Norwegian Convenience Store Chains Narvesen and 7-Eleven to Stop Cigarette Sales Gradually

According to a recent report by E24, two major convenience store chains in Norway, Narvesen and 7-Eleven, are gradually going to stop selling cigarettes. Their parent company, Reitan Convenience Norway, has stated that they are prepared to gradually phase out cigarette sales starting in 2026, eventually leading to a complete halt in sales.

Anniken Staubo, the procurement director of the Norwegian convenience store company, stated, "We have already seen a gradual decrease in demand for cigarettes, and we hope to contribute to the complete cessation of cigarette sales in the long term.

This announcement was made following the decision of its sister company, Reitan Convenience Scotland, to stop selling cigarettes.

Just like Reitan Convenience in Sweden, we will also not be accepting any new products and brands in this category starting from 2026.

Staub also added that the gradual phasing out of cigarette sales is part of the company's overall sustainable development strategy.

There are significant environmental and social sustainability challenges in tobacco production. We plan to gradually phase out cigarettes from our product line, while monitoring developments in new regulations.

Prior to this, the UK and New Zealand have already proposed legislation to ban young people from purchasing tobacco. Meanwhile, another well-known convenience store chain in Norway, Joker, has stated that its parent company, Norgesgruppen, currently has no specific plans to phase out the sale of cigarettes.

According to data from Statistics Norway, the number of young people in Norway who smoke daily has been decreasing since 2017, while the number of people who use nasal snuff has been steadily increasing. Data from 2023 shows that the proportion of people who use nasal snuff daily is 16%, while the proportion of daily smokers among the 16 to 74-year-old population is only 7%.