Summer Road Trip Day 7

Apparently, I’m Too Old to Buy Nicotine Pouches

Saskatchewan taught me something I was not expecting: when it comes to nicotine pouches, being almost 54 might actually be a disadvantage.

Day 7 of our road trip was supposed to be another day of walking into stores, asking for nicotine pouches, seeing what was available and trying to understand what the market looks like on the ground.

Except I felt something was off. I kept hearing “No, we don’t have any.” “Nope. We don’t sell them.” “Can’t sell those.”

And sometimes I would get an explanation of the law, as if I was administrating an exam. It all sounded very responsible and at the same time I felt something was off and I couldn’t put my finger on it. All I kept thinking was I know you have them.

Then I walked into one particular store and they validated my gut feeling. I asked about pouches. I walked in, and I could actually see the tins. I asked about nicotine pouches, and the young clerk started to pull them out from behind the curtain. Then his colleague gave him a look. One of those looks that communicates an entire conversation without saying a word. He changed gears, said no. He then explained the law to me, as if he thought I was testing him.

I walked back outside and looked at our videographer. He’s barely 30 but could easily pass for 25. I said to him“You go in.” He did, and guess what? He came back with pouches, a lot of them. At every stop after that, I went in first: no pouches. He went in: pouches. Apparently, at almost 54, I was too old for the illicit market to trust. Funny, until you realize what that means: in Saskatchewan, the younger you looked, the easier the illicit market seemed to be to access. First, I want to be very clear about something: the pharmacist was wonderful. She was professional, helpful and simply following the process she was required to follow, so my frustration isn’t with her; it’s with the absurdity of the system we’ve created. Before I could buy nicotine pouches, we had to have a conversation about whether I smoke or vape, what I had tried before, whether I had tried pharmaceutical smoking-cessation products and whether I would consider other options. Then came the personal information: first name, last name, date of birth and address.

So I Went to a Pharmacy

I wanted to know what the experience would be like for an adult trying to purchase an authorized nicotine pouch exactly where the federal government has decided it should be sold.

First, I want to be very clear about something: the pharmacist was wonderful. She was professional, helpful and simply following the process she was required to follow, so my frustration isn’t with her; it’s with the absurdity of the system we’ve created. Before I could buy nicotine pouches, we had to have a conversation about whether I smoke or vape, what I had tried before, whether I had tried pharmaceutical smoking-cessation products and whether I would consider other options. Then came the personal information: first name, last name, date of birth and address.

I’m almost 54 years old, standing in a pharmacy trying to buy a small amount of nicotine, and I’m having a mini consultation and handing over a remarkable amount of identifying information.

Meanwhile, the young guy on our team can walk into another retail location and walk back out with illicit pouches, including products much stronger than the authorized 4 mg products available through the legal system.

It seems to me, that this ministerial order which the current government has a death hold on has created the opposite of what it was intended to do.

Because based on what we experienced in Saskatchewan, the younger you appear to be, the fewer barriers there may be to accessing the illicit nicotine-pouch market.

This is about access for adults, and after days on the road that word keeps coming up. We can write regulations on paper and congratulate ourselves for making something harder to buy legally, but that doesn’t mean it’s harder to buy illegally. No one regulates the illicit market.

And after what I saw in Saskatchewan, I think we need to ask an uncomfortable question:

Have we created a system where the legal market puts up more barriers for adults than the illicit market does for younger consumers?

I say yes, but even if your answer is is even maybe, we have a serious problem.

We need to do something about it. Actually, Canada’s Minister of Health needs to do something about it and we need to make sure she knows Canadians are paying attention.

That’s why we’re asking people to send a letter through unlockthepouch.ca and tell the Minister of Health that it’s time to rethink Canada’s approach to nicotine pouches.

Because after Day 7 in Saskatchewan, one thing became painfully clear to me:

When the legal system makes access harder than the illegal market does, don’t be surprised when the illegal market wins.