SF 3 ZYN Retailers Fined $3m For Sell Illegal Nicotine Products

According to media reports from sfstandard, the San Francisco City Attorney’s Office announced last Friday that it has reached a settlement of approximately $3 million with multiple online tobacco retailers. They were accused of selling ZYN flavored nicotine pouches online to circumvent the city’s ban on flavored tobacco products that has been in effect since 2017.

According to the statement by city lawyer David Chiu, the companies involved include Rogue Holdings, Swisher International, and Northerner Scandinavia. These companies cannot be above the laws of San Francisco, nor can they mail banned products to this city, “Qiu said.” We value community health, and the sale of these products will not be tolerated.

According to the settlement agreement, Rogue Holdings and Swisher International will pay a total of $485000, while Northerner Scandinavia will pay $2.5 million. The agreement also requires the three companies to indicate on their websites that flavored nicotine products are prohibited from being sold in San Francisco.
ZYN is produced by Swedish Match, a subsidiary of Philip Morris International, which has rapidly gained popularity in the United States in recent years as an alternative to cigarettes and vapes. ZYN products are nicotine pouches that users can use by placing them on their upper lip, with a price of approximately $10 per pack of 15 bags.
This settlement only applies to the flavored version and does not affect the sales of odorless nicotine pouches.

The San Francisco authorities stated that seasoning products are likely to attract teenagers and are the main reason for taking enforcement actions. According to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in the United States, the majority of high school students who use vapes or nicotine pouches prefer flavored products.
This case is the latest action taken by San Francisco to crack down on tobacco companies. In 2019, San Francisco became the first major city in the United States to ban the sale of JUUL vapes; In 2023, authorities sued multiple online retailers selling flavored vapes.
City Councilor Shamann Walton said, “We banned flavored tobacco products because we saw these companies intentionally attracting teenage consumers.” He added, “This settlement once again proves that our laws are binding. Any illegal behavior that harms the community will be held accountable.

Reference: Zyn sellers to pay city $3M for violating ban on flavored nicotine products

We have previously reported on the sales of nicotine pouches in the United States:

New York: High School Student Vape Usage Rate Falls to 13.1%

US Judge Rejects Zyn Nicotine Pouches Price Monopoly Lawsuit
We can see that the sales of nicotine pouches in the United States are showing an upward trend.
However, the laws in each state are different. Enterprises will need to make sales area plans based on actual situations.
We are a factory that produces vape hardwares and undertakes various OEM and ODM businesses. We currently do not produce nicotine pouches products.