CAPHRA Responds To PHANZ: New Zealand Should Regulate Oral Nicotine Products, Not Ban Safer Options For Adults

Monday, 16 March 2026, 8:25 am
Press Release: CAPHRA

The Coalition of Asia Pacific Tobacco Harm Reduction Advocates (CAPHRA) says New Zealand should regulate oral nicotine products under strict adult-only rules rather than oppose them outright, warning that a “precautionary approach” must not become a barrier to safer alternatives for people who smoke.

CAPHRA states that while oral nicotine products are not risk-free, adults who smoke deserve access to lower-risk alternatives that are regulated in proportion to their risk as compared with cigarettes.

CAPHRA’s response follows the Public Health Association of New Zealand’s call for the Government to reject oral nicotine and tobacco products in Aotearoa. PHANZ says the evidence base is still limited and raises concerns about youth uptake, addiction, and unintended harms. But rejecting them outright ignores the clearest real-world evidence we have from Sweden and Norway. In both countries, widespread use of low-combustion oral products has coincided with major declines in cigarette smoking.

CAPHRA Executive Coordinator Nancy Loucas said those concerns support tight regulation, not blanket prohibition.

“CAPHRA supports strict safeguards, including R18 sales, strong product standards, ingredient disclosure, marketing restrictions, and tough enforcement against illegal sales,” Loucas said. “But it is not credible to keep cigarettes available while blocking lower-risk alternatives for adults who are trying to move away from smoking.”

Medsafe currently restricts retail importation of oral nicotine products unless they are approved, while some tobacco-based oral products may still be imported for personal use. CAPHRA says this patchwork approach is harder for consumers to understand and harder for regulators to enforce.

CAPHRA says good public health policy should focus on relative risk, adult access, and regulatory control. The organisation argues that products such as nicotine pouches, e-cigarettes, and heated tobacco are significantly less harmful than smoking and says New Zealand has already shown how risk-proportionate harm reduction can help accelerate smoking decline.

Loucas said CAPHRA’s position is grounded in lived consumer experience across the Asia Pacific and in the principle that adults deserve accurate information and access to better options than combustible tobacco.

“Precaution should mean controlled access with rules that work in practice,” Loucas said. “If policymakers want to protect young people, they should regulate these products tightly and transparently, not push demand into grey or illicit markets.”

CAPHRA says New Zealand should create a clear legal category for oral nicotine products, backed by adult-only sales, enforceable retail controls, transparent standards, and strong penalties for non-compliance.

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