Sabina Chege wants ‘addictive’ Velo pouches banned in Kenya
Nominated Member of Parliament (MP) Sabina Chege on Wednesday called on the Ministry of Health to ban the sale of the Velo brand of nicotine pouches in Kenya.
While making her submission, Sabina Chege asked Health Cabinet Secretary Susan Nakhumicha to address the house regarding components of the nicotine pouches, particularly their addictive nature and negative effects.
Chege, who had carried samples of Velo to parliament, also requested the CS to explain how the addictive nicotine substance ended up in the country despite a similar product known as Lyft being recalled from the Kenyan market by her predecessor.
“The CS should clarify if the substance has sneaked its way into the Kenyan market as a rebrand of lift that was banned by the government in 2019,” Sabina said.
In response to the submissions, Nakumicha stated that the market introduced Velo products as a non-pharmaceutical substance made of nicotine.
The Kenya Tobacco Control Act of 2007 – under which all tobacco products and nicotine pouches are regulated – demands that the wrapping of these products should carry warning messages in both English and Kiswahili languages.
The Velo products sold in Kenya have only one warning on the front cover: ‘This product contains nicotine. Nicotine is an addictive chemical’. However, health experts say that nicotine, natural or otherwise has more health dangers than addiction.
However, according to CS Nakumicha, Velo is imported from Hungary and distributed in the country by BAT Kenya Limited.
“British American Tobacco (BAT) Kenya PLC is licensed as a tobacco product Manufacturer in Kenya and has sought to manufacture nicotine pouches in Kenya but this has not yet started. No local manufacturer of nicotine pouches exists in the Country therefore all nicotine pouches are imported,” the CS said.
Ms Chege wondered why the government would allow an addictive substance imported from Hungary into Kenya and wanted it to reconsider the decision that this (Velo) should be banned until it is investigated properly so that “we save our generation and young people”.
On her part, the Health CS said the Ministry would set up a technical team to look at the Tobacco Act of 20007 and would guide on recommendations.
“If Madam Speaker was to make a declaration that Velo be removed from the market as a ministry of health we would be the happiest because we shall have saved the life of many
Kenyans. But we are all relying on the Tobacco Act of 2007,” said the CS.
“We have put together a technical team to review the Tobacco Act, 2007 and they shall be bringing it to the house.”
A 2015 study published by US-based National Centre for Biotechnology Information is one of the many research projects that have shown that despite being touted as a safer alternative of tobacco, nicotine is not entirely harmless for the human body.
“Nicotine poses several health hazards. There is an increased risk of cardiovascular, respiratory and gastrointestinal disorders. There is decreased immune response and it also poses ill impacts on the reproductive health,” says the study lead-authored by Indian Oncologist Dr Pankaj Chaturvedi.
Sale of nicotine pouches in Kenya was stopped in 2019 after the country’s health ministry queried why they were regulated by the Pharmacy and Poisons Board and not the Tobacco Control Board under the Tobacco Act of 2007.
Their sale was allowed in 2022 after a consensus that they should be regulated by TCB, meaning that they are treated as tobacco products.
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