British American Tobacco pressures Kenya to reduce health warnings

British American Tobacco allegedly blackmailed Kenya's health minister into investing in a bid to reduce the size of health warnings on its Velo nicotine pouches, an investigation by The Examination has revealed.

In January 2021, the Kenyan Minister of Health notified British American Tobacco (BAT) that its nicotine pouches were now subject to tobacco product regulations. This included the placement of health warnings covering 30 % of the front and 50 % of the back of the packs.

BAT Kenya’s managing director, Crispin Achola, responded by letter in September 2021, requesting permission to reduce the health warnings to 10 % of the packaging surface. He reportedly weighed the decision against BAT’s planned investment in building a new factory in Nairobi. The health minister eventually granted BAT permission to have the warnings cover only 15 % of the packaging, an investigation by The Examination has revealed.[1], co-published by The Guardian and Africa Uncensored.

Lobbying and irregularities during the introduction of nicotine pouches in Kenya

The investigation found that the launch of nicotine pouches in Kenya was marred by irregularities and lobbying. The products were first introduced in July 2019 under the name Lyft, as BAT sought to use Kenya as its testing ground for the market in low- and middle-income countries. BAT had obtained a marketing authorization limited to pharmacies, which prohibited the advertising and sale of nicotine pouches online, in stores, or through vending machines – all of which BAT violated. The authorization was later deemed illegal by the authorities, leading them to ban nicotine pouches in September 2020.

In March 2021, BAT puts pressure on the Minister of Health to have its nicotine pouches reauthorized, in order to sell 400,000 boxes of products before their expiry date. Health professionals had denounced this pressure. A few months later, the CEO of BAT Kenya reportedly asked for the health warnings to be reduced, under penalty of not building the factory intended to distribute these products in the region. Crispin Achola had notably suggested to the Minister of Health to use his discretionary right to override the 2017 anti-tobacco law in terms of health warnings. BAT then obtained a reduction in these warnings to 15 % of the packages, this permission being valid until July 2023.

BAT nicotine pouches have been officially re-released marketed in June 2022, this time under the Velo brand. BAT has requested to permanently extend this exemption on the size of health warnings, but has not yet received a response.

The toxicity of nicotine pouches in question

Designed on the model of Swedish snus, with which they are often confused, nicotine pouches are placed between the gum and the lip. They do not contain tobacco, but nicotine powder, flavorings and plant fibers. Nicotine contents vary greatly depending on the manufacturer and can be significant.

The extent of the harm caused by these products is currently difficult to assess, as the vast majority of research on nicotine pouches is funded by the manufacturers. The latter present nicotine pouches as harm reduction products, as they contain fewer toxic substances than tobacco smoke. However, a few independent studies have shown that, regardless of the manufacturer, nicotine pouches may contain traces of nitrosamines tobacco-specific amino acids (TNSA), which are carcinogenic[2]The American Cancer Society believes that the long-term consequences of low-level exposure to TNSA are not yet known. In the United Kingdom, health warnings on nicotine pouches state that they are not "safe."

As in many countries, BAT has promoted its nicotine pouches on social media, using influencers. BAT denies promoting them to young people, but they are the main consumers of these products. Research has shown that schools are among the main places where nicotine pouches are illegally resold in Kenya, with security guards screening entrances and even some teachers being found to be involved in receiving stolen goods.

Health stakeholders, including the Kenya Tobacco Control Alliance (KETCA), have denounced the influence exerted by BAT on the Minister of Health, and the endangerment of public health for economic reasons. They fear that these nicotine pouches will no longer be considered tobacco products, as a forthcoming law on nicotine products seems to announce. However, Article 5.3 of the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC), ratified by Kenya, requires that public health policies be protected from interference by the tobacco industry. The implementing guidelines for this article also call for not granting advantages to the tobacco industry, as contained in the Kenyan law of 2017.

Keywords: Kenya, British American Tobacco, Lyft, Velo, nicotine pouches

MF

[1] Chapman M, Mukhwana T, Marsj S, British American Tobacco undermines Kenyan health laws in bid for Gen Z, the Examination, published January 23, 2024, accessed January 24, 2024.

[2] Mallock N, Schulz T, Malke S, Dreiack N, Laux P, Luch A, Levels of nicotine and tobacco-specific nitrosamines in oral nicotine pouches, Tob Control 2022;0:1–7, Epub ahead of print: 07/10/2022.