Dutch tobacco industry slams plan to raise smoking, vaping age to 21

Dutch tobacco manufacturers sharply criticized a proposal by coalition parties D66, VVD, and CDA to raise the legal age for buying tobacco and e-cigarettes to 21, as the government pushes toward what it calls a “smoke-free generation.”

The Vereniging Nederlandse Sigaretten- en Kerftabakfabrikanten, the industry association representing cigarette and roll-your-own tobacco makers in the Netherlands, called the plan “ill-considered and unwise."

“Adults are allowed to take out a mortgage, get married, buy alcohol, use cannabis, and be deployed to war zones,” VSK director Jan Hein Sträter said in a statement. “It is incomprehensible that someone is considered adult enough for all of that but cannot independently choose whether they want to buy tobacco or other nicotine products.”

Psychologists and addiction specialists have previously urged lawmakers to raise the minimum age for tobacco and e-cigarettes to 21. While young people are increasingly turning away from traditional cigarettes, they are using vapes more often, health experts have warned.

The industry, according to Sträter, believes lawmakers should first assess existing anti-smoking measures before introducing new restrictions. “Even the introduction of the current age limit of 18 has never been evaluated,” Sträter said. “And compliance with and enforcement of that rule turn out to be very difficult. What effect does one then expect from raising that age?”