https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/440989/SI_tobacco_products_acc.pdf

http://www.verband-rauchtabak.de/standpunkte/eu-tabakproduktrichtlinie-1/
http://www.welt.de/regionales/bayern/article140332734/Schnupftabak-Hersteller-fuerchtet-EU-Richtlinie.html

Blank cigarette packages with shocking images, no more additives in rolling tobacco, etc.

Poeschl fears the new regulations since they don’t know how to switch their production fast enough so they won’t produce illegaly.

They won’t be allowed to display the taste of the snuff on the tins anymore as far as I understood this. Because it makes it too attractive for young people.

I don’t really get it to be honest, does anyone have more information on this and how it will affect our snuff ?

It’s way past the time that what Senator Barry Goldwater said will make any difference. Especially in the EU.

@Snuffbox I’m not sure what you mean, he said something about throwing atomic bombs on vietnam though.

What I was talking about was his comment that “Any government big enough to give you everything you want is big enough to take it all away.” Seems very apt the last 20 years, unfortunately.

I have skimmed through the UK document and the main problem will be for producers who have to provide extensive information to the government every year.

So long as that does not make them decide to shut down then it should not affect snuff. There is an EU page about this at

http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release\\_MEMO-14-134\\_en.htm

that specifically states:

"Will flavourings be banned? How about additives, etc.?

Flavourings in cigarettes and RYO tobacco must not be used in quantities that give the product a distinguishable (

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Nope - whatever I try this system will not let me post the rest of that article even if I skip brackets, speech marks etc.

This is very annoying.

Basically it says that “Other tobacco products, such as cigars, cigarillos and smokeless products are exempted from the ban on characterising flavours.”

So snuff should be okay and hopefully pipe tobacco although that is not specifically mentioned. If they take away my Lakelands we will need a revolution.

Hopefully the producers here such as Johnny, Nigel and Roderick will be able to provide more expert comments on this as I would imagine that they have been following this development closely. Also they will be the most affected as they will have to provide very detailed information to the government regarding ingredients, etc.

Wasn’t it only in the 1980s that British manufacturers were allowed to flavor their tobaccos at all? Sounds like an ugly sort of legislative cycle. I can only hope real countries like Great Britain withdraw from the EU…

I am not sure about the changes in 1980 but I suspect that may have applied to allowing artificial, man-made ingredients.

The original rules in the UK were that only natural additives such as essential oils could be used to flavour tobacco. Many of the Lakeland tobaccos that are highly flavoured go back well over two hundred years - the obvious one being SG 1792.

As much as I dislike the current form of the EU I suspect that our membership makes little difference in this particular case and that GB would be producing similar laws irrespective of their membership. We seem to have a flourishing nanny state all of our own.

Generally cigar and pipe items are exempted because of the elite members of our overlords that enjoy them as well. Snuff here is usually defined as moist snuff, exempting the dry from the scaremongering and outright lies that accompany the moist. If they are doing it for health reasons they should simply specify inhaling products of combustion, as that is the only thing that has ever had a higher correlation of incidences than the control. But that’s really all it’s ever been about right? Control.

I am waiting to see how these EU regulations turn up in the Dutch “tabakswet”. Hoping for the best, fearing for the worst.

Jaap Bes. 

I just read on the Poeschl Homepage that it will be forbidden to display the taste of the snuff on the packaging.

No more Gawith “Apricot” or anything like that. I guess that will apply to all the other brands as well.

Will have to go to a number system most likely.

From looking over the UK document, for snuff it appears that 30% of each side of a container must have a large warning label. Not much different from how things already are for many such products. However, some companies will be burdened with having new packaging created even if there is unused older packaging material, though if packed before 05/20/16 they have until 05/20/17 to sell it will the older labels.

It does not seem clear that the rules about flavors in smoking tobacco apply to smokeless products.

 I suspect where manufacturers will balk is the requirement to disclose exact recipes, as UK snuff houses are historically secretive about such things. But,

“(3) The Secretary of State when exercising functions under this regulation and regulation 24(2)
must take the need to protect trade secrets duly into account.”

It seems that cross-border sales will continue to be allowed, but sellers (ie. Mr Snuff) will have to have an approved system of age verification, which will likely be stricter than the one currently in place.

The scary thing about these new laws is that imprisonment and fines hang over people in the tobacco trade, even for accidental failure to comply. Only “all due diligence” is accepted as a defense, so not understanding, or applying the law incorrectly is still grounds for prosecution.

It’s an attack on the small firm sector that all the snuff companies are in. 
I bet the fines are high enough to destroy small companies, but not high enough to hurt big tobacco companies.

With all these regulations it will be impossible someday to start a business in this market if you aren’t a millionaire. 

Snuff creators, stay strong !