GFN News

It was perhaps inevitable that once smoking was “handled,” tobacco control would turn its fire on nicotine. From the UK’s disposable vape ban to EU pouch restrictions and the WHO’s war on nicotine, prohibition is on the march. Shot on location at GFN 2025 in Warsaw, Christopher Snowdon, Head of Lifestyle Economics at the Institute of Economic Affairs, delivers a stark assessment: public health is...

Welcome to the Science Lab session hosted by Karin Jacobson from JTI Geneva. In this presentation, Anna Masser from Swedish Match discusses nicotine content and nicotine uptake in cigarettes and nicotine pouches, comparing their delivery methods, uptake rates, and how they are used both in clinical settings and real life. The video covers: - Differences between nicotine delivery in cigarettes vs....

GFN News speaks with Filter’s Will Godfrey about reports of dramatic increases in vaping-related emergency department visits across several US states, especially among youth, and examines what those numbers truly represent beyond the headlines. The conversation highlights how headlines like “teen ER visits surge” can obscure distinctions between acute nicotine toxicity and far more subjective “e‑c...

Toxicologist Autumn Bernal explains why harm reduction keeps her in the fight: reducing disease burden for adult smokers through better product design, rigorous toxicology, and clear science communication. She highlights the core engineering challenge for ENDS: optimizing heating to minimize emissions while effectively delivering nicotine—without the harmful constituents found in cigarettes. Berna...

Challenging misconceptions can save lives. Too often, outdated beliefs and misinformation prevent people from accessing safer alternatives to cigarettes. Today, Dr. Sud Patwardhan sheds light on how evidence-based strategies can help cut tobacco-related harm, especially in low- and middle-income countries where the burden of smoking is highest.

Australia’s vape prohibition is fueling a booming illicit market - while New Zealand’s regulated approach sees smoking rates fall faster. In this #GFN25 conversation, Fiona Patten speaks with Rohan Pike and Asa Saligupta about what’s broken in tobacco control, what actually works in harm reduction.

Public health’s assault on vaping and safer nicotine products isn’t guided by evidence, it’s driven by fear, outrage, and a profound misunderstanding of risk. At GFN 2025 in Warsaw, David Zaruk, the “Risk-Monger,” reveals how emotion overrides science in policymaking. From the misuse of the Precautionary Principle to the denormalization of entire industries, Zaruk argues that activist zeal and WHO...

Explore tobacco harm reduction at GFN through a candid interview with Brazilian consumer advocate Alexandro Lucian, who shares why this global event matters, the misinformation challenges in Brazil, and why education and accurate science are essential for safer nicotine choices. Learn how language barriers, anti‑vaping narratives, and limited local research shape public opinion—and how translating...

In this interview, tobacco harm reduction advocate Nancy Loucas unpacks how consumer voices are pushing back against vaping misinformation in New Zealand, why education matters in a “post-truth” world, and how Asia-Pacific communities win by doing it “their way".

Portugal is celebrated for its progressive drug policy, yet tobacco harm reduction remains sidelined. At GFN 2025 in Warsaw, Adriana Curado of GAT in Lisbon shows how nicotine became “the forgotten substance.” From her own move away from smoking to a pioneering vaping project with people who use drugs and those experiencing homelessness, Curado exposes public health contradictions, the persistence...

Armenian doctor Satenik Muradyan explains why education is key to tobacco harm reduction, revealing that over 80% of physicians in Armenia lack smoking-cessation training, how misconceptions about tar vs. nicotine fuel resistance, divided youth attitudes toward safer nicotine products, and why step-by-step, evidence-based communication works—insights shared at GFN on overcoming deeply rooted misin...

At GFN25 in Warsaw, Paddy Costall hosts Dorrie Heemskerk and David Williams to tackle risk communication, smarter regulation without bans, and consumer-led tobacco harm reduction—from vapes and pouches to heated tobacco—amid WHO/FCTC headwinds and Europe’s tightening rules.

