Consumer interest in nicotine pouches
The debut emerging tobacco industry products show new consumer interest and awareness. Rutgers University's study reveals consumer interest in nicotine pouches.
The global market for nicotine pouches has been steadily expanding over the past five years due to continued growth in demand and is expected to exceed US$22 billion by 2030, growing at a CAGR of 35.7% from 2022 to 2030.
People around the world are becoming increasingly aware of nicotine pouches and their ability to help those who wish to quit smoking. nicotine pouches offer a satisfactory and socially acceptable alternative to cigarettes for adult tobacco users, which is driving demand for such products. Over the past decade, the proportion of male and female smokers in European countries has fallen considerably as a result of the rapid shift to nicotine pouches. Oral orally-contained cigarettes, whether tobacco-based or synthetic, are becoming increasingly popular with consumers.
Tobacco-sourced orally-contained cigarettes account for a prominent share in 2021, but demand for synthetic orally-contained cigarettes is expected to expand rapidly over the forecast period. The increasing number of product launches in this segment is likely to support growth in this area.
For example, in November 2020, 2one Labs Inc. launched a non-tobacco-derived oral cigarette. Next Generation Labs' proprietary TFN non-tobacco nicotine is used in the production of 2 One Puffs. 2021 will see a larger share of the revenue from flavored mouthpieces, while original/unflavoured mouthpieces are expected to expand rapidly. A high preference for pure nicotine among US-based consumers is driving sales of unflavoured nicotine pouches in North America. nicotine pouches are available in a variety of flavors including fruit, menthol, coffee, and other flavors. The industry is consolidated by the presence of a large number of international players and a few regional players.
Consumer interest and awareness of orally-contained cigarettes - products containing nicotine but no tobacco and one of the newest industrial products - is growing, and they are most popular among young smokers and those trying to quit, according to a Rutgers University study.
The study, the first independent analysis to assess awareness of and interest in nicotine pouches among US smokers, appears in the journal Tobacco Control.
"Given the enormous health impact of tobacco industry products, we know it is critical to track these little-known products and better understand them," said Mary Hrywna, assistant professor in the Center for Tobacco Research at Rutgers Biomedical Health Sciences." As sales grow exponentially, it's important to know who is using these products, how they are using them, and what the likelihood is that they will continue to use them."
The relatively new product works after users insert the pouch between their upper lip and the gum, where it releases nicotine and flavor. According to industry forecasts, sales of the often flavored nicotine pouches, which begin to be widely available between 2019 and 2020, are accelerating through brands such as Altria subsidiary Helix innovations' "On!" and Swedish Match's "Zyn".
In the Rutgers University study, researchers asked 1,018 smokers in the United States about their knowledge of nicotine pouches, whether they had tried them, and whether they planned to continue smoking. The study results showed.
About 29% of smokers were aware of nicotine pouches, nearly 6% had tried them, and nearly 17% were interested in trying them soon.
Smokers aged 18 to 44 were three times more likely to use a mouthpiece than older smokers.
The smokers most interested in using nicotine pouches in the future are those who have a quit plan and those who have tried and failed to quit.
Hrywna said that the tobacco industry has conducted most of the research on the use and safety of nicotine pouches, so more independent research is needed to determine whether oral cigarette use is intended to reduce harm and whether restricting the use of e-cigarettes through government regulations has prompted some smokers to use nicotine pouches.
"It's also notable that smokers in our study were more interested in using these nicotine pouch products in the future than in using other traditional forms of smokeless tobacco, such as moist snuff and snus," said study co-author Olivia Wachowski, an associate professor at the Rutgers Center for Tobacco Studies and the Rutgers School of Public Health.
"It's a timely issue," said Hrywna, who also teaches in the Department of Health Behavior, Society and Policy at the Rutgers School of Public Health." We have now learned from our research that interest in these products will continue to grow, so we will need to do more independent research on the products themselves."
The study was funded by the National Cancer Institute of the National Institutes of Health and the FDA's Center for Tobacco Products.
Some highlights of the global nicotine pouch market
Europe accounted for the majority of the revenue share in 2021 owing to the increased concentration of manufacturers in the region
The synthetic oral cigarette segment is expected to witness the fastest CAGR during the forecast period.
This can be attributed to the increasing number of nicotine products launched with synthetic nicotine.
The flavorings segment is expected to account for a large revenue share by 2030, as flavorings play a crucial role in attracting young people to tobacco products, with over 80% of them starting to use them.
In 2021, the offline segment is estimated to account for the largest revenue share; however, the online segment is expected to witness the fastest CAGR over the forecast period
In European countries, increasing online sales of nicotine pouches are supporting the growth of the segment.
