Addressing “Big Tobacco Link” Insinuations: The STOP/Contre Feu Narrative and Tobacco Tactics Profile

The STOP/Contre‑Feu narrative and the Tobacco Tactics profile both emphasise that some on the GINN Leadership Team previously worked for or with multinational tobacco companies and then infer a present‑day link or alignment with those firms’ lobbying objectives. That move is a textbook guilt‑by‑association tactic: past disclosed employment or sector experience is presented as sufficient to…

Canada’s Nicotine Pouch Paradox: A Policy That Undermines Harm Reduction

In 2023, Canada approved a tobacco-free oral nicotine pouch, marketed under the name Zonnic, as a nicotine replacement therapy for adult smokers. However, the regulatory framework governing its sale and distribution has created an unexpected contradiction: in some circumstances, it is now more difficult for adult smokers to obtain these potentially lower-risk products than to…

How Inaccurate Scientific Narratives Spread in Media Coverage of Nicotine Alternatives

Public understanding of nicotine products increasingly depends on how science is communicated through mainstream media. Yet, misinformation and oversimplified reporting continue to influence how adults who smoke, regulators, and health professionals interpret the risks of non-combustible nicotine products. These narratives often emerge not from a lack of scientific evidence, but from how research is framed,…

COP11 Shows a Divided World: Why Europe Must Not Import WHO’s Anti-Harm-Reduction Stance

COP11 has concluded, but the debate around nicotine regulation is far from settled. While delegates left Geneva without adopting aggressive new restrictions, the WHO’s long-standing hostility toward tobacco harm reduction remains firmly in place. The organization continues to frame non-combustible products, such as nicotine pouches, e-cigarettes, and heated tobacco, through the same lens as conventional…

Welcoming María del Carmen Ordóñez López to GINN

I’m delighted to welcome María del Carmen Ordóñez López as GINN’s Legal Advisor. María del Carmen brings more than two decades of strategic legal, compliance and governance experience across multinational corporations, start-ups and specialist advisory roles, and will be a pivotal voice in shaping our legal and regulatory work on novel nicotine policy and harm-reduction…

India Can Learn from Bold Tobacco Harm Reduction Actions In The Region

Saudi Arabia’s successful Public Health experiment Backed by the Public Investment Fund (PIF), Saudi company Badael has rapidly scaled its harm reduction initiative using its flagship DZRT tobacco-free nicotine pouch. Since its 2023 launch, the program has helped nearly 400,000 smokers move away from combustible tobacco, with 140,000 reportedly quitting nicotine altogether. This progress contributes…

Nicotine Pouches and Health Risks: What New Clinical Evidence Reveals

A recent study published in JAMA Network Open provides important insights into the biological effects of nicotine pouches, adding much-needed clinical evidence to an area often dominated by speculation. The findings reaffirm a central message in tobacco harm reduction: while nicotine is addictive, the health risks associated with non-combustible nicotine products are dramatically lower than…