Health minister vows to restrict nicotine pouches — but how?

Canada’s health minister says he’ll seek extra authority to restrict the marketing and sale of nicotine pouches to youth, but it’s unclear exactly how he’ll do that or how quickly it will happen.

“To the tobacco companies that continue to look for ways to use loopholes to addict people to their products: Get away. Stay the hell away from our kids,” Mark Holland said while speaking to reporters in the House of Commons Wednesday.

Health Canada has also announced it will “explore legislation and regulatory options for additional measures to protect youth” from the risks of nicotine replacement therapies, including pouches.

The department released a public