South Africa’s vape industry operates in a legislative vacuum, while lawmakers push a tobacco-style bill that could ban flavors and drive consumers to the illicit market. At the heart of the debate is the hostile slogan “harm is harm,” a rhetorical weapon used to erase distinctions between smoking and safer nicotine products. Shot on location at GFN 2025 in Warsaw, Asanda Gcoyi, CEO of the Vapour...

Across Europe, health experts are raising alarm over the European Commission’s plan to impose new taxes on reduced-risk nicotine products such as e‑cigarettes, heated tobacco and nicotine pouches. In this episode of GFN News on GFN.TV, Joanna Junak speaks with leading international specialists — including Fernan

Panellists used their expertise in the recent regulatory developments of some key markets to shed light on broader principles. How can regulation support innovation and offer consumers choice at the same time as safeguarding public health? Do producers and consumers want the same things? Panellists discussed the risks of over- or under-regulation and the growth of illicit markets, and the discussi...

Canada’s war on nicotine has reached an extreme burden. With a 124% tax hike, sweeping flavor bans, and a “nicotine control” agenda, millions of adult vapers are in danger of being pushed back to smoking. Shot on location at GFN 2025 in Warsaw, Sam Tam, president of the Canadian Vaping Association, warns that misguided policies are destroying small businesses, fueling the black market, and undermi...

The media often frames tobacco in a way that feels stuck in the 1990s—ignoring new science and harm reduction tools like e-cigarettes, snus, and nicotine pouches. In this interview, journalist Jacob Grier explains why coverage of smoking and tobacco policy is often outdated, how this impacts public perception, and why it’s time to rethink the conversation around nicotine. 👉 What do you think—are...

Join Barnaby Page (Editorial Director, ECigIntelligence & Tobacco Intelligence) as he hosts a thought-provoking discussion with Sam Tam (Canadian Vaping Association) and Jeannie Cameron (expert in international tobacco control policy). In this GFN 2025 commentary session, the panel explores: - The impact of the FCTC, 20 years later - Different perspectives on tobacco harm reduction (THR) - The evo...

Institutions like WHO, regulators, and NGOs are hostile to harm reduction and have shifted their firepower from smoking to safer nicotine alternatives, says Clive Bates, international tobacco control policy expert. Shot on location at GFN 2025 in Warsaw, Bates describes public health’s “war on nicotine” as a misguided, ideological crusade that betrays its original mission of reducing smoking-relat...

Flavours have been a focal point of the debate about safer nicotine products, with calls to ban or restrict flavours often receiving significant media coverage. This workshop highlighted the growing evidence supporting the use of flavours in smoking cessation and explored changing attitudes to these products and the challenges regulators face in creating risk-proportionate legislation.

Sweden’s success with snus and now nicotine pouches proves tobacco harm reduction is a model for helping millions quit smoking. But there’s a secret behind this success. Shot on location at GFN 2025 in Warsaw, Poland, we speak with Anna Franzén and Tomas Hammargren of Emplicure about the big questions surrounding nicotine policy and the realities of recreational use.

GFN Voices 2025 #7 | Why communication is the heart of science? by GFN.TV

Examining available evidence on the net public health impact of incorporating tobacco harm reduction principles in policymaking, participants discussed the challenges and opportunities to leverage tobacco harm reduction approaches to achieve LMIC public health goals. The aim was to identify the top three priorities as a takeaway for key stakeholders in the audience.

In India, hundreds of millions of tobacco users are kept in the dark about safer nicotine products, while the government bans popular alternatives like vaping and stays silent on even basic NRTs. Shot on location at GFN 2025 in Warsaw, Poland, Jagannath Sarangapani exposes how prohibition and the absence of relative risk messaging have shaped the country’s tobacco control strategy.

Achieving consensus in debates around tobacco harm reduction is rare. This workshop will explore how we can effectively build consensus in academic discussions around safer nicotine products, and correct misconceptions about tobacco harm reduction, using the Delphi Approach, a structured communications process. After short introductory remarks, participants will engage in group discussions using D...