Plant-based fibre (usually cellulose), water, nicotine, flavourings, sweeteners, salts, pH regulators and humectants. No tobacco leaf, no smoke, no vapour.
No. They use plant-based fibre as the base, with nicotine added separately. That's the key difference between pouches and traditional Swedish snus.
Microcrystalline cellulose - plant fibre. It's the bulk material that gives the pouch its shape. Same E-number used in many oral care products and dietary supplements.
The additives used in UK nicotine pouches are food-grade and approved for consumer use. The risk-relevant ingredient is nicotine, which is addictive and isn't suitable for non-smokers, under-18s, pregnant or breastfeeding women, or anyone with a heart condition.
Most commonly sucralose (E955) and acesulfame K (E950). Some brands use xylitol (E967) or stevia (E960) instead. All are used in small amounts.
No. Sweetness in pouches comes from non-sugar sweeteners, not from sugar.
Allergies to ingredients used in nicotine pouches are uncommon but possible - particularly to flavouring compounds or specific sweeteners. If you've had reactions to flavoured oral care products or food additives, check the ingredients panel before trying a pouch. If you suspect an allergic reaction, stop using the product and speak to a healthcare professional.
The core categories are the same - plant fibre, nicotine, flavourings, salts, pH regulators, sweeteners. Specific compounds, ratios and moisture levels vary. The ingredients panel on each can is the source of truth.
Pick up a can of nicotine pouches and the ingredients list usually fits on a small panel: plant fibre, water, nicotine, salt, flavourings, a couple of E-numbers. That's it.
But the brevity of the list doesn't mean each ingredient is obvious. What's actually doing the work? Why are E-numbers in there? And what's deliberately not in a nicotine pouch? This guide answers all of that.
A typical UK nicotine pouch contains six categories of ingredient:
Plant-based fibres: The bulk material that gives the pouch its shape and texture |
Water: Carries flavour and nicotine through the pouch material |
Nicotine: The active ingredient, in a measured dose per pouch |
Flavourings: Mint, berry, citrus, fruit and other flavour notes |
Sweeteners and salts: Help the nicotine release smoothly and balance the taste |
pH regulators and humectants: Keep the pouch at the right pH and moisture level for steady release |
That's the full picture. No tobacco leaf, no combustion residue, nothing that needs to be heated or inhaled.
The majority of a pouch by weight is plant-based fibre. Most UK brands use microcrystalline cellulose, listed on the can as E460, sometimes alongside eucalyptus pulp or other food-grade plant fibres.
Cellulose is the same material used in many oral care products, dietary supplements and food applications. It's chemically inert, doesn't dissolve in saliva, and gives the pouch its physical shape. When the pouch sits under the lip, the cellulose acts as a carrier - moisture passes through it, releasing the nicotine and flavourings into the mouth without breaking the pouch apart.
If you ever cut open a nicotine pouch (we don't recommend it; it's messy), what you'd see is mostly white fibre with a small amount of liquid distributed through it.
The active ingredient. Modern UK nicotine pouches use purified nicotine - either extracted from tobacco and refined, or made synthetically - added to the pouch in a controlled, measured dose.
Two things to know about how nicotine appears on a label:
The nicotine in a pouch is dissolved into the moisture of the pouch material; it isn't a solid powder. When the pouch sits under the lip, salts and pH regulators help that nicotine release at a controlled rate through the gum.
Read more about nicotine pouch strength
The flavour part of a pouch is two ingredients in most cases: a flavouring blend (mint, berry, citrus, fruit, coffee, herbal) and a sweetener.
Flavourings are food-grade and the same kind used in soft drinks, sweets and oral care products. Brands typically don't disclose specific flavour compounds beyond a general "Flavourings" entry - the recipes are proprietary.
Sweeteners balance the taste of the pouch and offset the slightly bitter character of nicotine. The most common ones in UK pouches:
Some pouches also contain a cooling agent (often menthol or a synthetic equivalent like WS-23) to add the cooling note common in mint pouches.
The "less obvious" ingredients on a label, but the ones that determine how a pouch actually performs.
A small amount of common salt (sodium chloride) is included in most pouches as a flavour enhancer and moisture balancer. It works alongside the pH regulators - typically:
Without pH regulation, the nicotine release would be inconsistent and the pouch would feel either too sharp or too weak.
These keep the pouch at the right moisture level so it doesn't dry out before use, and help hold the pouch contents together. The most common in UK pouches:
More complex recipes can also include emulsifiers (E471) to help blend fat- and water-based ingredients, improving consistency and shelf life.
Three categories of ingredient are deliberately absent:
A pouch also doesn't contain caffeine (unless it's specifically a caffeine pouch - a separate product category) or any plant-based stimulants beyond nicotine itself.
E-numbers can look alarming on a short ingredients list, but they're a regulatory shorthand for additives that have been assessed and approved for use in food and consumer products across Europe. The ones in a typical nicotine pouch are common across the food industry:
E460: Microcrystalline cellulose - plant fibre, the pouch base material |
E401: Sodium alginate - thickener / binder from brown seaweed |
E422: Glycerol - humectant, keeps the pouch moist |
E471: Emulsifier - blends fat- and water-based ingredients |
E500: Sodium carbonate - pH regulator |
E524: Sodium hydroxide - stronger pH regulator |
E1520: Propylene glycol - humectant and flavour carrier |
E950: Acesulfame K - sweetener (~200x sugar) |
E955: Sucralose - sweetener (~600x sugar) |
E960: Stevia - natural sweetener |
E967: Xylitol - natural sweetener (birch sugar) |
The risk-relevant ingredient in any pouch isn't on this list - it's nicotine. The additives are there to make the pouch physically work; the nicotine is what your body actually responds to.
Most UK nicotine pouches use a similar core recipe - cellulose base, water, nicotine, flavourings, salts, pH regulators, sweeteners, humectants. The differences between brands tend to be in:
If you have a specific allergy or want to avoid a specific additive, the ingredients panel on the can is the source of truth - and it's required to be accurate under UK consumer-product labelling rules.