Major grocery chain ending tobacco sales

Stop & Shop, a major grocery chain, announced this week that it would be ending its sales of tobacco products.

The East Coast chain has 360 stores in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York and New Jersey.

The retailer said it will stop selling cigarettes and tobacco products by Aug. 31 as part of its commitment to “community wellness.”

“Our responsibility as a grocer goes far beyond our aisles, and we are committed to taking bold stops to help our associates, customers, and communities work towards better health outcomes,” Gordon Reid, Stop & Shop president, said in a statement.

The company said it hosted two cigarette buyback events this week in neighborhoods that have higher rates of smoking and smoking-related health issues.

Stop & Shop is the latest in retailers to stop selling tobacco products.

Walmart announced in 2022 it would stop selling cigarettes in some locations. CVS Pharmacy ended tobacco sales in 2014, and Target stopped selling cigarettes in 1996.

About 780 million people want to quit smoking, but only 30 percent have access to tools to do so, Stop & Shop said in its release, citing the World Health Organization.

The retailer is partnering with the American Cancer Society and the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network.

Dr. Karen Knudsen, the CEO of the cancer-fighting organizations, said she is proud to partner with Stop & Shop as they end tobacco sales.

“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,” she said in a statement.