By Rich Marianos

As the Biden administration moves forward with its tobacco industry crackdown, states are taking the issue into their own hands in the form of universal flavor bans. California will likely become the latest to add its name to this growing list of states following the November elections, but proponents of this prohibition are turning a blind eye to the science-based benefits of harm reduction.

Flavored tobacco and nicotine products have long served as a key vehicle for traditional cigarette smokers to transition to less harmful alternatives like nicotine pouches or vapes. But instead of educating the public about these alternatives and ensuring there is a robust market smokers can turn to, many states have embraced prohibition. As we saw nearly nine decades ago, prohibition failed for alcohol and it will be equally ineffective for tobacco and nicotine products. 

Although many policymakers and activists who promote flavor bans do so ostensibly to deter underage smoking, the truth is these flavor bans mainly hurt adult legal users. Not only this, but bad policies like these force local law enforcement to badger local community members and not focus on their real jobs of serving and protecting their communities.

Back in 2019, the legal age of purchasing tobacco products was raised to 21, making it illegal for underage Americans to use tobacco and nicotine products - flavored or not. But instead of enforcing the laws already on the books to prevent youth usage, which have proven effective, states have turned to banning flavored products as an “easy win” at the expense of adult users. 

What most don’t realize is flavored alternative tobacco and nicotine products are a key component of many smokers’ journey to quitting.  

A recent peer-reviewed study found that not only do smokers often choose these products as an alternative hoping to quit smoking, there is also a phenomenon of “accidental quitters” - smokers who took up these products with no intention of quitting but ended up doing so due to having available alternatives. The authors of this study found that when smokers vape daily their odds of quitting smoking rise dramatically—even though they didn’t intend to quit smoking.

In addition to scientific data, there is consumer data to back up these claims. Nicokick, the world’s leading e-commerce company in the smokeless industry, released consumer data that found 59 percent of those who regularly used nicotine pouches in 2020 were smokers who have quit - and flavored products were the most popular choice for former smokers. 

As states debate flavor bans to deter youth smoking, they must not forget about the 30 million current smokers in the U.S. Rather than solely focusing on preventing the next generation of smokers from lighting up, there should be some thought and consideration toward the health and safety of current smokers, who need a robust alternative market - including flavors - to finally kick the habit. 

Unfortunately, unlike with other addictions, the plight of smokers often falls on deaf ears. While the Biden administration and many states have prioritized the opioid crisis, using harm reduction as a key tool to achieve results, lawmakers have often leaned towards bans when it comes to smoking. These bans have not only applied to traditional tobacco products like menthol cigarettes, but also proven healthier alternatives like flavored nicotine pouches. 

Rich Marianos worked for three decades as an ATF law enforcement officer and ran the Special Operations Division at DC Headquarters. He is currently retired and teaches at Georgetown University.