E-cigarettes are so popular, why is snus still rising rapidly in the United States?

The United States is the country with the highest demand for e-cigarettes in the world and is also the main exporter of e-cigarettes to China. According to third-party data, the U.S. e-cigarette market size will be approximately US$8.3 billion in 2023, a year-on-year increase of 8.7%. Data statistics company Statista predicts that the U.S. tobacco market will reach US$107.5 billion in 2024, of which the e-cigarette market will reach US$8.8 billion

While e-cigarettes are growing rapidly in the United States, nicotine pouches (or snus) are also growing rapidly in the United States, and they are growing faster than e-cigarettes! Data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in 2021 show that since nicotine snus bags were officially launched into the U.S. market in 2016, their sales have increased 300 times in five years.

Swedish Match AB is the world's largest snus supplier, owning classic and best-selling brands such as General and ZYN. In November 2022, Philip Morris International of the United States acquired Swedish Match Company for US$16 billion. The core reason was that it saw the growth potential of the nicotine mouth bag brand ZYN.

In February 2024, Philip Morris International reported that the number of ZYN sold in the United States in 2023 reached nearly 385 million cans, a year-on-year increase of 62%; the market share was more than 70%. Business performance is expected to be better in 2024, with sales in the United States reaching 520 million cans.

In April 2024, Nielsen data showed that sales of e-cigarettes in the United States fell by 14.1% year-on-year, and sales of nicotine mouth bag product ZYN soared by about 80% year-on-year.

In May 2024, Bloomberg reported that ZYN nicotine snus pouches (suscus) were out of stock at many retailers in various states in the United States, and wholesalers in New Jersey and Florida also said it was difficult to obtain the product.

According to a report by a market research and consulting firm, the global snus market is expected to reach nearly US$23.6 billion by 2030, maintaining a compound annual growth rate of 35.8% during the period.

So, e-cigarettes are so popular in the United States, why is snus still rising rapidly in the United States? After research and analysis, it is believed that there are three main reasons:

1. Improvement of nicotine mouth bag products

Snus, also known as "nicotine bag", "nicotine snus bag" and "lip smoke", is an important category of smoke-free products and evolved from snus.

In Sweden, snus is called "SNUS". In 1637, the word "SNUS" appeared for the first time in Swedish official documents. At the end of the 18th century, Sweden began to grow tobacco on a large scale, laying the foundation for the emergence and shaping of snus.

In the early days, snus was sold in bulk in small boxes. When consuming, it was rolled into a small ball and stuffed between the upper lip and the gums, which easily contaminated the mouth. Later it was improved and became bagged.

After the 1970s, improved bagging became popular, using moisture-permeable materials such as non-woven fabrics to wrap the prepared tobacco powder into small bags. The usage method is the same, but it solves the problems of traditional snus that pollutes the mouth and slows the release of nicotine. It also has the advantages of being easy to carry and store. Snoring is becoming the most popular form of tobacco product.

The biggest difference between new nicotine pouches and traditional snus is whether they contain tobacco ingredients. The new nicotine bag does not contain tobacco ingredients. The source of nicotine is synthetic nicotine, and nicotine is absorbed faster through the oral mucosa and blood. It is a new nicotine alternative. According to the different moisture content, it is divided into three types: dry method, semi-dry and semi-wet method, and wet method.

Nicotine bags accepted by the U.S. market are generally dry and belong to the "dry method" type. The moisture content is between 4% and 6%, the taste is sweet, the release curve rises steadily, and the sustainability is strong.

For example, the brand ZYN, which is the king of the nicotine bag market in the United States, was developed in the early 2010s by biochemists Mattias Sharpe-Sjöberg and Linus Mealey of Swedish Match. The product was first market tested in the United States in 2014.

In 2016, it significantly expanded its commercial coverage, making ZYN available in more than 4,000 stores in the western United States. The flavors introduced include wintergreen, spearmint, cool mint, citrus, peppermint, cinnamon, coffee, menthol and other flavors, which are adapted to the properties of dry tobacco and are close to the market, thus achieving great success in the United States.

