Tobacco & Vaping 101: Saskatchewan

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 Prince Edward Island, along with information on cigarette sales and provincial tobacco tax revenues.

Key Points: 

• In 2022, 127,477 individuals (13.4 percent) aged 15 or older in Saskatchewan were currently smoking, a 32.7 percent increase from 2021. Smoking rates in the province are 20.6 percent higher than Canada’s national average.
• In 2022, 27.1 percent of persons in Saskatchewan were formerly smoking and 64.9 percent reported having never smoked.
• Smoking rates were highest among adults aged 45 years or older, which was 34.6 percent higher than the overall provincial smoking rate, and 42.8 percent higher than the national average in the same age group.
• In 2022, 54,225 individuals (5.7 percent) in Saskatchewan were using e-cigarettes, a 16.3 percent increase from 2021. The provincial vaping rate is 1.8 percent lower than the national average of 5.8 percent.
• In 2018-19, 8.1 percent of Saskatchewan youth in Grades 7 through 12 were smoking cigarettes, a 2.4 percent decline from 2016-17.
• In 2021-22, 23.7 percent of youth were vaping, a 19.9 percent decline from 2018-19. Vaping rates decreased by 32.8 for youth in Grades 7 through 9, and increased by 17.1 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 21.1 percent of youth. Only 7.6 percent reported using e-cigarettes because of flavours.
• In 2021, more than 783 million cigarette units were sold in Saskatchewan, an 8.8 percent decline from 2020, representing more than 71.6 million fewer cigarettes sold.
• Despite declining smoking rates between 2020 and 2021, Saskatchewan collected more than $204 million in provincial taxes from tobacco and vapor products in 2020-21, a 1.1 percent decrease from the previous year.