Tobacco & Vaping 101: New Brunswick

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 New Brunswick, along with information on cigarette sales and provincial tobacco tax revenues.

Key Points: 

• In 2022, 109,830 individuals (15.8 percent) aged 15 or older in New Brunswick were currently smoking, an 88.1 percent increase from 2021. Smoking rates in the province are 36.7 percent higher than Canada’s national average.
• In 2022, 27.1 percent of persons in New Brunswick were formerly smoking and 57.1 percent reported having never smoked.
• Smoking rates were highest among adults aged 25 to 44 years old, which was 33.2 percent higher than the overall provincial smoking rate, and 96.6 percent higher than the national average in the same age group.
• In 2022, 39,622 individuals (7.8 percent) in New Brunswick were using e-cigarettes, a 33.7 percent decrease from 2021. The provincial vaping rate is 5.3 percent lower than the national average of 5.8 percent.
• In 2021-22, 4.1 percent of Canadian youth in Grades 7 through 12 were smoking cigarettes, a 24.1 percent decline from 2018-19.
• In 2021-22, 16.8 percent of youth were vaping, a 16.8 percent decline from 2018-19. Vaping rates decreased by 9 percent for youth in Grades 7 through 9, and decreased by 19.7 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 20.5 percent of youth. Only 7.4 percent reported using e-cigarettes because of flavours.
• In 2021, more than 464 million cigarette units were sold in New Brunswick, a 13.3 percent decline from 2020, representing more than 71 million fewer cigarettes sold.
• Despite declining smoking rates between 2020 and 2021, New Brunswick collected more than $147 million in provincial taxes from tobacco and vapor products in 2020-21, a 17.2 percent decrease increase from the previous year.