Health groups want nicotine pouches pulled

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This article was published 15/11/2023 (868 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Several Brandon convenience stores are sold out of a new nicotine-flavoured product being marketed to young people that the Canadian Cancer Society says should only be sold in pharmacies — and only by prescription.

The nicotine-replacement product is Zonnic, which consists of a container with 24 chewing gum-sized dissolvable packets offering different flavours like Berry Frost, Chill Mint and Tropic Breeze.

Zonnic was approved in July by Health Canada to help adults stop smoking, and according to the authorization, was not to be used by anyone under the age of 18.

But recent marketing campaigns on social media, TV and billboards caught the eye of a group of leading Canadian health organizations including the Canadian Lung Association, Heart and Stroke, Physicians for a Smoke-Free Canada, and the Canadian Cancer Society senior policy analyst Rob Cunningham.

“Tobacco companies know what they’re doing — they’ve perfected marketing in a way that has appeal to children, all the while denying that they want children to use their products,” Cunningham said.

“And there are promotions in locations that are reaching youth, such as convenience stores, Instagram, and lifestyle ads in a classic approach that we’ve seen for cigarettes over many, many years.”

There are various advertisements on social media that depict young people sharing laughs while holding onto, or passing a container of Zonnic, with captions like “Catch up with friends,” “Before your workout,” and “Pop it, tuck it, and it tingles.”

Three gas station convenience stores the Sun visited in Brandon on Tuesday were sold out of Zonnic.

One cashier told the Sun as soon as they get it, “it flies off the shelf,” and added that a new shipment will arrive on Thursday, with the advice, “get here early because you’re not the only one asking about it,” the cashier said.

None of the locations the Sun visited realized the product was not to be sold to anyone under the age of 18, which Cunningham said is a regulatory gap.

That’s why, Cunningham added, he and representatives from the other leading health organizations are calling on Canada’s health minister to suspend the sales of the product.

“What we’re asking is that these products be available on a prescription-only basis, in a way that they can still be obtained, but not sold in convenience stores and gas stations. Have some control. Canada’s Minister of Health Mark Collins should suspend the sales of this product until the regulatory gap can be closed,” Cunningham said.

Hailey Coleman with the Manitoba Lung Association agreed. Coleman is a certified tobacco educator, and lead on youth smoking and vaping prevention who sees products like Zonnic as a backward step for youth, when many are still trying to kick the vaping habit.

“It worries me because when they came out with vaping and started targeting youth, it started its own pandemic with youth. Vaping was put into our society before a lot of regulations were put in place, so we’re still fighting an uphill battle to get our youth off vaping. And they weren’t even using it as a cessation tool. And when I look at this packaging of Zonnic, it’s the same marketing style,” Cunningham told the Sun.

The Sun reached out to federal Health Minister Mark Collins asking for a comment about the request that Zonnic be pulled from shelves of convenience stores, but didn’t receive a response by press time.

There is one province where Zonnic is only available in pharmacies and that’s Quebec, said Cunningham, who added, “That is something that Manitoba could do right away with no need for federal action.”

Uzoma Asagwara, Manitoba’s health minister, told the Sun they had only recently learned about the product.

“When I saw the advertising, it was pretty clear to me that they’re trying to reach a younger demographic. And definitely, I have concerns about companies targeting youth for use of products that may have negative health implications for minors,” Asagwara said on Tuesday.

“This is newer information for me as well, so I look forward to being able to get more information on the subject, and always look forward to working with health experts who have concerns about what it is that we can and should do, to make sure that we’re supporting youth and their families and having the best health-care outcomes possible.”

Each Zonnic pouch is made from water, plant-based fibres, flavouring, sweeteners, and four milligrams of nicotine, which falls within Canada’s prescription drug guidelines, allowing it to be sold over the counter and not requiring a prescription.

» mmcdougall@brandonsun.com

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