The tobacconists want to be the only ones to sell disposable electronic cigarettes, also called puffs. Today, these products are also sold online or in steamers. But, according to the Confederation of tobacconists, “online platforms or large retailers” bypass the ban on the sale of electronic cigarettes to minors.
With its childish, sweet or fruity flavors -“marshmallow”, “ice caramel”, “choco hazelnut”…-, its brightly colored packaging reminiscent of sweets and its low price that oscillates between 8 and 12 euros for 500 puffs, the puff pastry exists under twenty brands and is worrying because it is aimed at adolescents, while the cigarette E-mail is prohibited for minors.
A deterrent tax?
The Senate’s right-wing majority voted for a “deterrent tax” on these “puff” disposable e-cigarettes, but the measure may not pass. An environmental bill calls for its ban.
According to the president of the Confederation of tobacconists, Philippe Coy, quoted by the press release, “the rules relating to the cigarette single-use electronics are mocked (…) by online platforms or mass distribution”. He is pleased “to see that several parliamentarians are proposing to entrust the distribution of this product to a responsible network such as that of tobacconists”.
140 million euros of turnover
Puff pastry sales already represent, for some tobacconists, half of the business generated by the cigarette electronics: the latter contributes 140 million euros of the 3,600 million gross annual turnover obtained by the 23,500 tobacconists in the country.
At the end of 2021, the National Committee Against Tobacco (CNCT) affirmed, after a “mystery shopper” survey with “under 17 years of age, accompanied by a retired adult”, that six out of ten tobacconists violated the prohibition on the sale of tobacco to minors.
Source: BFM TV
