By Timothy S. Donahue
For many smokers, their first experience with a nicotine pouch is their last. The sharp sting on the gums—especially common with high-pH snus and modern white nicotine pouches—can be painful enough to send users running back to combustible cigarettes. But what if that sting could be eliminated without sacrificing nicotine delivery or flavor?
That question led Swedish entrepreneur Bengt Wiberg on a decade-long journey of innovation. Wiberg, a long-time snus user himself, began exploring ways to reduce the discomfort associated with nicotine pouches. Those efforts culminated in the development of Stingfree, a gum-protective nicotine pouch technology designed to reduce the burn or sting associated with nicotine pouch products.
The results of his work are a growing premium brand, a white-label licensing opportunity, and what Wiberg sees as a crucial tool for expanding tobacco harm reduction globally. “Turning a smoker around requires removing the deterrents,” Wiberg told Nicotine Insider. “The burning, stinging sensation is a huge one.”
While Scandinavia has long embraced snus and modern pouches as safer alternatives to smoking, a large portion of the population—especially women—finds the sting the products bring intolerable. According to Wiberg. “Two-thirds of Swedish women dislike the burning sensation from pouches, and that discomfort is also one of the top five reasons female smokers in the U.S. say they don’t switch,” he said.
Wiberg points to a 2023 survey by Dr. Cheryl Olson, a behavioral research and tobacco harm reduction expert, conducted with support from the Consumer Advocates for Smoke-free Alternatives Association (CASAA), in which female smokers repeatedly cited gum irritation as a reason for not switching to smokeless alternatives.
“Nine out of 10 smokers I offer a normal nicotine pouch when I’m abroad, throw it away after 30 seconds,” Wiberg said. “They say it burns, and then they go back to smoking their Marlboros, Gitanes or what nots.”
The burn begins with the basic design of traditional pouches. To maximize nicotine absorption, manufacturers raise the pH level inside the pouch, which also increases the likelihood of gum irritation. Wiberg, who suffered from snus lesions himself, decided to take a different approach.
Trash to tech: The sugarcane shield
Stingfree’s innovation lies in a thin, 25-micron biofilm that lines one side of the pouch—specifically, the side that rests against the gums. The nicotine and flavor are released through the unlined side, which rests against the upper lip. “It’s [the protective film] the same material used in almost every milk, yogurt, or butter package in Sweden,” Wiberg explained. “It’s food-grade, extremely soft, and completely impermeable to the high-pH contents of the pouch. We call it Protex® technology.”
The biofilm layer shields the gums from harsh contact while still allowing nicotine to be absorbed effectively through the mucous membranes of the oral cavity, e.g. the lip and the chin. “The gum consists mostly of keratin, like your fingernails. It hardly absorbs nicotine at all,” Wiberg said, citing input from retired dental expert Professor Tony Axéll, who invented the internationally known Axéll Scale for measuring the severity grade of snus induced oral lesions. “All you do with the old technology pouches is irritate the gum. Nicotine is water soluble and is therefore absorbed via all of the soft mucous membranes of the mouth with the saliva.”
The innovation has garnered interest from the scientific community. A clinical study published in Acta Odontologica Scandinavica and the National Library of Medicine (PubMed) in May 2025 by Swedish and other international dental researchers and MD’s found that nicotine pouches lined with Stingfree material significantly reduced gum damage in users with pre-existing oral lesions.
A pamphlet distributed in several dental clinics across Sweden, even though the product is not formally endorsed by dental associations, now advises patients with oral health problems due to nicotine pouch or snus use to avoid all pouches—or try those with integrated gum protection. The feedback from consumers has been equally enthusiastic.
“A guy in New York told us this was 10 times better than ZYN for him due to no sting,” Wiberg said. Another user, a corporate finance professional in Florida, reportedly quit smoking entirely with Stingfree, according to Wiberg. Spontaneous testimonials from “gum happy” consumers keep pouring in from all over the world, he said.
Stingfree’s pouches are currently available in Sweden, Austria, France and Thailand through distributors, and the brand can be purchased online in more than 100 countries, including the United States. E-Retailers such as Snus24.com, Snusexpress.com, Snuscentral.com and Pouchdaddy.com also carry the product.
In Sweden, Stingfree is priced 10-15% higher than market leaders like Velo and ZYN, yet continues to attract a loyal consumer base. “We’re probably the most expensive pouch in Sweden,” said Wiberg. “But people are willing to pay more for a solution that protects their gums.”
From innovation to scale
While Wiberg’s company currently outsources its manufacturing, buying pouch paper from the UK and laminating it in another country, the long-term goal is to expand production and scale through licensing. “As of today, we don’t have the capital for our own factory,” he said. “But the machines used to create Stingfree are standard and unmodified. The process is proven.”
