What does 99% less toxicants than a cigarette mean?

99% less toxicants is a comparison based on the assessment of the emissions from a cigarette against the levels present in a range of VELO nicotine pouches for 9 key toxicants present in cigarette smoke. 99% less toxicants does not mean that VELO is 99% less risky than cigarettes and VELO contains nicotine, an addictive substance. For more information about our assessment, please continue reading.

How did we calculate “99% less toxicants than a cigarette” for VELO Nicotine Pouches.

99% less toxicants than a cigarette for VELO Nicotine Pouches has been assessed based on a list of 9 toxicants proposed for mandatory lowering in cigarette smoke by the World Health Organisation Study Group on Tobacco Product Regulation1. Of the list of 9 toxicants, 8 toxicants were tested in the emissions of a scientific standard reference cigarette (University of Kentucky 1R6F Reference Cigarette) and the total contents of VELO nicotine pouches (including the pouch material also known as the fleece). The VELO products tested range from 4mg/pouch to 20mg/pouch nicotine content, different sizes of pouches (for example: mini, slim, large), different base ingredient compositions and different flavour variants ranging from the simplest (Ice cool) to the most complex (Tropic Breeze) of VELO nicotine pouch products. Each product was tested 5 times and the average result reported, by a third-party accredited laboratory. One toxicant, carbon monoxide was not included in the testing, and hence not included in the percentage reduction calculation. This is due to carbon monoxide typically being a by-product of thermal combustion and a gas at room temperature, and hence not produced during VELO nicotine pouch use.

Toxicants VELO Nicotine Pouches results (per pouch) Reference Cigarette*, 1R6F emission results (per stick) Average % reduction for VELO Nicotine Pouches
1,3-butadiene < LOD (0.24 ng/pouch) 96,400 ng/stick >99.9
Acetaldehyde < LOQ (0.07) – 0.24 µg/pouch 1126 µg/stick >99.9
Acrolein < LOD (0.02 µg/pouch) 163 µg/stick >99.9
Benzene < LOD (0.53 ng/pouch) 74,900 ng/stick >99.9
Benzo(a)pyrene < LOQ (0.04) – 0.14 ng/pouch 12.7 ng/stick >99.9
Formaldehyde < LOQ (0.09) – 0.95 µg/pouch 46.7 µg/stick 98.0 – 99.8
NNK (4-(methylnitrosamino)-1-(3-pyridyle)-1-butanone) < LOD (0.57 ng/pouch) 195 ng/stick >99.7
NNN(N-Nitrosonornicotine) < LOD (0.37 ng/pouch) 203 ng/stick >99.8
Carbon Monoxide NR NR NC
Average percentage reduction of the 8 reported analytes 99.6 – 99.9
*The reference cigarette, 1R6F is an internationally recognised standard reference cigarette for research purposes, available for the University of Kentucky
<LOQ – Below the limit of quantification | <LOD – Below the limit of detection | NR – Not Reported | NC – Not Calculated

The list of 9 toxicants were selected based on the World Health Organisation (WHO) Study Group on Tobacco Regulation proposed mandatory lowering of the emissions levels from cigarettes of nine specific toxicants (Burn et al.2), 2008. All toxicants were tested with the exception of carbon monoxide as this is typically a by-product of thermal combustion and a gas at room temperature, and hence not produced during VELO nicotine pouch use and methods for analysis are currently not available.

1 Burns, D.M., Dybing, E., Gray, N., Hecht, S., Anderson, C., Sanner, T., O’Connor, R., Djordjevic, M., Dresler, C., Hainaut, P, Jarvis, M., Opperhuizen, A., Straif, K., 2008. Mandated lowering of toxicants in cigarette smoke: a description of the World Health Organisation TobReg proposal. Tob. Control 17, 132-141.

2 International Organisation for Standardisation, 2018. Cigarettes – Routine analytical cigarette smoking machine – Definitions and standard conditions with an intense smoking regime. ISO 20778:2018.

Common questions

  • No. You do not need to use VELO any differently and furthermore, the product has not changed. You just need to twist it, tuck it, feel it. Adult consumers simply place the pouch under their lip in order for the nicotine to be absorbed orally.

    It is available in a range of flavours, nicotine levels and pouch sizes. VELO offers adult tobacco and nicotine consumers an alternative way to consume nicotine without the smoke, smoke smell, and hassles of many other tobacco and nicotine products.

    *This product is not risk-free and contains nicotine, an addictive substance. Comparison based on an assessment of smoke from a scientific standard reference cigarette (approximately 9mg tar) and components released during use of a VELO pouch, in terms of the average of the 9 harmful components the World Health Organisation recommends to reduce in cigarette smoke.

  • No, it’s the same VELO nicotine pouches that adult nicotine consumers have had since the brand’s launch. Recently we concluded scientific studies to prove that VELO nicotine pouches contain 99% less toxicants than conventional cigarette smoke*.

    *This product is not risk-free and contains nicotine, an addictive substance. Comparison based on an assessment of smoke from a scientific standard reference cigarette (approximately 9mg tar) and components released during use of a VELO pouch, in terms of the average of the 9 harmful components the World Health Organisation recommends to reduce in cigarette smoke.

  • VELO nicotine pouches contain 99% less toxicants than conventional cigarette smoke*. This comparison is based on an assessment of smoke from a scientific standard reference cigarette (approximately 9mg tar) and components released during use of a VELO pouch, in terms of the average of the 9 harmful components the World Health Organisation recommends to reduce in cigarette smoke.

    *This product is not risk-free and contains nicotine, an addictive substance. Comparison based on an assessment of smoke from a scientific standard reference cigarette (approximately 9mg tar) and components released during use of a VELO pouch, in terms of the average of the 9 harmful components the World Health Organisation recommends to reduce in cigarette smoke.