Tobacco products
The Tobacco Act imposes various limits on additives and properties of tobacco products.
A tobacco product refers to a product intended for consumption that is made, in part or wholly, of tobacco. Tobacco products can be divided into non-smoking products and tobacco products intended for smoking. Tobacco products intended for smoking include cigarettes, loose tobacco and cigars, among others. Non-smoking tobacco products include nasal tobacco and snuff, which are, however, illegal to sell or otherwise distribute to consumers in Finland. Depending on their characteristics, heated tobacco products can be smokeless or tobacco products intended for smoking.
Requirements on tobacco products
It is prohibited for the retail sale or other distribution of tobacco products that
- contain additives that are liable to create the impression that the product has a health benefit or presents reduced health risks compared to other tobacco products
- contain stimulant compounds or other additives that are liable to create an impression of energy and vitality
- contain additives that have colouring properties for emissions
- contain additives that have CMR properties (carcinogenic, mutagenic or reprotoxic) in unburnt form
- contain quantities of additives that significantly or measurably add to the tobacco product’s toxic or addictive properties or its CMR properties when used.
- It is also prohibited to sell or otherwise supply to consumers tobacco products for smoking that contain additives which facilitate nicotine uptake or the inhalation of smoke.
Additionally, it is prohibited to sell or otherwise distribute cigarettes, loose tobacco or heated tobacco products that
- have characteristics or contain additives that have a characterising flavour or aroma
- contain flavour ingredients in a way to change the flavour of the product or the strength of the smoke
- the filter, paper or cartridge thereof contains tobacco or nicotine.
Ingredients refer to tobacco, an additive or other substance or factor that are a part of the final tobacco product or similar product, including paper, filter, ink, cartridges and glues. An additive refers to a substance other than tobacco that has been added to the tobacco product, its retail package or sales wrapper.
If a cigarette or loose tobacco contains an additive that is on the European Commission’s list of approved additives, the product manufacturer or importer must study each additive for whether it
- adds to the toxicity or addictive nature of the product in question and, if such an addition is significant or measurable
- adds a characterising scent or flavour
- facilitates nicotine uptake or the inhalation of smoke
- contributes to the formation of CMR properties (carcinogenic, mutagenic or reprotoxic) and to which extent it contributes to the CMR properties of the product, whether significant or measurable.
Studies on the most significant additives must consider the intended use of the product and pay particular attention to the emissions created in the combustion process of the additives. Additionally, they must study the additive's combined effect with the other ingredients of the product.
Emissions refer to substances that are released when the tobacco product is used as intended. Currently, upper limits on emissions have only been imposed on tar, nicotine and carbon monoxide released from cigarettes. The upper limits are based on EU legislation, and are harmonised between all Member States.
The upper emission limits per cigarette are:
- tar 10 mg
- nicotine 1 mg
- carbon monoxide 10 mg
The amounts of released tar, nicotine and carbon monoxide from a smoking cigarette must be measured and the measurements verified before the product can be released for retail sale. Upper limits on other emissions have not currently been imposed for cigarettes or other tobacco products, but other emissions stated in the Tobacco Act must also be reported to Valvira, if they are available.
Cigarettes must meet the self-extinguishing requirements for fire safety. Their combustion properties must be tested and demonstrated to be lawful before the product is released for retail sale.
According to the decree of the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health, the combustion properties of cigarettes must be tested and demonstrated to meet requirements in European standards EN 16156:2010 ‘Cigarettes — Assessment of the ignition propensity — Safety requirement’ and EN ISO 12863:2010 ‘Standard test method for assessing the ignition propensity of cigarettes’.
Cigarettes meet the fire safety requirement on self-extinguishing if, in the above-mentioned standardised test, no more than 25 per cent of the cigarette batch being tested burns out completely, with a test bed of ten layers of standardised filter paper.