- Sweden is about to become the first country in Europe to be smoke-free.
- Less than 5% of the populace must smoke every day for a nation to be deemed smoke-free.
- In Sweden, 15% of respondents say they use snus daily; this percentage has somewhat increased recently.
Because of snus, a type of moist snuff worn under the upper lip, Sweden is on the verge of becoming the first smoke-free nation in Europe. However, some worry that the tobacco industry is marketing an unrealistically good “fairytale”.
According to the government, snus, which is consumed by one in seven Swedes, has contributed to the decline in smoking rates among the population, which reached a record low of 5.2 percent last year in Europe from 15% in 2005.
Smoke-free country
Less than 5% of the populace must smoke every day for a nation to be deemed smoke-free. In the European Union, snus has been prohibited since 1992. However, when Sweden joined the EU three years later, it negotiated an exemption.
Thousands of snus doses are produced into sachets at the Swedish Match factory in the western city of Gothenburg, via a convoluted network of machinery. In 2021, the company sold 277 million snus boxes in Norway and Sweden.
Swedish culture includes the usage of Swedish Match, a traditional tobacco-based product, which dates back 200 years in the nation. There are two varieties: white snus, which is often flavored and made of synthetic nicotine, and traditional brown snus, which is made of tobacco.
Introduced 15 years ago, white snus is illegal in the EU and was outlawed in Belgium and the Netherlands. On the other hand, its use has quadrupled among women aged 16 to 29 in four years, indicating that it is popular among Sweden’s youth.
In Sweden, 15% of respondents say they use snus daily; this percentage has somewhat increased recently. Just 5% of Swedes report that they smoke regularly, marking a dramatic decline in the smoking population and putting Sweden 27 years ahead of the EU’s 2050 smoke-free target.
By lowering taxes on traditional snus by twenty percent and raising taxes on cigarettes by nine percent, the government has further supported the snus industry.
Nonetheless, Ulrika Arehed Kagstrom, the head of the Swedish Cancer Society, is not happy about the decision to reduce taxes on snus. She is concerned that years will pass before the full extent of the products’ harmful effects become apparent.
The risk of pancreatic and throat cancer was found to be two and three times higher, respectively, in a June 2023 study conducted by the Norwegian Institute of Public Health among frequent users of snus.
