Addictive nicotine pouches can legally be sold to children in shops

Nicotine pouches with eye-catching packaging and sweet flavours are available for children to buy because the product falls between regulatory gaps, Trading Standards has warned.

No law in place currently restricts the age of sale for nicotine pouches, meaning a child could enter a shop and be sold these addictive products, the Chartered Trading Standards Institute (CTSI) has said.

Nicotine pouches are small sachets designed to be placed between the upper lip and gums. Unlike other products, such as snus, these pouches do not contain tobacco and just release nicotine slowly. Just like vapes, they come in flavours including mango, berry and cherry ice.

Pouches can contain between 1.5mg and 20mg of nicotine, similar to a vape, but they are not regulated as a specific tobacco or nicotine product.

Data from Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) published last month revealed that in 2024, just 38 per cent of 11- to 17-year-olds knew what a nicotine pouch was. Now that figure has shot up to 43 per cent.

While only 4 per cent of 11- to 17-year-olds use nicotine pouches, the watchdog fears this will increase without an age restriction on the product.

The warning comes as trading standards visits businesses to ensure they are no longer selling single-use vapes, which are now illegal to supply in the UK.

During visits, Trading Standards has seen nicotine pouches displayed in plain sight at the front of the check-out areas in stores, sparking concern over the rise in popularity of these products among school-aged children.

The watchdog warns that this nicotine product is discreet and could easily go undetected by teachers and parents.

“It very much feels like a game of whack-a-mole – just as one product is dealt with, another emerges – the availability of potentially harmful products being promoted and sold to our children seems never-ending,” said Duncan Stephenson, policy and external affairs director at CTSI.

“Nicotine pouches are the latest example, with slick marketing, sweet flavours and colourful packaging that risk appealing to young people, whether intended or not,” he added.

Nicotine is a highly addictive substance, and in high doses it can cause headaches, a racing heart, nausea and stomach cramps.

“While they are likely to be very much less harmful than smoking, they contain nicotine which is addictive, and the long-term health impacts are not known,” said Hazel Cheeseman, chief executive at ASH.

The Tobacco and Vapes Bill, currently making its way through parliament, makes the sale of these nicotine products illegal to anyone under the age of 18.

It will also introduce powers to restrict the use of child-appealing flavours, packaging and advertising, as well as dictate where they can be placed in shops.

“Strong, proactive regulation is essential to protect children and stop these products from slipping through the cracks,” Mr Stephenson added.

Trading Standards is calling for the Tobacco and Vapes Bill to be moved up the parliamentary timetable to ensure a swift implementation. It wants nicotine pouches out of the reach of children and to make sure business owners don’t exploit this age restriction loophole.

Kate Pike, CTSI Lead Officer for Tobacco and Vapes, said: “We are getting increasing reports from concerned parents and teachers that shops are marketing and selling nicotine pouches to children. It is incredibly frustrating that there is nothing we can currently do to prevent them.

“We have been asking for an age of sale on nicotine pouches for some time and were delighted when this measure was included in the Tobacco and Vapes Bill.”