- Zyn nicotine pouches are expected to return to more US shelves this year, said an executive.
- Zyn saw 80% growth in Q1 2024, causing supply chain shortages in several states.
- Its parent company is planning a new US production location in 2025 to meet growing demand.
Cans of popular nicotine brand Zyn will be back on more shelves before the end of the year.
Zyn shipped 80% more cans in the US in the first three months of the year compared with the same period in 2023, Philip Morris International, the parent company of Zyn maker Swedish Match, said in late April.
But that wasn't enough for consumers, and the company has had shortages across its supply chain.
A top executive now says that PMI is working on filling the gaps.
"We believe that we're going to be back to a normal situation in the course of Q4," Emmanuel Babeau, the chief financial officer of PMI, said at a Deutsche Bank conference last week.
Babeau also said that the company is working on a new production location for Zyn in the US in 2025. He did not add details about the location or the opening date of the factory.
In the spring, Zyn customers noticed fewer Zyn cans in stores and aired their grievances on Reddit forums. In April, Babeau acknowledged "tensions" in the supply chain during the company's first-quarter earnings call.
In late May, retailers and wholesalers in New York, New Jersey, and Florida confirmed the shortages to Bloomberg.
"It's just a part of the routine"
Zyn has been available in the US since 2014 and has spiked in popularity recently. The colorful, flavored gum-like pouches have become a common "pick-me-up" among office employees looking to boost productivity. They have also become a staple with high-powered Wall Street traders and Republican lawmakers. Loyal users of these pouches have said that Zyn has helped them lose weight, comparing them to the viral weight-loss drug Ozempic.
Clay Coomer, a 36-year-old who works in marketing, said he and his colleagues have shared Zyn cans.
"If I need to have a challenging conversation with somebody or if I need to work on something that's a little bit more important than other things — like it's just a part of the routine," Coomer told Business Insider in March.
In February, Zyn parent company PMI reported that nearly 385 million cans of the flavored nicotine pouches shipped in the US in 2023, up 62% year-over-year. The company expects to do even better business in 2024: At the Deutche Bank conference, PMI raised its US forecast for this year to 560 million cans, after saying it was aiming for 520 million in February.
PMI, which also produces Marlboros outside the US, has been pushing to create more smoke-free products, as cigarette smoking declines worldwide.
Medical experts and research studies warn nicotine — including in pouches — can be addictive and can have harmful effects on the body, including its cardiovascular and respiratory systems, BI previously reported.
The Food and Drug Administration has been cracking down on underage Zyn sales. In April, the agency said it sent 119 warning letters to retailers and filed 41 civil complaints for sales of Zyn to underage buyers last year and this year.