Zyn’s Popularity Has Tobacco Companies Racing to Cash In

“This is the most explosive growth I’ve seen in the nicotine market in 20 years,” says Dr. Michael Blaha, professor of cardiology at Johns Hopkins Medicine. “But let’s be clear — these pouches are not a health product. They’re a highly addictive delivery system.”

Zyn, the nicotine pouch that’s become a cultural phenomenon, is driving a gold rush. Tobacco giants like Philip Morris International (PMI) and British American Tobacco are pouring billions into new factories and marketing campaigns, racing to capture a market that’s growing faster than anyone predicted. The numbers are staggering: U.S. sales of nicotine pouches hit $1.3 billion in 2023, up 60% from the previous year, according to Reuters. And Zyn alone accounts for nearly 70% of that.

But here’s the thing — the very factors driving Zyn’s popularity are also raising alarm bells. Influencers on TikTok and Instagram tout the pouches as a “clean” alternative to smoking or vaping. No smoke, no vapor, no smell. Just a discreet little pouch tucked under your lip. Sounds harmless, right? It’s not. The pouches deliver a potent dose of nicotine, often 3 or 6 milligrams per pouch, and some brands offer up to 8 mg. For context, a typical cigarette delivers about 1–2 mg of absorbed nicotine. So a single Zyn can pack a punch equivalent to several cigarettes.

The Nicotine Gold Rush

PMI, which acquired Zyn’s parent company Swedish Match in 2022 for $16 billion, is betting big. The company is building a massive new plant in Owensboro, Kentucky, expected to churn out billions of pouches annually. “We’re investing over $600 million in U.S. manufacturing capacity,” said PMI’s CEO Jacek Olczak in a recent earnings call. “Demand is outpacing supply, and we’re not slowing down.”

British American Tobacco isn’t far behind. Its Velo brand is gaining ground, and the company just opened a new production line in Hungary. Meanwhile, Altria, the maker of Marlboro, is testing its own nicotine pouches under the On! brand. The race is on — and it’s not just tobacco companies. In a move that echoes the Wegovy weight loss pill hitting UK pharmacies, we’re seeing a market explode as consumers seek quick fixes for health concerns. But unlike Wegovy, which is a prescription drug for obesity, Zyn is unregulated nicotine that anyone over 18 can buy at a gas station.

“The parallels are striking,” says Dr. Sarah Bailey, a public health researcher at the University of Oxford. “Just as with Wegovy, companies are capitalizing on a desire for transformation — in this case, from smoking to something perceived as safer. But the evidence base for harm reduction is thin, and the addiction risk is real.”

Influencers, Health Claims, and Regulatory Gaps

Scroll through TikTok, and you’ll see countless videos of young people — often fitness influencers — popping a Zyn before a workout or using it to stay focused. “It’s like coffee without the jitters,” one influencer says. “No hangover, no smoke, just clean energy.” Sounds tempting, but the FDA has not approved any nicotine pouch as a smoking cessation aid. In fact, the agency has issued warning letters to companies making unauthorized health claims.

Meanwhile, the CDC warns that nicotine pouches are not safe for young people, pregnant women, or non-smokers. “Nicotine can harm brain development in adolescents and young adults, and it’s highly addictive,” says a CDC spokesperson. “These products are not harmless.”

And yet, the marketing continues. Zyn’s sponsorship of Formula 1 racing and partnerships with extreme sports athletes have made it a lifestyle brand. The pouches are sold in sleek, colorful cans that look more like breath mints than tobacco products. It’s a deliberate strategy to appeal to younger demographics — the same strategy that worked for Juul, which later faced a wave of lawsuits and regulatory crackdowns.

“We’ve seen this movie before,” says Dr. Blaha. “Juul was supposed to be the answer to smoking, and look what happened — it hooked a generation of kids. Zyn is following the same playbook, just with a different delivery system.”

What This Means for Investors and Consumers

For investors, the Zyn boom looks like a classic growth story. PMI’s stock has climbed 15% in the past year, driven largely by Zyn sales. The company reported that Zyn volumes grew 40% in the first quarter of 2024 alone. But there are risks. Regulatory scrutiny is intensifying. The FDA has proposed a ban on menthol cigarettes, and some lawmakers are calling for restrictions on nicotine pouches, including flavor bans and marketing limits.

Plus, the social cost is mounting. Schools are reporting an increase in nicotine pouch use among teenagers, and some states are considering raising the purchase age to 21 (it’s currently 18 in most places). If the backlash gets loud enough, the same thing that happened to Juul could happen to Zyn — rapid growth followed by a crash.

For consumers, the message is clear: just because something is marketed as “clean” doesn’t mean it’s safe. “Nicotine addiction is no joke,” says Dr. Bailey. “If you’re a non-smoker, don’t start. If you’re a smoker trying to quit, talk to your doctor about proven methods like patches, gum, or prescription medications.”

This isn’t the first time a trend has sent companies scrambling. Remember the Taylor Swift wedding marketing blitz? Brands rushed to align with the pop star’s image, hoping to capture her fans’ loyalty. In the nicotine world, the rush is even more urgent — because the health stakes are higher.

So what’s next? We’ll likely see more consolidation, more plants, and more marketing dollars poured into the pouch market. But we’ll also see more lawsuits, more FDA actions, and more public health campaigns. The question is not whether Zyn can keep growing — it’s whether the industry can avoid the same mistakes that doomed vaping.

Dr. Blaha sums it up: “We’ve got a choice. We can learn from history, or we can repeat it. Right now, it looks like we’re choosing the latter.”