The Netherlands to ban supermarket sales of tobacco products next July, with retailers moving into g

The Dutch retail chain Albert Heijn announced on July 7 local time that it will stop selling traditional tobacco and tobacco products (including e-cigarettes) in its stores starting January 1, 2024. This move is in response to the Dutch government's "smoke-free generation" plan, which aims to stop tobacco sales in supermarkets by July 1, 2024, with Albert Heijn implementing the ban six months ahead of the mandatory requirement.

According to the timeline of the Dutch "smoke-free generation" plan, although the Netherlands will ban supermarkets from selling traditional tobacco and e-cigarettes starting July 1, 2024, tobacco sales at gas stations will continue until 2030. Statistics show that currently, tobacco sales in supermarkets account for half of the total tobacco sales in the Netherlands, while gas stations account for only a quarter.

In reality, while appearing to respond positively to the sales ban, Albert Heijn's plan to stop sales has some "strategic" elements. For instance, the aforementioned supermarket sales ban only applies to Albert Heijn's 822 self-operated stores, while the remaining 278 franchised stores can choose whether to continue selling until the last moment before July 1.

Additionally, when Albert Heijn responded to the requirement to stop online tobacco sales this year, it also continued sales until the last moment before the mandatory ban on July 1, while most other retailers stopped sales several days in advance. Even the e-commerce website established by Albert Heijn's franchisees is still selling tobacco products at prices before the consumption tax increase.

Furthermore, to continue tobacco sales, Albert Heijn has accelerated its plan to sell tobacco products in collaboration with BP gas stations/charging stations, which has reached 100 gas station stores by February 2023.