From 1 October 2026, a new UK Vaping Products Duty begins and duty stamps start appearing on retail vape packaging. Here’s what the change means in Wales — and what it does not tell you about a product.
New & emerging products / Alerts
Emerging product alerts
Short, dated updates on nicotine, vaping and related products ASH Wales is tracking. Built for schools, youth workers, parents and professionals who need to know what is changing without treating every new product as a new epidemic.
Last reviewed: 27th September 2026
WHAT AN ALERT MEANS
A heads-up on what’s popping up
The nicotine market can feel a bit like whack-a-mole – new products, flavours, formats and trends keep appearing.
Our Product Alerts flag things we think are worth keeping an eye on in Wales. An alert doesn’t mean something is suddenly everywhere. It means there’s enough credible information for us to put it on the radar, share what we know and watch what happens next.
How to read the alerts
CONFIRMED UK MARKET
The product is verifiably being sold or formally recognised in the UK
This tells us the product exists here. It does not tell us how many young people use it.
ACTIVE WELSH SAFETY SIGNAL
Welsh testing or public-health evidence has identified a current concern
Testing data can show substitutions or unexpected contents. It cannot be read as population prevalence.
EMERGING EVIDENCE
Credible research is developing, but the Welsh picture is unclear
We track the evidence without presenting an international or laboratory finding as a Welsh youth trend.
EVIDENCE GAP
We know the category exists but cannot estimate use in Wales
This label is deliberate. A gap in data is not evidence that use is either high or low.
Current alerts
Newest and most relevant signals are listed first. Each alert includes what we know, what we do not know and what schools or professionals should do with the information.
Product alert: Vaping duty stamps start appearing from 1 October 2026
From 1 October 2026, a new UK Vaping Products Duty begins and duty stamps start appearing on retail vape packaging. Here’s what the change means in Wales — and what it does not tell you about a product.
28th September 2026
Product alert: THC, CBD and cannabinoid vapes
Welsh drug-testing data has identified unexpected synthetic cannabinoids in submitted THC, CBD and cannabinoid vape samples. Here’s what we know — and what the data does not tell us.
28th September 2026
CONFIRMED UK MARKET · 27 SEP 2026
Nicotine toothpicks
Nicotine-infused toothpicks are now being sold by UK-facing retailers, including flavoured products containing nicotine per toothpick.
What we do not know: we have not identified reliable evidence showing how common these products are among young people in Wales.
CONFIRMED UK CATEGORY · LAW CHANGE 29 OCT 2026
Nicotine strips and pearls
UK Government guidance now explicitly names nicotine strips and nicotine pearls as nicotine products. From 29th October 2026, selling any vaping or nicotine product to someone under 18 will be illegal across the UK.
Evidence gap: we do not have a reliable Wales-wide youth prevalence estimate for strips or pearls.
GB UNDER-18 SIGNAL · WELSH ADULT DATA AVAILABLE
Nicotine pouches
Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) reports that 3.2% of 11-17-year-olds in Great Britain said they had ever tried nicotine pouches in its 2026 survey; awareness reached 48%.
What we know in Wales: ASH Wales’ 2025 survey found that 52% of adults in Wales had heard of nicotine pouches, rising to 79% among 18-24-year-olds. 10% of 18-24-year-olds in Wales had ever tried them.
What we do not yet know: we do not have an equivalent Wales-specific estimate for nicotine pouch use among under-18s.
EMERGING EVIDENCE · 27 SEP 2026
6-methyl nicotine (6-MN) and other nicotine analogues
Nicotine-like chemicals such as 6-methyl nicotine have entered the international e-cigarette market. A 2026 toxicology study found 6-MN should not be treated as a safer nicotine alternative.
What we do not know: there is no good evidence that 6-MN use is common among young people in Wales.
How something becomes an ASH Wales alert
We do not publish an alert just because a product appears in a social post, one school hears a rumour or a brand makes a dramatic claim. We look for at least one credible signal:
Market signal
A product can be verified as being sold into the UK market or is named in official UK guidance.
Welsh testing or intelligence
WEDINOS, Public Health Wales, Trading Standards or another credible Welsh source identifies a relevant substance, substitution or pattern.
Research signal
Credible peer-reviewed or public-agency research identifies a product, chemical or health issue worth tracking.
Policy or legal change
New legislation, guidance or regulation changes how a product is sold, promoted or treated.
Rumour alone is not enough. If we cannot verify a claim, it stays off the public alert list until stronger evidence appears.
If an unfamiliar product turns up in your school or setting
1. Do not identify it from appearance alone
Packaging, flavour names and device shape can be misleading. Do not taste, test or open an unfamiliar product to work out what it contains.
2. Follow your safeguarding and incident process
Focus on what happened, whether anyone is unwell and what support the young person needs. Avoid turning the conversation into an investigation of friends, sellers or other pupils.
3. Use the right route
Someone unwell: seek medical help.
Drug or unknown-substance concern: DAN 24/7 or WEDINOS can provide specialist information.
Suspected illegal product or sale: report anonymously through No Ifs. No Butts.
4. Tell ASH Wales what you are seeing
Schools and youth professionals can flag new product names, recurring questions or emerging concerns. A report from one setting is a signal to check, not proof of national prevalence.
Sources behind the current alerts
UK Government – selling vaping and nicotine products ↗
Public Health Wales – WEDINOS 2025/26 findings ↗
Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) – nicotine pouches ↗
UKHSA-linked research – 6-methyl nicotine ↗
ASH Wales will revise or remove alerts when stronger evidence changes the picture.