Philip Morris International temporarily stopped online sales of Zyn nicotine pouches in the U.S. on Monday, June 17, in response to a legal challenge from the attorney general for the District of Columbia. The halt is part of an investigation into the company’s possible violation of the district’s ban on flavored tobacco products.
“Zyn is not a sin,” Tucker Carlson said on the “This Weekend w/ Theo Von” podcast.
Zyn is a 100% tobacco-free product that is rapidly gaining popularity as a nicotine alternative. Users place the flavored pouches under the upper lip for an almost immediate nicotine buzz. Each tin contains 15 pouches, and each pouch lasts about 30 minutes.
The growth of Zyn sparked a culture of “Zynfluencers” who promote the product online.
Over the past year, Zyn’s popularity surged. Philip Morris expects to sell 560 million cans in 2024. That is a 34% increase from the previous year.
The product has also drawn scrutiny. Health experts note that while Zyn might pose fewer risks than traditional smoking methods, it carries similar health implications as other nicotine delivery systems like gums and patches. These risks include dependence and long-term health effects associated with nicotine consumption.
“What we’re seeing is when kids use it, because it has such a high level of nicotine, they get addicted to it really rapidly,” said Bruce Barcello, the director of education and preventions at Soter Technologies.
Analytical chemist Ben Katz analyzed the composition of Zyn pouches and found that nicotine is the primary active ingredient, unlike other similar products that contain tobacco leaf.
“In the data analysis software, we see a series of peaks,” Katz said. “There is a common peak that’s in all of the samples, and it’s the most abundant peak in all the samples that is our nicotine peak. Based on these tests, nicotine is the bioactive molecule in Zyn, and nicotine is the only tobacco-related alkaloid that we can see in this product.”
Philip Morris’ current legal challenge revolves around allegations of non-compliance with local regulations banning flavored tobacco products.
In 2022, the District of Columbia banned the sale of all flavored tobacco, including flavored synthetic nicotine products.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is currently evaluating whether Zyn meets U.S. health standards for legal marketing. As of now, the FDA has not authorized any Zyn products for sale. Despite this, Zyn nicotine pouches are still available for purchase in the U.S.
The pouches can be sold under existing regulations that permit the marketing of tobacco products while they are under review.
