What are nicotine pouches?

The short answer

A nicotine pouch is a small white pouch, about the size of a piece of chewing gum, that sits between your upper lip and your gum. It contains nicotine along with plant fibre, flavour and sweetener. Nothing is lit, nothing is inhaled, and nothing is spat out.

You take one pouch from the can, put it in place, leave it for 20 to 30 minutes, then throw it away. There is no device, no charging and no refilling.

What is inside an OVNS pouch

• Nicotine — 6 mg, 9 mg, 15 mg or 21 mg per pouch, depending on the can.
• Plant fibre — the white filler that gives the pouch its body. This is what replaces tobacco leaf.
• Flavour and sweetener — what makes a Cool Mint taste different from a Mango Marvel.
• Stabilisers and a pH regulator — standard food-grade ingredients that keep the pouch consistent through its shelf life.

There is no tobacco leaf in an OVNS pouch. That is the difference between a white nicotine pouch and traditional snus, which is made with ground tobacco.

How they differ from things people confuse them with

Versus snus

Snus is a moist tobacco product. It contains ground tobacco leaf and is usually brown. A nicotine pouch contains no tobacco leaf and is white. They look similar in the tin and are used the same way, which is why the two names get mixed up.

Versus vaping

A vape heats liquid and you inhale the vapour. A pouch is not heated and nothing is inhaled. There is no device and no battery.

Versus nicotine gum

Gum is chewed. A pouch is not — you place it and leave it still. Chewing a pouch defeats the point and is unpleasant.

Next

If you already know what a pouch is and want the practical detail, read how to use nicotine pouches. If you are working out which can to buy, the strength guide explains what the milligram number means and how to read the dots on an OVNS lid.