12.6.6 Priority additives for reporting in Europe

The European Commission mandated the independent Scientific Committee on Emerging and Newly Identified Health Risks (SCENIHR) to produce a priority list of tobacco additives in cigarettes and roll-your-own tobacco. SCENIHR assessed the role of tobacco additives in the addictiveness, attractiveness and toxicity of tobacco products, publishing their scientific rationale in 2010,¹ and assessment of a range of additives for inclusion on a priority list in 2016.² SCENIHR identified and assessed 48 individual additives, listed in Table 12.6.3.1, for potential inclusion on a priority list, based on four inclusion criteria:^{2, 3}

A. Contributing to the toxicity or addictiveness of the products concerned/increasing the toxicity or addictiveness of any of the products concerned to a significant or measurable degree;

B. Resulting in a characterising flavour;

C. Facilitating inhalation or nicotine uptake;

D. Leading to the formation of substances that have CMR (carcinogenic, mutagenic or reproductive toxicant) properties/increasing the CMR properties in any of the products concerned (cigarettes/roll-your-own) to a significant or measurable degree.

A final priority list of 15 additives (Table 12.6.3.1, column 3) was determined on the basis of those additives in the group of 48 that were highest priorities and most commonly used among cigarettes and roll-your-own products.^2-4 Member States of the European Union require manufacturers and importers of cigarettes and roll-your-own products to carry out comprehensive studies on the additives on this priority list.⁴

References

1. Scientific Committee on Emerging and Newly Identified Health Risks (SCENIHR). Addictiveness and attractiveness of tobacco additives. Brussels, Belgium 2010. Available from: http://ec.europa.eu/health/scientific_committees/emerging/docs/scenihr_o_031.pdf.

2. Scientific Committee on Emerging and Newly Identified Health Risks (SCENIHR). Final opinion on additives used in tobacco products. European Commission, Health & Food Safety, Directorate C: Public Health 2016. Available from: http://ec.europa.eu/health/scientific_committees/emerging/docs/scenihr_o_051.pdf.

3. Hoet P, Rydzynski K, Vermeire T, Nair U, Talhout R, et al. Recommendations to the european commission implementing a priority list of additives that should have more stringent reporting requirements: The opinion of the scientific committee on emerging and newly identified health risks (SCENIHR). Tobacco Control, 2018; 27(2):225-8. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28341766

4. Andriukaitis V. Commission implementing decision (EU) 2016/787 of 18 may 2016 laying down a priority list of additives contained in cigarettes and roll-your-own tobacco subject to enhanced reporting obligations. Official Journal of the European Union 2016. Available from: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:32016D0787&from=EN.