Stop & Shop to stop selling cigarettes

QUINCY – Stop & Shop will soon stop selling cigarettes and other tobacco products at all stores.
The Quincy-based supermarket chain has 360 locations in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York and New Jersey. Tobacco sales will end by Aug. 31. 
Stop & Shop says the decision reflects a “commitment to community wellness.”
“Our responsibility as a grocer goes far beyond our aisles, and we are committed to taking bold steps to help our associates, customers, and communities work towards better health outcomes,” Stop & Shop president Gordon Reid said in a statement. “From our team of registered dietitians that serve our customers at no cost to our trained and trusted pharmacy associates, Stop & Shop aims to support the health and well-being of the neighborhoods we serve – and this exit from tobacco is one more way we’re accomplishing that goal.”
Stop & Shop is holding a “cigarette buyback” event on Aug. 28 at its Dorchester supermarket at 460 Blue Hill Ave. The first 100 customers to bring in an unopened pack or carton of cigarettes to trade in will get a Stop & Shop gift card and $10-off coupons for Nicorette, plus a bag of healthy snacks, mints and materials to help them quit smoking.
“This is a step in the right direction toward ending Big Tobacco’s influence on kids, and we know even more can be done to reduce the toll of tobacco in our communities,” American Cancer Society CEO Dr. Karen Knudsen said in a statement.
Other retailers that have stopped selling cigarettes at some or all stores in recent years include CVS, Walmart, Wegmans and Price Chopper/Market 32. In Massachusetts, supermarkets with pharmacies are not allowed to sell tobacco products.