Board mulls health warnings for smokeless tobacco products

Dr Naomi Shaban,Tobacco Control Board Chairperson.

The tobacco board is seeking amendments to Acts to address emerging smokeless products in the market.

Tobacco Control Board Chairperson Dr Naomi Shaban wants the amendments to the Tobacco Act to address chewed, snuffed, and dissolvable tobacco products.

Speaking on May 7 in Mombasa during a public participation convened by the Ministry of Health and TCB to discuss graphic health warnings on tobacco products, Dr. Shaban echoed the sentiments of hundreds of stakeholders advocating for tailored health graphic warnings for different tobacco products. 

As part of providing the public with health warnings on tobacco products, stakeholders urged the Ministry of Health to distinct graphic warnings for newer products, such as smokeless tobacco and nicotine pouches, differing from traditional carcinogenic tobacco warnings.

Industry players also emphasized the urgency for the government to explore safer alternatives, including harm-reduction products supported by scientific evidence demonstrating their reduced harm potential.

Acknowledging the deficiencies within the existing legislation, the Government, through the Tobacco Control Health Board, agreed on the need for amendments to effectively regulate smokeless tobacco products and bridge existing gaps within the Tobacco Act.

According to the World Health Organization Tobacco Trends Report released in January 2024, the country has cut the use of the product by a third compared to 2013.

However, the progress is undercut by the growing use of harmful products like e-cigarettes and nicotine pouches.

The WHO notes that smokeless tobacco use is still a concern in the country as it affects the brain development of young people and causes abortion in expectant users.

“Reducing rates of smokeless tobacco use is key to reducing rates of tobacco use in countries where smokeless tobacco products are popular, or on the horizon as the next direction for the industry,” WHO states.

In 2019, the sale of nicotine pouches in Kenya was stopped after the Ministry of Health questioned why they were regulated by the Pharmacy and Poisons Board instead of the TCB under the Tobacco Act of 2007.

However, the product later sneaked its way back into the country as a rebrand of Lyft and was allowed to be regulated by TCB and treated as a tobacco product.

In October 2023, the Members of Parliament asked MOH to ban nicotine pouches in Kenya because they flout the Tobacco Control Act.

As the stakeholders call for amendments, the Act requires nicotine and tobacco products to carry graphic and written health warnings in both English and Kiswahili, covering at least 30 per cent of the package.

However, all the pouches in Kenya currently have no graphic warnings and one brand carries a tiny, largely illegible warning, covering less than 10 per cent of the package.

The board is set to hold final public participation for the lower eastern region, including Machakos, Kajiado, Kitui, Makueni, and Nairobi, on Wednesday, May 8th, at the National Industrial Training Authority, Athi River.