By Ponciano-Rodriguez Guadalupe and Flores-Escalante Valentina
A new generation of nicotine products is entering markets worldwide, often moving faster than the regulations intended to protect public health. Oral Nicotine Pouches (ONPs), among the newest products promoted by the tobacco industry, have especially gained popularity among young people. Commercial ONP brands report that their products may contain nicotine salts obtained through chemical synthesis or extracted from tobacco leaves, together with microcrystalline cellulose, sweeteners, pH regulators, flavourings and other excipients. Unlike combustible tobacco products, they do not require burning. They are placed between the gum and upper lip, where nicotine is absorbed into the body.
Introduced in Mexico in early 2024, they have rapidly become available through digital platforms and thousands of physical retail outlets. Despite their recent arrival, uptake has been rapid. In Mexico, the 2025 National Survey on Drug, Alcohol and Tobacco Use (ENCODAT) has already documented ONP consumption, with an estimated 103,731 users. Use of a highly addictive product is rapidly expanding, before specific regulations have been established for permissible nicotine concentration, composition, labelling, health warnings and promotion.
The images in figures 1-8 show ONPs are being advertised and sold in Mexico—from football-themed packaging and online promotions to reward schemes, testimonials and bundles combining nicotine pouches with alcoholic beverages and free product samples.
Figure 1. Testimonial-style advertising on the VELO Mexico website describing nicotine pouches as suitable for use where smoking is prohibited, including during air travel. (Source: VELO Mexico website https://www.velo.com/mx/es; from June 2026).
Figure 2. ZYN social media promotion using DJ, party and nightlife imagery. (Source: Instagram post. https://www.instagram.com/p/DM0saryusYe/?igsh=c3N0OHJ4MGhnZHcx; from June 2026).
Figure 3. Front view of World Cup-themed ZYN aluminium packaging labelled “México 2026”, using a green-and-white design that evokes Mexican national football imagery. (Photographs courtesy of Dr Inti Barrientos.)
Figure 4. Examples of cross-promotions offering VELO nicotine pouches free with purchases of alcoholic beverages or energy drinks through delivery platforms and convenience-store retailers. (Source: VELO Mexico promotions website https://www.velo.com/mx/es/promociones; from July 2026).
Figure 5. Imported Iceberg cheesecake-flavoured nicotine pouches sold online in cake-slice-shaped packaging. (Source: Pouchlink Mexico product listing https://pouchlink.mx/productos/iceberg-pie-cheesecake-35mg-40pz/; from May 2026).
Figure 6. Imported strawberry–vanilla candy-flavoured nicotine pouches sold online in brightly coloured, confectionery-style packaging. (Source: Pouchlink Mexico product listing https://pouchlink.mx/productos/candys-slim-strawberry-vanilla-32-8mg-20pz; from May 2026).
Figure 7. ZYN point-of-sale display positioned at a convenience-store checkout beside confectionery. Mexico City, August–September 2025. (Photograph courtesy of SERAJ A.C. and the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids).
Figure 8. World Cup-themed ZYN advertising circulated in Mexico, depicting football supporters wearing national-team colours and waving a Mexican flag. (Source: Instagram post https://www.instagram.com/p/DZvh_E-ICrj/?igsh=eTYxYTNucXhjdGli; from July 2026).
A market built through digital promotion
The tobacco industry has exploited regulatory gaps and weak enforcement in Mexico to expand the market for new nicotine products. Social media and retail websites have become central channels for promoting, distributing and selling ONPs to Mexican consumers.
During the last 12 months, we reviewed Mexican nicotine pouch retail websites, social media content and promotional materials available to consumers in Mexico and identified distributors importing ONPs from several countries, particularly in Europe. These suppliers were offering products with very high nicotine concentrations directly to consumers in Mexico. This online availability places high-dose nicotine products within easy reach of consumers, highlighting inadequate regulatory oversight.
Marketing messages commonly describe ONPs as “less harmful”, “smoke-free”, “discreet” and “environmentally friendly”. Such claims minimize perceptions of risk and contribute to the normalization of nicotine use.
