The South Korean government is planning to amend tobacco laws to designate synthetic nicotine as a type of tobacco to regulate the product category that is becoming increasingly popular among young smokers, reports Yonhap news agency.
The Ministry of Health and Welfare and the Ministry of Economy and Finance plan to amend the law to include synthetic nicotine in the definition of tobacco under the Tobacco Business Act, officials said.
In South Korea, tobacco-related laws are enacted under the National Health Promotion Act, which falls under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Health, and the Tobacco Business Act, which is administered by the Ministry of Finance.
It states that a tobacco product is “what is manufactured in a state suitable for smoking, sucking, inhaling steam, chewing or smelling, by using tobacco leaves as all or any part of the raw materials.” According to this wording, the liquid of e-cigarettes with synthetic nicotine is not categorised as tobacco. Synthetic nicotine is therefore not currently subject to regulatory measures, such as mandatory labelling with warnings about potential health risks, nor is there currently a legal basis for penalising sales to minors, nor is it subject to tobacco-related taxes.
The decision to revise the law comes against the backdrop of British American Tobacco’s recent announcement that it is considering launching a new synthetic nicotine product in South Korea. South Korea is the only country in the world where the global tobacco giant is considering launching a synthetic nicotine product.
“We have decided to push for the revision of the Tobacco Business Act when the 22nd National Assembly opens,” an official at the health ministry said, adding, “We will provide necessary materials to the finance ministry and there is already an abundance of evidence proving that synthetic nicotine is tobacco.”
The share of e-cigarettes in the total domestic tobacco market has been steadily increasing and will reach 16.9 per cent of total sales in 2023, the report said.