Brussels: Where Europe Decides the Future of Harm Reduction

Brussels. The city where decisions made behind closed doors ripple across an entire continent.

This week, the Protect Pouches European Tour rolled into the heart of EU policymaking, and we brought with us the voices of Europeans who just want to quit smoking without being punished for it.

From Coffee Bikes to Corridors of Power

Over the past weeks we’ve served coffee and cinnamon buns in Paris, Stockholm, Prague, Warsaw and Berlin, collecting stories from everyday people who quit smoking thanks to nicotine pouches. Now, in Brussels, we carried those stories directly into the European Parliament.

We delivered fact sheets and real-life testimonials to MEPs and their assistants. The message was simple: don’t confuse pouches with cigarettes, don’t overtax them, and don’t rob Europeans of the most effective harm reduction tool available.

The Stakes in Brussels

Two key policies are on the table right now:

• The Cardiovascular Health Plan: currently at risk of classifying nicotine pouches as “cardiovascular risk factors.” That would be a scientific mistake and a public health disaster.
  
• The Tobacco Excise Directive (TED): could impose cigarette-level taxes on pouches, pricing people out of quitting.
  

Both policies ignore what Sweden has already proven:

• 5.6% daily smoking — lowest in Europe.
  
• 44% fewer tobacco deaths als der EU-Durchschnitt.
  
• Lowest lung cancer incidence in Europe.
  
• Lower heart disease and stroke rates than neighboring countries.
  

If the rest of Europe followed Sweden’s model, 3.5 million lives could be saved in the next decade.

Our Meetings in the Parliament

Inside the Parliament, we met with MEPs and APAs across political groups. The reaction was consistent: curiosity, surprise at the data, and appreciation for the evidence we provided.

Every conversation built momentum for one clear ask: Don’t punish people for quitting smoking.

Brussels: Breaking Down New Walls

Just as Berlin reminded us what it means to tear down walls, Brussels reminds us what it means to build them. Here, regulators debate new barriers, higher taxes, blanket bans, fear-based classifications.

But walls don’t protect public health. They trap people in smoking.

Our Message from Brussels

Europe has a choice:

• Build new walls of regulation that keep smokers trapped.
  
• Or open doors to cleaner, smoke-free, tobacco-free alternatives and save lives.

In Brussels, we made sure policymakers heard the voices of the people.

Protect lives. Protect pouches.