ALP Supply Co. — the US nicotine pouch brand jointly owned by Turning Point Brands and the Tucker Carlson Network — went live in 11 European markets throughout July 2026, marking the company's first international expansion since launching in late 2024. CEO Lorenzo De Plano told media the brand aims to become the EU's second-largest nicotine pouch company by 2030.

That's an aggressive target for a brand that currently holds roughly 2% of the US market, making it the country's fourth- or fifth-largest pouch by volume. But ALP's retail debut was unusually fast: Nielsen data shows the brand captured nearly 1% of US convenience store nicotine pouch sales within 90 days of entering brick-and-mortar channels after starting as a direct-to-consumer operation.

The Rollout Timeline

ALP's European launch happened in two waves, both online-only:

• July 1, 2026: Sales opened in the UK and EU via alppouch.eu
• July 8, 2026: Ireland, Greece, Romania, Switzerland, and Hungary joined the platform

According to De Plano, additional markets will follow:

• August–September 2026: Czech Republic, Poland, Portugal, Spain
• Q4 2026: Sweden and Denmark

Physical retail is a longer play. In the UK, in-store availability won't arrive until 2027. No specific retail timelines were provided for other markets.

Manufacturing and Product Line

To support the expansion, ALP secured production capacity in Lithuania. The facility is contracted to produce 20 million units in 2026, scaling to 50 million in 2027.

The European product lineup includes eight flavors: four carried over from the US (Chilled Mint, Mountain Wintergreen, Tropical Fruit, Spearmint) and four introduced specifically for Europe (Cherries & Berries, Sweet Mint, Frostbite, Grape Ice).

Why This Matters

The European nicotine pouch market is both larger and more mature than the US, with Sweden as the category's birthplace and Scandinavia still representing the highest per-capita consumption globally. ALP's #2 target by 2030 means overtaking established regional players in a four-year window — a timeline that requires either massive retail penetration or a significant marketing spend.

The brand is leaning into the latter: ALP announced a global partnership with UFC fighter Conor McGregor for content and brand activations scheduled through 2026. McGregor has substantial social reach in Europe, particularly in Ireland and the UK.

The Regulatory Landscape

Nicotine pouches occupy a complex regulatory space across Europe. In the EU, they're generally legal but fall outside the Tobacco Products Directive, creating a patchwork of national rules on sales age, flavor restrictions, and nicotine caps. The UK, post-Brexit, maintains its own framework.

Key country-level considerations for ALP's target markets:

• Sweden and Denmark: Mature markets with high pouch adoption, but Sweden enforces strict nicotine concentration limits (20 mg/g max under EU rules).
• UK: No EU nicotine cap applies, but the government has signaled interest in tighter regulation of youth-appealing flavors.
• Ireland, Greece, Romania, Switzerland, Hungary: Less mature pouch markets with lighter regulatory frameworks, though Switzerland (non-EU) sets its own rules.

ALP's staggered rollout suggests the company is navigating these differences market-by-market rather than launching uniformly.

What's Next

De Plano stated the company's ambition plainly: "We want ALP to be everywhere." Whether that translates to the #2 EU position by 2030 depends on retail execution, regulatory shifts, and competition from incumbents like ZYN (Philip Morris), Velo (BAT), and Nordic Spirit (JTI) — all of which already have established European distribution.

For now, ALP is betting that a fast online launch, localized flavors, and high-profile marketing can carve out share in a category that's still growing across much of Europe.

---

SOURCES:

• Tobacco Insider: "ALP Nicotine Pouches" (July 24, 2026)
• Nicotine Insider: "ALP Targets Europe With 11-Country Launch" (June 25, 2026)
• Tobacco Reporter: "ALP Accelerating UK, European Expansion" (July 23, 2026)