Senator Schumer is facing criticism from Zyn users on social media following his call for a crackdown on the popular oral nicotine pouches, in a move unlikely to be supported by Gen Z voters and a growing market of users. 

Calling the smoking alternative a “pouch packed with problems” due to “high levels of nicotine,” Mr. Schumer issued a warning against the products and called for federal action aimed at curbing their use. 

“Today I’m delivering a warning to parents because these nicotine pouches seem to lock their sights on young kids — teenagers and even lower — and then use social media to hook them,” he said. 

The products are growing increasingly popular in the United States, with data from the Journal of the American Medical Association Open Network showing that sales of the products — Zyn and other similar brands — increased by more than sixfold, with “126.06 million units from August to December 2019 to 808.14 million units from January to March 2022.”

The federal government has been tracking the pouches, which the National Library of Medicine notes have been “rapidly gaining ground in the nicotine product landscape.” 

“From 2016 to 2020, dollar sales of oral nicotine pouches increased by 305 percent,” the researchers note, and the product market is “projected to reach almost $33 billion by 2026 .” 

“This rise has occurred amidst a well-resourced marketing campaign positioning oral nicotine pouches as enticing and easy to use, as well as a replacement for combustible tobacco or vape products in locations where their use may be restricted,” the library notes.