2. Related to strict tobacco control

With the improvement of global health awareness, e-cigarettes, as tobacco harm reduction products, do not contain toxic and harmful substances such as tar and carbon monoxide. They are also fashionable, easy to carry, and have diverse flavors, and are welcomed by more and more young people. .

In 2007, e-cigarettes produced in China began to be exported to the United States and gradually became popular in the United States. Since the U.S. FDA lost the lawsuit banning the sale of e-cigarettes in 2011, the U.S. e-cigarette market has entered a period of rapid growth.

With the popularity of e-cigarettes in the United States, in 2016, the U.S. government passed the "Tobacco Products Control Act" and expanded the FDA's regulatory authority to include electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) that meet the definition of tobacco products, including e-cigarettes.

Due to the mist and fragrance produced when using e-cigarettes, it will affect others. U.S. state governments have also stepped up smoking control efforts in indoor public places and included e-cigarettes in the scope of smoking control. For example, as early as October 2017, New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo signed a bill, which means that in all indoor public places such as restaurants and bars, not only saying "no" to cigarettes, but also "no" to e-cigarettes .

As of 2024, more than 15 states in the United States have passed comprehensive smoke-free indoor air laws, including e-cigarettes, banning indoor smoking and use of e-cigarettes in private workplaces, restaurants, and bars.

Compared with traditional tobacco and e-cigarettes, nicotine mouth pouches do not need to be lit or charged; and there are no aerosols from flammable tobacco and e-cigarettes. They can be used in a wide range of scenarios and can also be used in non-smoking public places such as airports, high-speed trains, and meetings and trainings. It has strong privacy and will not hinder others, and is favored by more and more consumers.

The top 10 nicotine bag consuming states in the United States are: California, Texas, Florida, Pennsylvania, Washington, Colorado, Oregon, Ohio, North Carolina and New York. Most of these states also ban e-cigarettes in indoor public places. California and New York also ban the sale of all flavored e-cigarettes except tobacco flavors. San Francisco, California, in particular, was the first city in the United States to completely ban the sale of e-cigarettes.

3. Disposable e-cigarettes are seriously involved

In recent years, disposable e-cigarettes have become the mainstream product in the market. According to U.S. CDC data, disposable e-cigarettes will account for nearly 60% of U.S. e-cigarette market shipments in 2023.

Disposable e-cigarettes are not difficult to produce. After disposable e-cigarettes exploded in popularity in 2020, major manufacturers have followed suit. From a short supply to a serious oversupply, channels have become homogenized and products have become surplus.

From the sales side, market feedback shows that e-cigarettes in major markets such as the United States and the United Kingdom, from large wholesalers to retail stores, now have a large amount of inventory that cannot be sold, and the inventory is far greater than the demand.

Originally, nicotine bags had the right location and people in the United States. However, as the pressure on e-cigarette policies increased and the market became more entangled, American e-cigarette dealers sought new product alternatives, which promoted the arrival of nicotine bags and further promoted the popularity of nicotine bags. The Rise of America.
According to industry insiders, the products of nicotine bag brand ZYN are widely distributed in various retail terminals such as gas stations, convenience stores, tobacco stores, and e-cigarette stores.

Not only retail stores selling e-cigarettes have begun selling nicotine mouth pouches, but also e-cigarette brands have launched nicotine mouth pouch brands. For example, Juice Head ZTN is a nicotine bag product line launched by the American e-cigarette brand Juice Head. The brand started with e-liquid and gradually expanded to disposable e-cigarettes and nicotine bags. Since its launch in 2023, the sales of its nicotine bag products have exceeded expectations, especially in the U.S. market.

The three points listed above are only the main reasons for the rapid rise of snus in the United States, but they are not all the reasons. Of course, there must be many reasons for the rapid rise of snus in the United States.

In addition to Philip Morris International, other multinational tobacco companies such as Altria, British American Tobacco, and Japan Tobacco have also deployed nicotine mouth bag product lines, showing the huge development potential of this product.

Studies have shown that the risk of using nicotine pouches is lower than that of products such as atomized e-cigarettes and HNB, and is even more unmatched by traditional tobacco. In major countries where e-cigarettes are popular, nicotine bags are in a regulatory blind spot and are more relaxed than e-cigarettes and traditional tobacco.