Sale of Tobacco Products Drop by 47% in UK

Recently, researchers in the UK analyzed sales data from nearly 1,400 convenience stores in Scotland, England, and Wales. The results showed that over the course of three years, sales of combustible tobacco had decreased by 47%. Sales of pure tobacco products fell from 11% to 6%, while sales of products containing tobacco mixed with other items decreased from 14% to 9%.

During this period, there was a 16% decrease in the average weekly sales. Researchers pointed out that an increase in the sales of e-cigarettes supported this trend.

However, a study in the United States has found that a ban on e-cigarettes led to an increase in traditional cigarette sales. Following the implementation of a comprehensive ban on flavored e-cigarettes in Massachusetts, the per capita sales of traditional cigarettes were 7.5% higher than expected.

The UK and New Zealand have achieved some success in smoking cessation, recommending electronic cigarettes as a tool for quitting smoking. The smoking rates in the UK and New Zealand have decreased by 13.8% and 10.9% respectively.

Further reading:

The UK government is set to encourage a million smokers to switch to e-cigarettes in a bid to reduce smoking rates to 5% or less.

The UK Vaping Industry Association: Banning flavored e-cigarettes could potentially lead to 1.5 million users returning to traditional cigarettes.

References:

Sales of traditional tobacco products have significantly decreased by 50% in a span of three years.