Youth vaping surges in Saskatchewan as province lags on tabacco reform

He believes the rise in youth vaping is just one part of a broader tobacco problem.

“The good news is that we are seeing a decline in smoking prevalence in Canada and in Saskatchewan over time,” Cunningham said.

“The bad news is that Saskatchewan is above the national average.”

Tobacco use remains the leading cause of preventable death in Saskatchewan, killing approximately 1,500 people each year, including 570 from lung cancer, according to the Canadian Cancer Society. Smoking is also linked to at least 16 different types of cancer, including colorectal, pancreatic, bladder, cervical and throat cancers.

Cunningham noted that the economic toll is just as grim, with the province spending an estimated $190 million annually on tobacco-related health care.

“We have a lot of work that remains to be done,” he said.

Flavours, affordability and access driving the problem

Research by Health Canada shows that flavours are the top reason youth begin vaping, and according to a study from the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs, over two-thirds of teens say they would quit if only tobacco flavour were available.

“We can do things like banning flavored tobacco products, minimum age 21 instead of 19 for both tobacco cigarettes, something that P.E.I. has done, 30 U.S. states have done, and opinion polls show it is tremendously popular,” Cunningham said.

Unlike provinces such as Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and New Brunswick — which have banned flavoured vaping products except for tobacco — Saskatchewan has yet to implement similar legislation. Quebec, New Brunswick and the Northwest Territories have also banned flavoured vaping products, with the same exception.

Cunningham believes that without flavour restrictions, the province risks enabling more young people to become addicted to nicotine.

Raise the age, raise the price

Another evidence-based strategy is increasing the minimum legal age for purchasing tobacco and vape products to 21. The United States federally adopted “Tobacco 21” in 2019, and Prince Edward Island became the first Canadian province to do so, with its law taking effect on March 1, 2020. Research from the U.S. National Academy of Medicine suggests such laws could cut adult smoking rates by 12 per cent over time.

Cunningham emphasized the importance of price as a deterrent, especially for youth, and pointed out that Saskatchewan’s tobacco taxes haven’t increased since 2022.

“Increasing tobacco taxes. It’s been a while since Saskatchewan has done that,” he said. “So the tax rate is being eroded by inflation for tobacco products.”

Every 10 per cent increase in cigarette prices leads to a four per cent drop in adult smoking and a seven per cent drop in youth smoking, according to the Canadian Cancer Society.

A $700-million opportunity

A transformative opportunity lies in Saskatchewan’s share of a $700-million national tobacco industry settlement, to be received over the next two decades.

Cunningham urged the provincial government to invest a substantial portion of that windfall into cessation programs, education, enforcement and youth prevention.

“We are urging that a significant proportion of that be used to strengthen the provincial Saskatchewan tobacco control strategy,” he said.

“Better programs for cessation or youth prevention. Better enforcement initiatives policy development.”

The compensation plan is intended to hold tobacco companies accountable for past misconduct while also supporting improved care for those affected, according to the provincial government.

A 2025 study published by the Public Health Agency of Canada found that implementing a national “smoke-free generation” policy — banning tobacco sales to anyone born after 2009 — could save $2.3 billion in health-care costs and add nearly 477,000 quality-adjusted life years over 50 years. While the policy could reduce tobacco tax revenue and industry GDP, researchers concluded that the health and economic benefits would far outweigh the losses.

Retail reform and enforcement needed

While Saskatchewan announced a new sales tax on vaping products earlier this year — a move Cunningham praised — he said enforcement remains weak, especially regarding underage sales and product placement.

“We commend the government for that step,” he said. “It’s going to make e-cigarettes less affordable for youth and that’s really important.”

He also questioned how young people are still able to access nicotine products so easily.

“Why are youth getting access to e-cigarettes so much and also to cigarettes? Better enforcement can make a big difference to help [with] youth vaping,” he said.

Cunningham recommends following the cannabis retail model, where cigarette sales are limited to specialty stores with stricter age controls.

“We don’t have cannabis in every convenience store,” he said. “We should have a specialty retail outlet that’s better controlled, only adults can go in.”

In Saskatchewan, the sale of most flavoured vaping products has been restricted to adult-only vape shops since September 2021. However, people can still purchase e-cigarettes at gas stations and convenience stores, where the selection is limited to tobacco and mint or menthol-flavoured vapour products. The legal age for purchasing these products remains 19.

Traditional cigarettes also remain widely available in convenience stores and gas stations across the province. Federal law requires these products be hidden from view and sold only in packages of 20 or more.

Once a leader in tobacco control

Saskatchewan once led the country in tobacco control when it banned retail tobacco displays in 2001 — becoming just the second jurisdiction in the world to do so, after Iceland.

“Saskatchewan has demonstrated it can be a leader to have innovative approaches and we should continue to move ahead,” he noted.

Iceland was the first country in the world to ban the retail display of tobacco products. In 2001, it implemented legislation requiring that tobacco products and trademarks be placed so they are not visible to customers in retail outlets. This pioneering measure aimed to reduce the visibility of tobacco products and curb smoking rates, especially among youth.

Saskatchewan followed suit in 2002 by enacting similar legislation that prohibited the display of tobacco products in retail stores accessible to minors. Although the law faced legal challenges, it was upheld by the Supreme Court of Canada in 2005, reinforcing the province’s commitment to tobacco control.

The road ahead

Recently, the United Kingdom government proposed the Tobacco and Vapes Bill, which includes provisions to ban the sale of tobacco products to anyone born on or after Jan. 1, 2009. The bill has passed third reading in the House of Commons and is currently at second reading in the House of Lords.

Canada has set a national goal of reducing tobacco use to under five per cent by 2035 — a target Cunningham believes is within reach if provinces like Saskatchewan act boldly.

He also called on the federal government to complete long-awaited regulations to ban most flavoured vaping products.

“One thing that we would like the federal government to do is to finalize a regulation to ban flavors in e-cigarettes other than tobacco flavor and that regulation needs to be finalized and adopted,” he said.

For people who smoke, he said, the path is clear.

“Quitting smoking is the single most important thing they can do to improve their health,” Cunningham said. “And for young people, the best choice is to never start.”

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Kenneth.Cheung@pattisonmedia.com

by Kenneth Cheung

Youth vaping surges in Saskatchewan as province lags on tabacco reform

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