Imperial Tobacco Canada says Ottawa’s nicotine replacement strategy has failed
On the anniversary of the federal government’s Ministerial Order preventing Canadian convenience stores from stocking or selling Zonnic, a Health Canada approved smoking cessation product, Imperial Tobacco Canada says the ban has failed to achieve the results the government said such a ban would provide.
According to Imperial Tobacco Canada, the ban fueled a growing illicit trade in unregulated nicotine pouches entering Canada and drove an increase in cigarette purchases.
“The policy, presented as a public health measure, has clearly backfired,” says the company in a release sent to the press today on the one-year mark of the ban. “Overnight, access of Zonnic immediately dropped. While sales of Zonnic dropped, the purchase of cigarettes jumped by 2.8% and over the last year, more than 500 million illegal and unregulated pouches have been sold on the black market.”
"The government targeted the only legal, regulated nicotine pouch product in the country, and opened the door to a thriving illicit market," said Eric Gagnon, vice-president of corporate and regulatory affairs at Imperial Tobacco Canada. "Zonnic wasn't the problem. It was and is the solution for many Canadian smokers."
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Imperial Tobacco Canada says not only has illicit sales exploded, but that unregulated pouches, many with significantly higher nicotine levels than the legal limit, are now flooding the market and e-commerce platforms, easily accessible to youth and adults alike.
“Smokers are left behind. In rural and remote regions, where pharmacies are few and far between, adult smokers who once relied on Zonnic to quit now face unnecessary barriers,” Imperial Tobacco Canada added in its statement. “Pharmacists overburdened. Pharmacists play an integral part in many smokers quitting journey, but instead of spending time on crucial patient care, health professionals are now faced with additional, significantly higher unnecessary administrative burdens.”
The company added that it believes the federal government’s policy also “dealt a blow to this country's small business economy, affecting many of Canada's 200,000 convenience retail jobs and threatening the small businesses that rely on regulated nicotine product sales to stay competitive.”
"We are ready to find joint solutions with the Minister of Health so that the burden on the already over-stretched pharmacists can be reduced and especially to help as many adult smokers as possible to quit for good", said Gagnon.