ONPs have also been linked to sports-related narratives through marketing that appropriates football imagery and national symbolism. Packaging documented in Mexico uses green colour schemes resembling the Mexican national football team jersey, associating nicotine products with sport, national identity and youth-oriented fandom. This strategy is particularly concerning in the context of the 2026 Football World Cup, as promotional materials capitalize on football enthusiasm to increase product appeal.
Promoting continued dependence rather than cessation
ONPs are also marketed, explicitly or implicitly, as products that may help people who smoke to quit. However, rather than communicating a clear cessation purpose, brand messages frequently suggest that they can be used where smoking is prohibited. Testimonials such as “ideal when you are in places where you cannot smoke, perfect when you are flying” and “the need to be outside is completely eliminated” promote ONPs as a way to bypass smoke-free environments. Rather than supporting cessation, these messages present nicotine use as accessible in virtually any setting, potentially facilitating sustained dependence and dual use.
The health risks of NPs should not be underestimated. Nicotine exposure can affect adolescent brain development, particularly learning, memory and executive function. Studies have also identified potentially carcinogenic compounds in some ONPs. Their use has additionally been associated with oral, cardiovascular, neurological and metabolic harms.
Our monitoring of Mexican ONP retail websites identified promotional tactics extending beyond conventional advertising. Vendors used contests, reward-point schemes, free trials, bundles combining alcoholic beverages with ONPs, and consumer testimonials to increase engagement and normalize use (Figures 9 and 10).
Figure 9. Mexican website importing nicotine pouches from different countries, particularly the United States and several European countries, showing a wide range of brands, flavours, and products containing more than 30 mg of nicotine per pouch. (Source: https://pouchlink.mx/; from August 2026).
Figure 10. Advertising images from two of the leading nicotine pouch brands marketed online in Mexico, showing new 10 mg nicotine products, their availability in convenience stores such as 7-Eleven, as well as promotion at music festivals and free product sampling. (Source: https://pouchlink.mx/ and https://www.zyn.com/mx/es/home.html; from August 2026).
These strategies are consistent with abuse liability: the extent to which product design, nicotine delivery, constituents, sensory characteristics and marketing increase the likelihood of continued use and dependence. In Mexico, high nicotine concentrations, appealing flavours, discreet use, football-related packaging, rewards, free trials and messages encouraging use in smoke-free environments may increase product appeal and sustained nicotine use.
What Mexican authorities should do
The expansion of ONPs in Mexico is not simply the introduction of another consumer product. It forms part of a broader tobacco industry strategy to exploit legal ambiguities and weaken tobacco control policies.
Mexico’s General Law for Tobacco Control prohibits tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship. However, social media, online retail platforms and physical points of sale are being used to circumvent existing restrictions, normalize nicotine use and reach younger consumers. ONPs are now sold online and through more than 27,400 convenience stores nationwide dramatically increasing their availability and visibility.
The central message is clear: Mexico should act before the ONP market becomes further established. National authorities need to clarify the legal status of these products and establish enforceable standards for nicotine concentration, ingredients, labelling, health warnings, age verification and product surveillance.
Regulation should be product-neutral and extend comprehensive restrictions on advertising, promotion and sponsorship—including cross-border digital marketing—to all nicotine products, regardless of whether the nicotine is tobacco-derived or synthetic.
Existing prohibitions on tobacco product advertising, promotion and sponsorship must also be enforced across social media, retail websites and physical stores. Promotions involving free samples, reward schemes, alcoholic beverages, sporting imagery or national symbols require particular attention because they can increase appeal among young people.
Documenting these practices is essential, but documentation alone is not enough. Closing regulatory gaps, strengthening digital monitoring and limiting the accessibility and attractiveness of ONPs are urgently needed to prevent a new generation in Mexico from becoming dependent on nicotine.
Authors:
Ponciano-Rodriguez Guadalupe and Flores-Escalante Valentina from Public Health Department, Program for Prevention and Research of Smoking. School of Medicine, National Autonomous University of Mexico. Mexico.