Stockholm, Sweden, September 4, 2025 – Igår, den internationella konsumentrörelsen Omtänksamma påsar förde dess Kampanjen Protect Pouches to Stockholm, gathering at Mynttorget to highlight the lifesaving potential of nicotine pouches and snus.
Advocates served coffee from a branded bike and spoke directly with citizens about harm reduction. Dozens of Swedish consumers also wrote personal letters to local politicians, urging them to defend access to safer alternatives. These letters, including one from a Swedish woman who credits nicotine pouches with helping her finally quit smoking after years of failed attempts with other alternatives, will be delivered to policymakers in the coming weeks.
Her story reflects a growing body of evidence. Sweden is on the verge of becoming the world’s first smoke-free country, with daily smoking rates now down to 5.4% – a milestone driven largely by consumers choosing alternatives like nicotine pouches. Among Swedish women, smoking rates have fallen by nearly 50% sedan 2016, with pouches shown to be 56% more effective than nicotine gum and nearly three times more effective than vaping for female quitters, according to the “Power in a Pouch” report by Smoke Free Sweden (2024). Surveys further reveal that 60% of women cite flavour variety as a key reason for switching, and more than one-third say they would continue to seek pouches even if banned – clear proof of their role as the most powerful harm reduction tool today (Smoke Free Sweden, 2024).
Juan Rafael Taborcía, global talesperson för Considerate Pouchers, sa:
“Sweden has shown Europe and the world that protecting pouches means protecting lives. But the EU’s misguided push for restrictions threatens to undo the progress that has put Sweden on the path of becoming the first smoke-free country. Consumers in Stockholm are sending a clear message today: protect pouches, protect our health.”
Carissa Düring, Director at Considerate Pouchers Sweden, said:
“As a Swedish woman I’ve seen how discreet, science-based alternatives like pouches transform lives – improving health, protecting families, and offering real hope to smokers. Sweden will become the first smoke-free country in the world, and it’s not by chance. We achieved it because policymakers trusted and respected evidence-based consumer choice. The EU now faces a choice: it can copy Sweden’s success and save millions of lives, or ignore the evidence and condemn smokers to keep lighting up. We call on Brussels to choose wisely and protect the availability of pouches.”
De Kampanjen Protect Pouches lanseras i europeiska huvudstäder i sommar för att säkerställa att beslutsfattare hör från just de mest drabbade – konsumenterna. Medan EU debatterar nya restriktioner för nikotinpåsar visar Prags agerande en enkel sanning: säkrare alternativ räddar liv, och konsumenternas röster spelar roll.
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