Considerate Pouchers On TPD Evaluation: “A Sabotage Of The Swedish Success”

Considerate Pouchers has today issued a scathing response to the European Commission’s evaluation of the Tobacco Products Directive (TPD), labeling the report as a “dangerously narrow-minded” document that ignores the public health potential of nicotine pouches.

While the report acknowledges the EU is struggling to meet its 2040 smoke-free goal, it simultaneously suggests further restrictions on modern oral nicotine, the very product category that has allowed countries like Sweden to achieve the lowest smoking and tobacco-related mortality rates in Europe.

The evaluation focuses heavily on potential risks while systematically downplaying the 99.9% risk reduction associated with pouches compared to combustible cigarettes. By framing pouches primarily as a “threat” rather than a solution, the Commission is choosing ideology over harm reduction.

“This report is a masterclass in cognitive dissonance,” said Juan Rafael Taborcía, global spokesperson of Considerate Pouchers. “It admits the EU is failing its smoking cessation targets, yet its primary solution is to attack the most effective tools we have for getting people off cigarettes. To ignore the  Swedish Miracle, where pouches have practically eliminated smoking, is not just biased, it is a betrayal of European smokers. The EU Commission is sabotaging the Swedish Success Story.”

Considerate Pouchers calls on the European Commission to adopt a realistic,  risk-proportionate regulatory framework. Products should be regulated based on their relative harm, treating smoke-free pouches the same as combustible tobacco is scientifically illiterate and counterproductive to public health.

The EU must look at the data from Sweden and the Czech Republic. We don’t need more bans, we need a pathway that empowers smokers to choose less harmful alternatives. The Commission’s current trajectory doesn’t protect citizens, it protects the status quo for high smoking rates.