Stop & Shop is the latest grocer to stop selling tobacco amid growing criticism from retailers about the health risks and hassle of selling the products.
Starting Saturday, customers will be unable to purchase tobacco products at 360 stores of the Quincy, Massachusetts-based supermarket chain, following the lead of other major retailers including Walmart, CVS and Wegmans.
In addition to health concerns, retailers say regulations make cigarettes cumbersome, unprofitable to sell and frequent targets for shoplifters.
In 2019, the federal government raised the minimum age for purchasing tobacco to 21. Some states, such as Massachusetts, have even stricter restrictions, prohibiting retailers with pharmacies from selling tobacco products.
In 2014, CVS became the first major pharmacy chain to stop selling tobacco products.
Other retailers, including Publix, Albertsons and Kroger, also continue to sell tobacco. Costco began phasing out tobacco sales in 2016 but still sells them in some markets. Target was the first major chain to remove tobacco from its stores in 1996.
As part of the retreat, Stop & Shop is encouraging customers in three areas, including Staten Island, where smoking-related health problems are prevalent, to quit smoking by offering store gift cards and discounts on Nicorette in exchange for an unopened pack or carton of cigarettes.
“As a grocer, our responsibility extends beyond the sales floor — we're committed to taking bold steps to empower our associates, customers and communities to work toward better health outcomes,” Stop & Shop President Gordon Reed said in a statement.
The decision to stop selling tobacco products is a tricky one for a major retailer like Walmart, which decided to cut sales at some stores in 2019 as it seeks to play a larger role in health care.
But the world's largest retailer said it would only withdraw from select markets, including stores in California, Florida, Arkansas and New Mexico. Wall Street Journal report.
According to WHO data, approximately 780 million people worldwide want to quit smoking, but only 30% of them have access to smoking cessation tools.
Smoking has increased during the pandemic to the highest level in 20 years, with some experts blaming federal taxes on vaping products.