Wiberg believes the major tobacco companies will eventually license or acquire Stingfree’s Protex® technology. “We hold patent rights far into the future including the United States and all of Europe. If a big player incorporated the Stingfree Protex® technology, they would probably be able to cut manufacturing costs by up to 70% and maintain the highest price point in the category. That’s a billion-dollar business,” says Wiberg’s son, Daniel, who serves as Stingfree’s CEO.
Some conversations have already taken place, Wiberg said. “We’ve had appraisals from R&D departments at major firms. But I also get the sense that Big Tobacco isn’t eager to talk about oral health,” Wiberg said. “We might be the only pouch company in the world with real educational material on our website about oral lesions, receding gums and inflammations, etc.”
Yes, Stingfree currently markets pouches under its own brand and is actively pursuing licensing and white-label partnerships. However, there isn’t a big rush to close a deal. “We’re open to working with others—but we can afford to be a little picky now,” said Wiberg. “We have the scientific data, the consumer base, and the confidence and, importantly, the patents.”
The Stingfree brand markets six flavors: Caribbean Mango, California Peach, Maltese Lemon, Swedish Cola, Ocean Mint Strong, and its best-seller, Strong Blue Mint—a bold mint/menthol blend. Despite only releasing a few SKUs so far, Stingfree expects to sell about 250,000 cans in 2025 and expects to experience a continuous growth of 300% to 400% per year.
Stingfree has not yet begun to pursue preparing for a premarket tobacco product application (PMTA) submission to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration or a modified risk tobacco product (MRTP) application. On June 18, 2025, the public comment period for ZYN’s MRTP applications opened. ZYN is expected by industry experts to receive the coveted designation. It would allow ZYN to make claims that it is less harmful than combustible cigarettes.
If ZYN receives an MRTP authorization from the FDA, it would be good for all nicotine pouch brands, including Stingfree, according to Wiberg. “Our ingredients are nearly identical to every other pouch on the market,” he said. “But the FDA process is bureaucratic and costly—up to $1 million to $1.5 million per SKU.”
For now, Wiberg said that he would prefer to partner with a company that already has a regulatory infrastructure in place. “The FDA should really simplify this. Group the products by pH level or nicotine or formulation type,” he explained. “Don’t reinvent the wheel for every single application. Most pouches have more or less the same ingredients.”
Wiberg said he is confident that Stingfree’s clinical backing and harm reduction credentials make it a strong candidate for regulatory acceptance. “There hasn’t been a single death attributed to snus in 200 years,” he noted. “And Sweden, where snus and nicotine pouch use is widespread, has the lowest rates of lung and oral cancer in Europe, as well as the lowest daily smoking prevalence in Europe.
Serious about success
Stingfree’s second-largest shareholder is Swedish billionaire Erik Selin, whose net worth is estimated at $5 billion. “He’s a hands-off investor,” said Wiberg. “He told us, ‘I wish the whole world used snus or nicotine pouches instead of smoking.’ That’s the opposite of Michael Bloomberg (the philanthropist and anti-nicotine zealot).”
The company’s long-term strategy could include acquisition, according to Wiberg. He points to the example of Gotlandssnus AB, which was acquired by ZYN parent Swedish Match for an undisclosed sum after reaching a turnover of just $4 million. The company sells popular brands such as Jakobsson’s snus and Qvitt (nicotine and tobacco free pouches). “We’re growing faster,” Wiberg said. “Our 2024 turnover was 400% higher than our first year 2023.”
Until then, Wiberg is building the brand through word of mouth, trade press and clinical credibility. “We’re probably one of the most written-about nicotine pouch companies in the world,” he said, referencing coverage in several of the traditional nicotine industry media outlets, as well as traditional media outlets.
The biggest question for both a potential buyer and the consumer is whether or not Stingfree’s unique delivery method—where nicotine and flavor release from one side only— compromises the user experience. Wiberg said the answer is no. “All the taste buds are located in the tongue, not the gum,” he said. “Users naturally suck on the pouch. That’s how they get the flavor, just like blinking without thinking.”
Wiberg also emphasizes that even those snus and white pouch consumers who enjoy the burning sensation on the gum are becoming customers of Stingfree. “They like the burn but hate the lectures from their dentists,” he joked. “We’re only sting-free on the gum side. You can flip the pouch around for a few seconds if you miss the sting.”
Looking ahead, Wiberg said that the company currently sees Europe as a key growth market, alongside Stingfree’s growing demand in the United States. “Nicotine pouches are displacing vape,” Wiberg said. “Users go from cigarettes to vape to pouches. And when they get to a pouch that doesn’t sting or irritate their gum, they stay.”
In a landscape where oral health concerns are increasingly scrutinized and product differentiation is limited, Stingfree AB stands out as a small brand with a potentially game-changing solution. “If the big players in the industry truly want to convert smokers to less harmful products, shouldn’t they make it easier?” Wiberg asked. “Our pouches don’t reduce nicotine or flavor. They just protect your gums. To turn a smoker around, you must try to remove the deterrents… and the stinging sensation on the gum is a big one.”
