Despite ample evidence that snus and new nicotine products can save lives by helping people quit smoking, harm reduction advocates and industry experts fear that European policymakers are less informed about nicotine regulation today than they were a decade ago.
Part of the problem, says Swedish MP Joar Forssell of the Liberal Party, is that tobacco control “policy entrepreneurs” are unable to accept that people are making healthier choices.
In Sweden, where smoking rates are already among the lowest in Europe, tobacco control groups have instead focused on demonising all forms of nicotine. He characterised the shift as an act of self-preservation by groups that must justify their existence in order to continue receiving taxpayer funding.
“The healthier people get, the more extreme health lobbyists become,” he said during a panel discussion in Stockholm examining nicotine regulations and how they can be improved.
Snusforumet – 2021-10-14.
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