Top supermarkets running 'prohibited' tobacco ads

Sainsbury's and Morrisons are displaying adverts for baccy products successful their stores which Trading Standards says are against the law.

Video screens and posters beforehand devices that present nicotine by heating baccy alternatively than burning it.

The 2 supermarkets accidental they judge the laws banning baccy advertizing bash not use to the devices.

Heated baccy is little harmful than cigarettes, but experts accidental it is astir apt much harmful than vapes, and little effectual astatine helping smokers quit.

Tobacco adverts were banned successful 2002. But if you locomotion into a Sainsbury's oregon a Morrisons you whitethorn good spot adverts for iQos, a instrumentality that uses an physics existent to vigor tobacco.

Some are connected flashing video screens successful places wherever they tin easy beryllium seen by children. The BBC has besides seen adverts successful Morrisons for a akin instrumentality called Ploom.

Heated baccy is antithetic from vapes, which incorporate nicotine but nary tobacco, and they are overmuch little popular. But baccy companies are keen to beforehand it arsenic a caller gross watercourse to regenerate dwindling cigaret sales.

The Chartered Trading Standards Institute (CTSI), which represents section authorization trading standards teams, says the ads are "prohibited" by the 2002 law.

CTSI says the contented has ne'er been tested successful court, truthful it cannot accidental conclusively that moving them is illegal.

"The lone radical who tin definitively trial it are the courts. Now the courts are chocka. Trading Standards is precise stretched, and I deliberation that's astir apt the crushed wherefore you're seeing much and much of these ads," Kate Pike, pb serviceman for baccy and vaping astatine CTSI, told the BBC.

"It's taking the mick, is my view."

There is constricted grounds regarding the wellness effects of heated tobacco, according to Prof Lion Shahab, co-director of the baccy and intoxicant probe radical astatine University College, London.

"As it involves nary combustion, heated baccy is apt little harmful than cigarettes," helium said.

"Current findings suggest that heated baccy whitethorn beryllium much harmful than e-cigarettes, and little effectual astatine helping smokers springiness up cigarettes long-term."

In June 2018, then-health curate Steve Brine wrote to the institution that makes iQos, Philip Morris International (PMI), to accidental advertizing for it was "prohibited" and to inquire them to "desist from specified promotion successful the future".

Two months later, helium wrote to convey them for "agreeing to comply with our petition to halt advertizing and promoting the iQos device".

PMI says it lone agreed to suspend advertising, not stop.

A spokesperson said: "We support our presumption that communications regarding the iQos instrumentality astatine due points of merchantability is lawful."

Japan Tobacco International (JTI), which makes Ploom, said the 2002 instrumentality defines a baccy merchandise arsenic thing that is "smoked, sniffed, sucked oregon chewed", and due to the fact that heated baccy products bash not nutrient smoke, they aren't covered by that definition.

Morrisons cited the aforesaid argument. "On that basis, we are comfy that it is ineligible for heated baccy products to beryllium advertised successful store," it said.

Sainsbury's said the ads were "in enactment with existent baccy legislation".

Both supermarkets accidental they bash not merchantability the devices to children.

PMI and JTI accidental their heated baccy devices are lone intended for existing nicotine and baccy users.

Hazel Cheeseman, main enforcement of Action connected Smoking and Health, said supermarkets advertizing these products was "disgraceful behaviour".

"[It] puts unit connected overstretched enforcement services and risks introducing children and young radical to caller baccy products."

The authorities would not accidental whether it inactive thinks advertizing heated baccy is prohibited.

A spokesperson said: "This government's landmark Tobacco and Vapes Bill volition heighten existing legislation, including connected advertising, and enactment america connected way for a smoke-free UK."

The forthcoming bill is expected to prohibition each advertizing of nicotine and baccy products including nicotine pouches and vapes.

The UK's biggest supermarket Tesco said it does not tally baccy ads, portion a spokesperson for Asda said it doesn't advertise baccy products "in bid to comply with existent authorities arsenic we recognize it".