Never used Bernard (in Italy is not sold), but however it’s a sad news for me too.
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I have some rumors that I can’t speak out loud about, but the word is that this isn’t the end for Bernard.
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As others have surmised - PÖSCHL TABAK has the muscle and diversity of products to weather the new EU regulations.
I’m not a user of their produce, but for those who are, these are the (minor) changes.
'From 20.05.2024, it will also be necessary to affix track & trace codes to packaging in the snuff sector. This is not so easy when you consider that the tins for some of our 5g snuff are not particularly large. A few varieties will therefore undergo weight changes (they will have more content), which will result in a corresponding price adjustment. The amount of this adjustment will be announced in the shops at least six weeks before the changeover.
The prices of the other varieties will remain unchanged. Likewise, no changes, i.e. new launches or product discontinuations, are planned for Pöschl’s German snuff range at this time.’
That’s good (but not unexpected) news for users of Pöschl’s German snuff.
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Thank you for forwarding this on. I am not a huge Pöschl fan myself (primarily because I do not use medicated snuffs very often at all), but I do enjoy their schmalzlers from time to time (especially Perlesreuter), but those come in 100g foil bags.
That said, glad to hear that no changes to the catalog are planned at present. Even if it is snuff I do not personally use often (or at all), it is comforting to know that other fellow snufftakers who enjoy them will not need to go without.
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I have some Charivari on order as a farewell.
That said, German reviewer 5 minutes tobacco on YT said the marketing of Bernard in Germany is non-existent and Bernard products are not to be found in German retail shops, it can only be bought online.
This leads me to think that the customer base for Bernard may actually be outside the EU and the Bernard line remains commercially viable if they change the production location or business concept.
I am hoping Continental people can find some way to resist things like this going forward and preserve Western patrimony. It’s been upside down for some 79 years.
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Oh I so hope you are right! It will be a tragedy.
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I really shouldn’t, but… Basically, the rumor is about Bernard’s last option and if we start reading between the lines of the email that Phillip received, we can notice one key sentence:
[quote=“PhilipS2, post:15, topic:29831”]
Our company can’t implement this system for our products and we must, therefore, with a heavy heart after 290 years of snuff tradition, end the sale of our products in Germany and the entire EU from May 2024.[/quote]
However, I do not know what the legal possibilities are to produce within the EU (without the need to generate serialization codes) and sell your products outside Europe. Let’s remember that this is just a rumor.
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What’s the source of this rumour beyond the implied corollary regarding ‘Germany and the EU’ (id est., Sales outside the EU)?
It wouldn’t be possible for Bernard to break these new rules if exporting outside the EU from within the EU since Trade Policy to nations outside the EU must maintain the same mandatory health and safety standards as internal trade between member states. That, at least, is my understanding though I stand to be corrected in its application to Bernard Schnupftabak GmbH products or any other tobacco product.
As I see it, the only two guaranteed ways that Bernard snuffs can survive after May 2024 is either that Bernard sells the rights and recipes to Pöschl Tabak or they relocate outside the EU. The latter option is unlikely but the former is very possible, in the same way that a number of Fribourg & Treyer snuffs have survived, firstly by J&H Wilsons (Imperial) and lastly by Wilsons of Sharrow. And more importantly, made by Pöschl they would still be German snuffs and likely fair replicas of the originals. Again, this is all speculation.
I don’t know if it’s worth mailing the following person in case she wishes to reveal more about the fate of their snuffs at this stage:
Elizabeth Haas at e.haas@bernard-schnupftabak.de
A word of warning though: unlike Claudia Schratzenstaller of Pöschl Tabak Elizabeth Haas doesn’t read English so, like my son who is fluent, you need to write your text in German. Claudia, meanwhile, might care to reveal if Pöschl will take over Bernard’s snuffs.
Claudia Schratzenstaller at Claudia.schratzenstaller@poeschl-tabacco-de
Beyond that it’s a question of wait and see what happens.
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Let’s say it’s an industry rumor that came out of German circles.
I work for a company that uses the Track and Trace system. Basically, this only works within the European Union. I had to confirm with our quality department whether, as a company within the EU, we can bypass this system by exporting goods outside the EU and… it is possible. If we were to produce goods intended for a market that does not have such requirements, there is no need to generate appropriate codes for each package. All we need to do is follow the rules applicable in the given market to which we want to sell our products.
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I wonder what the user base for snuff inside and outside of the EU is?
I had largely assumed snuff was more popular within the EU, especially Schmalzlers.
It also seems odd that a company within the EU would be able to export goods outside of the EU while also not having to abide by EU regulations, but I do not have any experience of the details of this forthcoming system to argue any point.
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For now, we are talking about a certain “possibility” that could come into play, although I was asking myself the same question regarding the number of consumers inside and outside the EU. However, it is certain that EU regulations regarding the production of tobacco products would still apply, which already require a lot of financial resources. “If” such an option were to come into play and were to operate for years, Bernard would have to find a really interesting market for his products so that all this could be returned to him. Personally, I wouldn’t be surprised if they set their sights on China, where bootlegs of their products have been sold for years. But this is just a theory, and a snuff theory.
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We all know its inevitable sadly, are there schmalzler that are similar/comparable because that seems to be my favorite style
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Give Pöschl’s Schmalzler A, D, SF, and Perlesreuter a try. They come in 100g foil bags, are a good value, and hit the mark as far as the style goes. Toque’s Otto Schmalzler is not half bad either.
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I am a snuff user from China，When we first heard the news that Bernard was going to stop production, everyone was shocked.There are many people here who like Bernard’s snuffs, as well as others like Rosinski, Pfalzer and Poschl.We all hope that Bernard will continue it’s production in order to enjoy these fascinating snuffs in the future.
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Sorry to pester about this but can you confirm or deny if what Roderick has said on his forum applies to MrSnuff as well? Basically, like you said last week, he’d written that they were expecting one last big shipment. But then yesterday he wrote:
“Bernard’s have closed earlier than I expected. We have had to put all we have into stock and stop the backorders.”
Is it the same situation with you, meaning that what’s in stock now is unexpectedly the last of the Bernards after all?
Many thanks.
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Hi @Chico
I have had a chance to check up on our Bernard’s order. They explained that they have commitments to their German customers that they want to fulfill and they are not sure what stock will remain when that is complete. We have asked them to send us whatever they have left over and they agreed. So we expect to receive something, hopefully a significant amount but possibly nothing. Time will tell.
I will update you here when I have more news.
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Great, thanks - I appreciate it!
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FREEDOM!..but what is it? It’s a person right to be accountable for ones own decisions. EU regulation on public/civic matters can be commendable but the infringement on business built on personal choice is absurd. If I want tobacco up my nose, that’s my business. And the Germans are responsible for most of the snuff I take.
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This is even about limiting tobacco use, though. It’s about ensuring tax revenue.
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Some news: We were told today that our final order with Bernard will, mostly, be met. Its obviously end-of-times for them as they were apologising for not having boxes to package the product. Its a shame, it breaks my heart to see them go under like this.
The Machiavellian ‘good news’ for Mr Snuff is that this last order will see us well stocked. We have also agreed to buy whatever is left over when they finally shut down, so some extra may be available beyond that.
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