Problem in one trick – that’s how the Democratic US Senator Chuck Schumer described white snuff when he called on the US authorities FDA and FTC to investigate how the nicotine product is marketed to young people.
The Swedish white tobacco-free nicotine pouches, or white snus, have exploded in popularity in the United States – but differing opinions about the product have created debate.
– On the whole, this is a minor issue. But it’s very good for a political party to find a symbolic issue, says Anders Utterström, USA connoisseur who made a snus podcast on behalf of Swedish Match in 2017.
Republican symbol issue
The use of white snus has increased significantly in recent times. One of the Swedish companies that sell the most recently reported that in 2023 they shipped almost 285 million doses of nicotine pouches in the United States – an increase of 62 percent compared to the year before.
Especially on TikTok, the products have taken off, with several thousand clips where people use and market white snus.
How has white snus gone from being almost completely unknown in the United States to a Republican symbol issue? Watch the video.