Top Takeaways:
- More than a dozen NGOs say a tobacco company deliberately ignored Taiwan’s nicotine-labeling law for heated tobacco products.
- The Health Promotion Administration (HPA) ordered eight newly approved products pulled from shelves after inspectors found missing nicotine content labels.
- Activists allege the company avoided disclosure because its products may exceed Taiwan’s 1 mg nicotine limit per stick.
More than a dozen NGOs in Taiwan have accused a major tobacco company of intentionally violating the Tobacco Hazards Prevention Act (THPA) by not labeling nicotine content on its newly released heated tobacco products. The coalition called on the Health Promotion Administration (HPA) to strengthen enforcement after the products were suddenly pulled from sale last week, the same day they hit the market.
The company whose products were pulled has not been publicly named by the HPA. The agency said it withheld the name to avoid inadvertently promoting the brand and potentially violating advertising restrictions under the THPA.
At a press conference in Taipei, Lin Ching-li, who heads the Tobacco Control Division at the John Tung Foundation, questioned why the company “would rather be fined NT$5 million (US$162,600) than comply with the law.” Lin said the omission was not accidental but strategic, noting that labeling the nicotine content could reveal that the products exceed Taiwan’s legal threshold and make them unsellable.
Last Friday, the HPA ordered eight types of heated tobacco products— all from the same multinational manufacturer—removed from shelves after inspectors found that the required nicotine information was missing. The products were the first heated tobacco devices legally approved for retail sale in Taiwan following regulatory reforms earlier this year, according to media reports.
Health Minister Shih Chung-liang stated over the weekend that the company’s samples submitted for pre-market review included nicotine labeling, prompting investigators to examine why it was missing from the final commercial packaging. “We are investigating where the process failed and will impose fines once responsibility is established,” Shih said.
During the NGO briefing, Dr. Guo Fei-ran of National Taiwan University Hospital cited a 2024 study in the journal Toxics, which found that heated tobacco products sold in nine countries contained an average of 4.7 milligrams of nicotine per stick, well above Taiwan’s 1 milligram legal limit.
Guo added that a document from the manufacturer itself lists nicotine content as 18–20 milligrams per gram of tobacco, roughly translating to 4.3–6 milligrams per stick.
Lin described the unlisted nicotine levels as an “unspeakable secret,” arguing that transparency could make the products ineligible for sale. “Multinational tobacco companies generate about NT$180 billion a year in Taiwan’s tobacco market,” she said. “They have the resources to make things go their way, so a NT$5 million fine is negligible.”
Following the removal order, the HPA confirmed that samples have been sent for laboratory testing to verify compliance with the nicotine cap. Shih explained that because heated-tobacco sticks do not produce tar, Taiwan limits their nicotine content to no more than 1 milligram per stick. He said test results are expected within days, and if the products fall below the limit, their health risk would be similar to that of conventional cigarettes.
