The Association of Convenience Stores (ACS) has welcomed government plans to introduce a new scheme encouraging smokers to swap cigarettes for vapes, as part of a series of measures to help the government meet its smokefree 2030 target.
Close to one million smokers will be encouraged to swap cigarettes for vapes under the first national ‘swap to stop’ scheme, which will provide one in five smokers in England with a vape starter kit and other support to help them quit smoking.
Health minister Neil O’Brien is leading the plans, which will also be introducing a crackdown on illicit vape sales as part of measures to stop children and non-smokers from picking up the habit.
Subscribe to Grocery Gazette for free
Sign up here to get the latest grocery and food news each morning
O’Brien has also launched a call for evidence on youth vaping, which aims to reduce the number of children accessing vape products and explore what measures the government can take to stop it from continuing.
Tesco and Sainsbury’s are among supermarkets who removed the popular Elf Bars from UK stores back in February, amid concerns of illegal levels of nicotine.
Additionally, the ACS has developed comprehensive guidance for retailers, which includes age verification policies that should be in place to ensure that products are only sold to those who are legally allowed to purchase them.
“We strongly welcome this course of action from government, harnessing the potential for vaping to accelerate the decline in smoking rates, and it’s encouraging that the government are committing new resource and some innovative approaches to make this happen,” ACS chief executive James Lowman told Talking Retail.
“We are encouraged by Ministers recognising the need to ensure that the vaping market operates properly, which means that only legal product reaches retailers and consumers, and only adults can buy these products.
“The stronger focus on enforcement, backed by greater resources at a local level, is the right way to achieve this.
Lowman added: “Our members will welcome and embrace more enforcement activity and our guidance, on recognising legal products and implementing the widely recognised and robust ‘Challenge25’ policy to avoid under age sales, is freely available for all retailers to use.
“We will continue to work with the Department for Health & Social Care and Trading Standards departments to make this approach work.”
