Last week, the Protect Pouches European Tour arrived in Warsaw with our coffee jetpack, cinnamon buns, and a message that resonates as strongly in Poland as anywhere in Europe: give consumers the right to choose a safer way out of smoking.
Coffee, Buns, and Polish Stories
On the streets of Warsaw, we spoke to former smokers, colleagues and friends alike. They came for coffee and stayed to talk, about quitting smoking, about protecting their families from second-hand smoke, about wanting a cleaner future for their children.
Every postcard signed was a statement to lawmakers: pouches aren’t cigarettes, and they must not be treated as such. Poles understand the difference. They live it every day.
Poland at a Turning Point
Poland is one of the EU’s heaviest-smoking countries. Nearly one in four adults still smokes daily, with all the health costs and hospital beds that come with it. Meanwhile, smoke-free alternatives like pouches remain poorly understood and face harsh regulations.
Instead of clarity, Poland risks confusion: bans, over-taxation, and a lost chance to save lives. Sweden has already shown the way: 5.6% daily smoking, 44% fewer tobacco deaths, the lowest cancer rates in Europe. If Poland followed suit, tens of thousands of Polish lives could be saved in the coming decade.
Brussels Wants Control. Poles Want Health.
As Poles talk about quitting, Brussels is busy drafting a Cardiovascular Health Plan that may, unbelievably, list pouches as “risk factors.” At the same time, the Tobacco Excise Directive (TED) threatens to tax them like cigarettes.
That’s not health policy. That’s Brussels building barriers where there should be bridges.
Our Message From Warsaw
Poland has always been a place that breaks chains, not builds them. Now is the time to:
- Protect flavours and access for people who want to quit.
- Create clear, fair rules for pouches.
- Recognize that smoke-free, tobacco-free products are part of the solution and not the problem.
The people of Warsaw get it. They know harm reduction works. Now it’s time for Brussels, and for Polish lawmakers, to listen.
Protect pouches. Protect choice. Protect Polish lives. Next stop: Brussels.
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