27 July 2026. ETHRA submitted to Estonia's Proposed amendments to the Tobacco Act - JDM/26-0826. Among the measures proposed are a nicotine cap of 4mg/g for pouches, a flavour ban based on a 'white list' with only tobacco and menthol permitted, and an online sales ban.
Dear Liisa-Ly Pakosta, Minister of Justice and Digital Affairs,
ETHRA welcomes Estonia’s objective of preventing youth use of adult products and supports proportionate product safety rules and clear enforcement against supply to minors. However, several core provisions of the draft would also make low-risk alternatives to smoking less acceptable, less available or practically unusable for adults who smoke. That would undermine the draft’s public health purpose.
The central weakness is that the draft proposes regulation through prohibition rather than regulating products based on the risk they pose relative to combustible tobacco. Estonia still has a substantial population of adults who smoke: 13.2% of adults aged 16–64 smoked daily in 2024, and 51.6% of daily smokers said they wanted to quit. A tobacco control law should protect young people while preserving realistic routes away from combustion.
Our response is on behalf of the European Tobacco Harm Reduction Advocates (ETHRA). ETHRA is the voice of 27 million EU consumers of safer nicotine products (SNPs). The safer nicotine products we use include vapes, nicotine pouches, snus, and heated tobacco products. ETHRA is a consortium of 24 grassroots consumer associations in 17 European countries, supported by experts in tobacco control and nicotine research. We are a voluntary operation with no industry funding or conflicts of interest. Our transparency registration number is 354946837243-73.
In the attached pdf we outline our position and share relevant evidence that underpins our position.
Read the document here