Canada Smokefree 2035 Is Not on Track
Canada has set one of the most ambitious public health goals in the world: reducing cigarette use to less than 5% of the population by 2035, a goal we at Imperial share. Yet as 2025 ends, it is clear that the country is not on a trajectory to get there. According to Stats Canada, roughly 12% of Canadians continue to smoke, a rate that has remained essentially unchanged for several years (Statistics Canada, 2025).
Even more concerning, recent data suggest that the number of smokers has increased between 2023 and 2024 for the first time in at least ten years—a signal that Canada’s approach is not working (Statistics Canada, 2025). This plateau is a warning.
At the same time, Canada has become the most profitable illegal nicotine market in the world with illicit and unregulated nicotine products widely available, creating risks for both adult smokers and young people. They bypass age verification requirements, sidestep safety standards, and undermine the integrity of the broader public health system. A landscape where illegal products thrive while regulated products face barriers is not a landscape that serves Canadians well.
The latest example was the Ministerial Order that moved ZONNIC, Canada’s first nicotine pouch approved by Health Canada as a cessation product, off convenience store shelves and behind pharmacy counters. An action that supports cigarette sales and makes quitting smoking harder. And the results speak for themselves. The legal market suffered. Illicit nicotine pouches surged. Making it easier for underage access and adult smokers can’t find this cessation product in the places where they normally buy cigarettes anymore. This outcome should trouble anyone who cares about credible public health policy.
For decades, the conversation around tobacco in Canada has been shaped by historical battles between opposing camps. But 2026 must be the year we recognize that those old frameworks no longer reflect today’s realities. We are fully aligned with the ambition Health Canada and many leading health advocate groups have to make Canada a smokeless country, but success requires constructive collaboration — not polarization.
No single entity — government, industry, health organizations, retailers — can achieve a smokefree future alone. But together, we can build an approach that reduces harm, supports adults who smoke, disrupts the illegal market, and accelerates progress toward Canada’s 2035 target.
The goal is shared. The evidence is clear. And the moment for alignment is now.
Let 2026 be the year Canada puts outdated divisions behind us and works collectively to ensure that every adult who wants to quit has access to safe, regulated, effective tools — where and when they need them. Canada’s future public health depends on it.
By Frank Silva, President & CEO, Imperial Tobacco Canada
The views expressed in this opinion piece are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of GTA Weekly.
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