Small, discreet and smokeless. Nicotine pouches are gaining ground in Portugal, even before a full legal framework exists for their sale and advertising.
Placed between the gum and the lip, they release nicotine without combustion, a feature that sets them apart from conventional cigarettes and is at the centre of a growing debate between industry, authorities and public health experts.
For months, these products were sold in tobacconists and kiosks in a legal vacuum. The situation began to change this year, when they were added to the list of tobacco and nicotine products subject to excise duty (source in Portuguese). It was against this backdrop that Tabaqueira, a subsidiary of Philip Morris International, moved ahead with the official launch of nicotine pouches on the Portuguese market.
"These products were available on the Portuguese market, but unregulated. From the start of this year in Portugal a tax regime was introduced for these products; they are now subject to excise duty. Before the start of this year, any product on the market was in a legal limbo. That is why we did not enter the market until the beginning of this year," Tabaqueira’s managing director, Marcelo Nico, told Euronews.
