck the snuff
Why not just leave it alone... leave the snuff and vejp alone?
Screw the snuff 🤬
Leave the white snuff alone 😡!
Leave our snuff alone for goodness sake
I don't understand why the EU should decide everything. Snus has a special status in several ways. Start raising taxes on southern European wines with 200%. I am so damn tired of the shit from Brussels. I voted no to this shit in the first place.
Hey, hey, hey! Why argue about this snuff... raising taxes? then there are much more serious things to deal with? Vejp is so much more dangerous than people think ...
Knowledge is important before saying anything.
Stop vejpa start using nicotine patches or nicotine snus if you have to.
The EU has NOTHING to do with OUR SWEDISH SNUSH!!! DON'T TOUCH OUR SNUS🇸🇪🇸🇪🇸🇪
Leave the snuff and ecigarettes or vejpen behind...there is no nasty smell in them...ban smelly cigarettes instead !
Leave the snus alone. Referendum on leaving the EU please!
IT'S ENOUGH NOW!
Shut the FUCK up!!!
Everything is already expensive as it is today, take tax money from the disgusting politicians instead who sit and stuff themselves with grapes every day....
Peace on earth is more important anyway, snuff this and snuff that.
Leave snuff alone. There are other taxes to raise
If you see my snuff, don't touch it.
Fuck my snus
Leave the snuff and get out of the EU...just screw the EU. Better to have a Nordic community, Sweden, Finland, Denmark, Norway.
Tradition and vital. Snus user since 60 years !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Stay away from our snus there are worse things to do
Leave our snus alone
Keep the snus!!!!!
Ban white snus, which is highly addictive for almost all young people in Sweden.
Research done so far warns of major health risks. Understand that you do not want this as you have an addiction problem but think of our young people in Sweden!!!
What research are you referring to? It's always good to include a link or similar when arguing with research as a source (note that the editors review the link based on source and credibility first, but that applies to everyone) 😉.