Retailers share how they’ve tweaked their offerings to deal with the federal vapor shakeup.
Over the past few years, tobacco legislation has resembled a patchwork quilt across the United States: Tobacco-buying age rules that don’t cross state borders. Flavor ban ordinances in one municipality, but not in another 10 minutes away. It was enough to make even the most seasoned tobacco retailer’s head spin.
Uniformity began to creep into the landscape in late 2019. On Dec. 20 of that year, former President Donald Trump signed legislation to amend the federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act and raise the federal minimum age on the sale of tobacco products from 18 to 21. It is now illegal for a retailer to sell any tobacco product — including cigarettes, cigars and e-cigarettes — to anyone under 21 years old.
Just three weeks later, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) began a 30-day countdown on the removal of all unauthorized flavored pod-based vapor products from retail backbars. The rule went into effect Feb. 6, 2020 and since that point, the FDA has not authorized any flavored pod-based vapor products for market. The move resulted in what could be considered an outright ban.
Melissa Kress – Convenience Store News – 2021-04-12.
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