BRUSSELS, Oct. 06, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Over the past two months, the international consumer movement Considerate Pouchers has taken its Protect Pouches campaign across Europe - from Prague, Stockholm, Paris, Berlin, and Warsaw to Brussels - mobilizing hundreds of citizens who share a simple but powerful message: safer alternatives save lives, and consumers must be heard.
At every stop, campaigners served freshly brewed coffee and spoke directly with citizens about harm reduction and nicotine pouches as a smoke-free, tobacco-free alternative for adults seeking to quit cigarettes. Hundreds of handwritten postcards and letters were collected and sent to lawmakers, calling for balanced, evidence-based regulation instead of bans and excessive restrictions. These personal stories - of people who finally managed to quit smoking thanks to pouches - formed the heart of the campaign and gave a human voice to the wider public-health debate.
"From Prague to Brussels, consumers are saying the same thing: regulation should protect, not punish. Every smoker deserves access to safer, smoke-free alternatives," said Juan Rafael Taborcía, Global Spokesperson for Considerate Pouchers. "Europe must not punish innovation that helps adults quit. Protecting pouches means protecting people."
The campaign's message draws inspiration from Sweden, which is on the verge of becoming the world's first smoke-free country. Thanks to harm-reduction policies and the widespread availability of nicotine pouches, Sweden has cut daily smoking to just 5.4 percent. Studies such as Smoke Free Sweden (2024) show that pouches are 56 percent more effective than nicotine gum and nearly three times more effective than vaping for female quitters. For advocates, Sweden's experience proves that innovation - not prohibition - is the way forward. "Sweden trusted its citizens and the evidence, and it worked," said Carissa Düring, Head of Considerate Pouchers Sweden. "If the EU follows this example, millions more smokers can quit without stigma or punishment."
Each city on the tour highlighted a different national challenge but echoed the same call for freedom of choice and smart regulation. In Prague, consumers gathered before the Ministry of Health to warn that ignoring science risks pushing people back to cigarettes. In Stockholm, citizens celebrated their country's progress toward becoming smoke-free and urged Brussels to follow evidence. In Paris, people spoke out against new restrictions. Berlin's event, held under the banner "Pouches. Meine Wahl", focused on Germany's legal grey zone and demanded clear standards, youth protection, and access to regulated products. In Warsaw, Polish consumers emphasized that pouches are 95 percent less harmful than cigarettes and vital in a country where smoking rates remain among the highest in the EU. The campaign concluded in Brussels, where citizens called on European lawmakers to end national bans and recognize harm reduction as essential to public health.
Across all these actions, the message was unmistakable: harm reduction works when safer alternatives are available and affordable. Every cigarette avoided is a life potentially saved, and every responsible policy that supports innovation moves Europe closer to its smoke-free goal. The Protect Pouches campaign shows that ordinary consumers are ready to lead the way - what remains is for policymakers to listen.
Contact:
Juan Rafael Taborcía
Global Spokesperson - Considerate Pouchers
juan@consideratepouchers.org
http://www.consideratepouchers.org
