How Canada's Nicotine Pouch Restrictions are Causing a Rise in Counterfeit Pouches

Canadian Health Minister Mark Holland’s recent decision to restrict Nicotine pouches to behind the pharmacy counter has made it harder for smokers to quit, both by creating a shortage (which I’ve experienced firsthand) and by eliminating flavors besides mint.

Due to the ongoing shortage and lack of choices, Canadian consumers are being forced to turn to black market alternatives in order to avoid returning to cigarette smoking (the most harmful way to consume Nicotine), and this has created a new problem: the proliferation of counterfeit Nicotine pouches. A recent, highly upovoted post on Reddit highlights the issue firsthand, with a Canadian consumer stating the following:

Real zyns are essentially done in Canada, there might be the odd one kicking around but no suppliers are reliably getting real ones in Anymore. Even the stores I’ve been reliably buying off of for a while are getting them now. I know someone who owns a vape store and their distributor sells “real” and fake zyns at different prices and he bought the real ones because he didn’t want to carry fakes and received a bulk order of the one on the left. I picked up the last real ones on the right at another shop and they’re all dated June 2025 expiration which is obviously pre-August regulations. This other shop just got a new order that came in this week and it’s all fakes now and dated August/September and they were surprised because they’ve been using the same distributor for a while too. Guess I’ll move onto a new brand or Euro Zyn 3mgs when I’m not down to drive to the US. Good luck out there friends.

Update (2024-10-24): The user elaborated to CanTHR that

Since the (Zyn) fakes started pouring in it’s becoming impossible to find real ones. I’ve had maybe 2 or 3 fake pouches & instantly spat them out they’re disgusting. I can’t believe people are using them and I really want to know what is in them. It’s concerning to think how many people are consuming this garbage and not even realizing what it is or how bad it can be.

CanTHR note: Zyn is not approved for use in Canada under current government regulations (it was removed from the Canadian market in 2024), but that has not stopped consumers from trying to obtain the popular brand through illicit means.

The user also shared an image of the counterfeit pouches alongside a can of real Zyn (pictured on the right), and as you can see, it is quite difficult to tell the difference between the real and counterfeit versions:

Not only do these counterfeit pouches lack quality control, but they most likely contain questionable ingredients and inconsistent Nicotine levels, both of which are actively harmful to consumers looking for a safer alternative to cigarette smoking. The currently authorized nicotine pouches in Canada (i.e.. Zonnic) have a risk profile comparable to conventional forms of nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) such as the gum or lozenge, and it is estimated that nicotine pouches have 0.1% the risk of cigarette smoking [3].

This concerning development was to be expected, and as Canadian Pharmacist and Certified Tobacco Educator (CTE) Todd Prochnau states in his article opposing the new restrictions:

Australia has a much more restrictive vaping regulation than Canada, where nicotine vapes (e-cigarettes) can only legally be purchased via prescription. It is estimated that 90% of Australian vapes are now accessed via the black market [4].

Todd also highlights the fact that

Research has shown that adult patients prefer a variety of flavour options in nicotine products and without these options people who smoke are more likely to go back to smoking cigarettes [5] [6].

As long as the Canadian government continues to push policies which aren’t supported by research, it is likely that black market Nicotine products will continue to proliferate and cause harm to Canadian consumers. Moreover, black market sources of Nicotine pouches are less likely to age gate products, making them more accessible to youth. For example, Australia is seeing a significant upward trend in youth vaping compared to countries like England and New Zealand due to their restrictive policies [7]. This illustrates that restricting access to nicotine pouches will likely further push people to access illicit nicotine pouches without age gating or quality control.

As staunch advocates of tobacco harm reduction, Canadians for Tobacco Harm Reduction (CanTHR) is working to bring light to the issue of counterfeit Nicotine products and advocates for policies rooted in evidence.

If you’d like to help take action, become a member of CanTHR today (its free and joining only takes a minute)!