By Markus Lindblad, Head of External Affairs at Haypp Group, parent company of Nicokick.com and Northerner.com
At every turn, a new opinion emerges, demonizing brands for developing flavored products, to, as they say: market to those underage—often based on the notion of a “hidden agenda.” Let’s be clear: these products are created exclusively for adult consumers.
This year, the World Health Organization (WHO) is using World No Tobacco Day 2025 to push the go-to ‘anti flavor’ agenda on nicotine products. Huge surprise to no one. The claim is that they’re part of an industry ploy to attract children. The slogan—Bright Product. Dark Intentions. Unmasking the Appeal—is both misleading and dangerous. And the question we ask ourselves: to what end?
What those who are committed to this rhetoric seem to forget is that regulatory bodies have implemented strict guidelines to ensure the opposite of this mythical ‘hidden agenda’. As compliant and responsible brands, we walk a tight rope every day. Transparency is built into every layer of the industry—from marketing communications in earned, paid, and owned channels to prominent warning labels and full ingredient disclosure. The real unknown is the unchecked rise of illicit products flooding the market. Much like alcohol, flavors are not a tool for targeting youth. The logical step forward is to adopt consistent age verification measures—at both the federal and state levels—to prevent underage access.
WHO’s Campaign Ignores Science and Reality
WHO, like many other one-sided anti-tobacco organizations, paints all flavored nicotine products with the same broad brush, ignoring clear distinctions with those developed as alternatives to help adults move away from smoking. The truth is, flavored alternatives have proven to be a strong contributor to the harm reduction movement, helping millions of smokers transition away from deadly combustible tobacco.
Earlier this year, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) authorized certain nicotine products to be marketable as a risk-reduced alternative, as part of its harm-reduction strategy, finally listening to and acknowledging the science we’ve known for years. Yet the flavor-ban fight continues, contradicting this approach.
The Real Problem: Access, Not Flavors
It begs repeating: Flavors weren’t made for kids—they were made for adults seeking an alternative to smoking. We have seen the news cycle recently, offering reports on the marginal increase in underage usage, a problem we can all agree on. But to be clear, kids don’t get access because of peach or watermelon flavor names—they get access because standardized age-verification policies present with other categories and industries are absent, so the next best thing is to ban.
How it should be:
- Stronger and standardized age verification measures for all nicotine sales.
- Ban proxy sales to minors.
- Strict penalties for non-compliant retailers.
Bans Hurt Public Health—and Help Illicit Markets
Flavor bans don’t stop youth—they just drive demand underground. Meanwhile, they strip adults of their right to choose alternatives and damage legitimate businesses.
Restricting the appeal of reduced-risk products won’t stop young people from experimenting—it will just make quitting harder for adults and push both into more dangerous behaviors.
WHO Has It Wrong. States Must Lead.
WHO’s 2025 campaign is focused on the wrong enemy and the rhetoric continues to erode years of research and drive fear. Instead of condemning flavors, they should be calling for smarter and tighter regulations that keep products out of underage hands—not banning tools that help adults quit smoking.
Public health isn’t advanced by moral panic. It’s advanced by policy that works.
