NYERI, Kenya Sept 10 – Traders in Nyeri County have urged the Senate to reject a proposal seeking to ban flavours in nicotine products such as vapes and pouches, arguing that doing so would only fuel illicit trade, resulting in loss of revenue for both businesses and the government.The proposal is contained in the Tobacco Control (Amendment) Bill, currently before the Senate, and seeks to prohibit the production and supply of products containing flavoured additives.“A person shall not produce or supply tobacco products containing additives which result in a characterising flavour,” reads Section 14(j)(f) of the Bill.According to an explanatory note shared by the Senate, the provision aims to protect minors by making nicotine products less appealing to them through the prohibition of sweet flavours.However, traders in Nyeri argue that the move will be counterproductive, claiming it will lead to a proliferation of flavoured products on the black market—ultimately reducing government and business revenue.They further contend that the ban could undermine the Bill’s objective of protecting minors, as unregulated black market access would make it easier for underage individuals to obtain such products.“While we appreciate that the sponsor of the Bill—and indeed the Senate—is keen to establish measures to safeguard minors from accessing these products, we are concerned that the proposal to ban flavours will merely shift the sale of these items to the black market. This would not only hurt legitimate businesses like ours but also deny the government, and by extension the country, much-needed revenue that the Kenya Revenue Authority would otherwise collect from licensed traders,” said one trader.“If the Bill passes in its current form and bans flavoured vapes and pouches, it will not stop consumers from accessing them. Instead, it will create an opportunity for illegitimate traders to flood the market with unregulated products—making it even easier for children to access them. This would be gravely counterproductive to the very objectives the Bill seeks to achieve,” they added.The traders are now urging senators to reconsider the proposal when sittings resume later this month after the recess.“We call upon the Senate to review this provision when the Bill is debated further on the floor of the House. We especially appeal to our Senator to take the lead in protecting small business owners like us, to ensure we do not lose our livelihoods to the black market,” they said.During Senate debate on the Bill, Narok County Senator Ledama Olekina—who is a member of the Senate Health Committee to which the Bill was committed—expressed doubt over the effectiveness of banning flavours.“For me, I looked at it in two ways. Whether you are a smoker or not—whether people can tell from 20 metres away that you’re a smoker—I didn’t see any problem with having flavours. You would still smoke. So the issue we must all sit down and deliberate on is whether or not to allow flavours,” he said.