Sorry, Zyn users. No more citrus, black cherry, or cinnamon upper decky lip pillows for you.
The City Attorney’s office on Friday secured a roughly $3 million settlement with online tobacco retailers it accused of skirting San Francisco’s 2017 flavored tobacco ban through online Zyn sales.
In a statement, City Attorney David Chiu said the online retailers — Rogue Holdings, Swisher International, and Northerner Scandinavia — “are not above our San Francisco laws and cannot ship banned products into our city.” He added, “We take protecting our community’s health seriously and selling these products will not be tolerated.”
The companies did not respond to a request for comment.
Zyn, which tobacco giant Philip Morris International acquired in 2022 when it purchased its owner Swedish Match, has grown in popularity in recent years as an alternative to cigarettes and vaping. The company’s coin-sized, absorbent pouches contain nicotine salt, which users place in their upper lip between their gums. A pack of 15 Zyns typically costs less than $10.
The product comes in both flavored and unflavored versions. The settlement does not target unflavored pouches, which can still be purchased at corner stores and tobacco shops.
The city sued the online retailers in September 2024 for allegedly violating the city law. Friday’s settlement requires Rogue Holdings and Swisher International to pay the city a combined $485,000, while Northerner Scandinavia will fork over $2.5 million. It also forces the companies to post language on their websites stating that their flavored products are prohibited in the city.
The settlement comes amid rising concerns from parents and advocates that companies like Zyn and Juul have used their flavored products to ensnare a new generation of tobacco and nicotine users (opens in new tab). Data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show the vast majority of middle and high school students who use vaping pens or nicotine pouches prefer flavored products. (opens in new tab)
The settlement is the latest battle in San Francisco’s crusade against tobacco companies. In 2019, San Francisco became the first major U.S. city to ban (opens in new tab) the sale of Juul vapes. In 2023, the city sued online retailers for flavored vapes.
Supervisor Shamann Walton said in a statement that the city “took bold action to ban flavored tobacco products because we saw how these companies were deliberately targeting our young people.”
“This settlement is a reminder that our laws have teeth,” he said. “If you break our laws and endanger our community, you will be held accountable.”