Background:

The Tobacco Products Directive (2014/40/EU) obliges manufacturers and importers of tobacco products and related to notify Member States the commercialization of these products through the EU Common Entry Portal (EU-CEG). The objective of this study is to describe the main data available in EU-CEG in Spain and analyze its implications for smoking control policies.

Methods:

Cross-sectional analysis of the data obtained in EU-CEG for Spain. The access is done through .xml or .pdf files, downloaded from the portal or consulted through its interface. It describes the distribution of products, manufacturers, presence of priority ingredients, Slim cigarettes and concentration of nicotine in liquids.

Results:

In the EU-CEG portal for Spain there are currently 42,736 records. 83.7% corresponds to the devices susceptible to nicotine release (67% of refill liquids, mainly with concentrations of 3, 6, 12 and 18 mg). In tobacco products, cigarettes (5%), cigars (5.9%) and water pipe tobacco (2.8%) stand out. Herbal products for smoking account for 0.1%. 5 of the priority ingredients for surveillance are present in more than 75% of cigarettes and rolling tobacco. There are 44 records of Slim cigarettes and 9 novel tobacco products.

Conclusions:

The EU-CEG portal has become a powerful tool in tobacco control. We highlight challenges that require a joint and comprehensive approach in aspects such as labeling and ingredients, Slim cigarettes and new forms of consumption.

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