Addressing Youth Tobacco Influences in the Retail Environment: From Data Collection to Policy Adoption

The Tobacco Industry spends 90% of its marketing and promotions dollars in the retail environment, and youth are subjected to tobacco promotions and marketing in a variety of ways in their communities.  This presentation will discuss five policy options to address tobacco in the retail environment:  1)  prohibiting the sale of flavored (non-cigarette) tobacco products; 2) requiring minimum pack size for cigars, including little cigars and cigarillos;  3) restricting tobacco sales near schools;  4) reducing density through prohibiting new stores from locating close to existing stores;  and 5) tobacco retailer licensing as a tool for enforcement of tobacco control laws.  Lessons learned in building support for local policies to address the retail environment will be discussed, including the benefits of local data collection and educating policy makers about the need for these policies.  Recommendations include identifying the problem locally, building relationships with a policy maker champion, clearly articulating youth tobacco prevention as a frame for regulating the retail environment, and developing solid implementation plans.