Tobacco & Vaping 101:Manitoba

Canadian lawmakers often face misinformation regarding adult smoking and vaping habits. This misinformation can lead to misguided legislation and regulation. The analysis provided contains current data on the use of cigarettes and e-cigarette products among adults and youth in Manitoba, along with information on cigarette sales and provincial tobacco tax revenues.

Key Points: 

• In 2022, 162,447 individuals (14.1 percent) aged 15 or older in Manitoba were currently smoking, a 10.2 percent increase from 2021. Smoking rates in the province are 25 percent higher than Canada’s national average.
• In 2022, 21.3 percent of persons in Manitoba were formerly smoking and 64.6 percent reported having never smoked.
• Smoking rates were highest among adults aged 25 to 44 years old, which was 21.5 percent higher than the overall provincial smoking rate, and 46.5 percent higher than the national average in the same age group.
• In 2022, 88,864 individuals (7.8 percent) in Manitoba were using e-cigarettes, a 73.3 percent increase from 2021. The provincial vaping rate is 29.4 percent higher than the national average of 5.8 percent.
• In 2018-19, 2.7 percent of Manitoba youth in Grades 7 through 12 were smoking cigarettes, a 50 percent decline from 2016-17.
• In 2021-22, 16.7 percent of youth were vaping, a 22.3 percent decline from 2018-19. Vaping rates decreased by 45.2 for youth in Grades 7 through 9, and decreased by 11 percent for youth in Grades 10 through 12.
• In 2021-22, among youth using e-cigarettes, the most cited reason for using e-cigarettes was to “relax or relieve tension” as reported by 25.9 percent of youth. Only 12.2 percent reported using e-cigarettes because of flavours.
• In 2021, more than 652 million cigarette units were sold in Manitoba, a 9 percent decline from 2020, representing more than 724 million fewer cigarettes sold.
• Despite declining smoking rates between 2020 and 2021, Manitoba collected $198 million in provincial taxes from tobacco and vapor products in 2020-21, a 10.1 percent decrease increase from the previous year.