Key Points
- PMI’s oral products chief said nicotine pouches should be regulated under clear rules.
- He argued that bans may not remove demand and could push sales into illicit channels.
- PMI supports rules on nicotine content, flavors, age restrictions and marketing.
- The company said its nicotine pouches were present in 58 markets in Q1 2026.
- Regulation is becoming a key factor in the development of the nicotine pouch market.
2Firsts
July 6
2026According to Logos Press, Nick Ricketts, President of Oral Products at Philip Morris International (PMI), said in an interview that nicotine pouches should be covered by clear regulatory systems, warning that the absence of rules or blanket bans may push demand into illegal or semi-legal channels.
PMI Executive Says Lack of Rules Weakens Market Control
Ricketts said that nicotine pouches, as a new product category, naturally raise questions for regulators. However, he said the key is to establish clear rules rather than leave products outside the legal framework or prohibit them outright.
He said PMI’s nicotine pouches are currently available in about 60 countries. According to Ricketts, experience shows that the most effective regulatory systems are based on product standards, age verification and responsible marketing requirements. He said such approaches have already been implemented in more than 20 countries.
In his view, a regulatory system should first include restrictions on nicotine content, followed by rules on flavors. He said flavors should help adult smokers switch from cigarettes, but should not attract people who have never used nicotine and should certainly not appeal to minors.
Ricketts also said strict age restrictions, sales controls and clear marketing rules are necessary. Once such mechanisms are written into law, regulators have enforcement tools, businesses understand the requirements and consumers receive products that meet established quality and safety standards.
Germany and Belgium Cited as Ban-Risk Examples
Asked about countries choosing bans, Ricketts said a ban does not always eliminate demand. If consumers continue seeking the product, he said, they may turn to illegal or semi-legal channels, leaving governments with less ability to control product quality and enforce age restrictions.
He cited Germany as an example. There, he said, nicotine pouches have fallen into a legal gray area: they are classified as food products, but food products are not allowed to contain nicotine. As a result, legal sales are restricted while demand remains, which may support the growth of an illicit market.
Ricketts also referred to Belgium, which has banned nicotine pouches. He argued that a ban and regulation are not the same thing, and that even after a ban is introduced, products may remain available on the market. In that situation, he said, governments end up addressing illegal trade rather than the product category itself.
By contrast, he said, a standards-based system creates clear parameters, understandable sales rules and consequences for violations, making regulation more manageable.
Sweden Used to Support the Case for Alternatives and Regulation
Ricketts described Sweden as a key example in the nicotine policy debate. He said Sweden was the first country in the world where the rate of traditional cigarette smoking fell below 5%. According to him, the smoking rate is 4.5% among native Swedes and 5.3% among the adult population including immigrants, while smoking rates in most European countries are around 24%.
He said the result cannot be explained by a single factor, but that access to alternative nicotine products for adult smokers played an important role. Adult consumers in Sweden have had access to alternative nicotine products for almost 100 years, first snus, then nicotine pouches and other smoke-free categories.
Ricketts said the Swedish case is notable because alternative products, regulatory oversight and clear market rules existed together. He also said Sweden applies differentiated taxation across product categories, with excise taxes on snus and nicotine pouches lower than those on cigarettes.
From an industry perspective, Sweden is frequently cited by multinational tobacco companies to support arguments for risk-proportionate regulation and differentiated taxation. However, public-health goals, product-use culture, youth-protection pressure and legal systems differ across markets, meaning the applicability of the Swedish model depends on local conditions.
PMI Says Nicotine Pouches Are Part of a Multi-Category Smoke-Free Strategy
Ricketts said nicotine pouches are part of PMI’s smoke-free strategy. After the acquisition of Swedish Match, PMI’s portfolio included a leading product in the nicotine pouch category. He said the purpose of the acquisition was to expand PMI’s smoke-free portfolio alongside heated tobacco devices and e-cigarettes.
According to Ricketts, PMI’s nicotine pouches were present in 58 markets in the first quarter of 2026, and shipment volume in the modern oral products category reached 0.5 billion pouches. Outside Northern Europe, he said the brand continues to strengthen its position in markets including Pakistan, Poland and the United Kingdom. Variants containing 1.5 mg of nicotine are available in more than 80% of the markets where the brand is present, he added.
Ricketts said PMI does not view nicotine pouches as a standalone product, but as part of a multi-category approach for adult consumers.
On youth protection, he said PMI has a strict system to prevent access by minors, uses mandatory age verification in its own sales channels and complies with marketing restrictions. However, he added that some sales take place through independent retail chains, making sales-staff training and government oversight important.
Industry Impact and Next Steps
From an industry perspective, the interview sends three signals.
First, nicotine pouch regulation is moving from the question of whether products should be allowed to how product standards should be designed. PMI’s emphasis on nicotine content, flavors, age verification and marketing rules shows that the industry is seeking legal market space through standardized regulation.
Second, illicit trade is becoming a central argument against blanket bans. By citing Germany and Belgium, PMI is trying to show that bans or gray-market conditions may weaken government control and shift demand into illegal channels.
Third, multi-category smoke-free strategy remains the main framework through which multinational tobacco companies position nicotine pouches. PMI links nicotine pouches with heated tobacco and e-cigarettes as part of its broader set of alternatives for adult smokers.
Key issues to watch include how European countries adjust nicotine pouch rules on nicotine limits, flavors, packaging, age verification, taxation and cross-border sales. For brands and suppliers, growth in the nicotine pouch market will increasingly depend on adapting to country-by-country regulation, not only on speed to market or channel expansion.
Overall, the PMI interview is not a new regulatory decision. It is a policy argument from a multinational tobacco company on how nicotine pouches should be regulated. Its central message is that clear rules, product standards and enforcement mechanisms are more effective than blanket bans in controlling market risks.
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Cover Image: PMI’s President of Oral Products Nick Ricketts｜source: Logos Press
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