'Stay the hell away from our kids': 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 advisory warning Canadians about the misuse of nicotine pouches, saying the amount of nicotine each pouch contains is usually recommended for adults who smoke 25 or more cigarettes a day.

The measures come five months after a group of national health organizations urged Ottawa to act swiftly to prevent the products from ending up in the hands of young people.

Fruity flavours

Last July, Health Canada approved Zonnic, the only nicotine pouch for sale in Canada. Produced by Imperial Tobacco, it is marketed as a drug to help smokers quit. Users place the pouch inside their cheek.

Since Zonnic does not contain tobacco and isn't smoked, it doesn't fall under any existing federal or provincial tobacco, smoking or vaping legislation. It also doesn't require a prescription, since it contains less than four milligrams of nicotine.

Instead, Zonnic was authorized under Canada's natural health product regulations — with no restrictions on how they are advertised, where they're sold, or at what age someone can buy them.

Groups like the Canadian Cancer Society say Zonnic's fruity flavours and