OTTAWA — A nicotine users’ rights group is calling on Ottawa to loosen restrictions on nicotine pouches, after uncovering a booming illicit market in a cross-country road trip.

Members of Rights 4 Vapers purchased 148 illegal nicotine products from 42 retailers during a nine-day summer tour of five provinces, starting in Montreal and ending in Edmonton.

Founder Maria Papaioannoy said this haul would have been much bigger if the group didn’t exhaust its budget.

“We saw thousands of illegal products available,” said Papaioannoy.

Papaioannoy said the Liberal government has fueled a massive black market for nicotine pouches by approving only one brand, Zonnic, for use in Canada and restricting its sale to behind-the-counter at pharmacies. The government also limited potency to 4 mg or less and prohibited flavours other than mint and menthol.

A 2024 ministerial order regulating nicotine pouches sought to keep them out of the hands of young people.

Papaioannoy says the opposite has happened.