Abstract
BackgroundThe objective of this study was to conduct an audit of point-of-sale (POS) tobacco advertising and assess compliance with an advertising ban in a large district of Beirut, Lebanon.MethodsThe audit was conducted 3 months following the ban on tobacco advertising. Trained students observed all tobacco retail outlets (n = 100) and entered data into a web-based form using iPad® technology. Presence of tobacco advertisements was assessed to determine compliance with the national advertising ban.ResultsAmong the 100 tobacco retail outlets, 62% had tobacco advertisements, including 7% with a tobacco brand logo as part of the main exterior store sign.ConclusionsPOS tobacco advertising is widespread in Beirut despite the national advertising ban. These findings point to an urgent need for the enforcement of the advertisement ban with tobacco retail outlets in Lebanon.
Highlights
The objective of this study was to conduct an audit of point-of-sale (POS) tobacco advertising and assess compliance with an advertising ban in a large district of Beirut, Lebanon
A follow up Ministerial Decree No 7437, issued in January 2012 [7], allowed retailers to display one sign inside their stores stating that tobacco products are sold on the premises, but places the following restrictions: (1) the sign can be no more than A5 in size (14.8 cm × 21 cm); (2) the text of the sign shall only read “Tobacco products are sold here”; and (3) no other logo and/or trademark is allowed except for that of the Lebanese Régie, the government authority with exclusive rights to import and export local tobacco products and issue licenses to tobacco growers
We made the assumption that all supermarkets in the region sold tobacco products and the students were instructed to include them in their census of tobacco retail outlets
Summary
The objective of this study was to conduct an audit of point-of-sale (POS) tobacco advertising and assess compliance with an advertising ban in a large district of Beirut, Lebanon. Conclusions: POS tobacco advertising is widespread in Beirut despite the national advertising ban. These findings point to an urgent need for the enforcement of the advertisement ban with tobacco retail outlets in Lebanon. The law banned smoking in all indoor public places, effective September 2011. The legislation banned all forms of advertising and sponsorship of tobacco products effective March 2012, for the first time in the country’s history, all forms of advertising and sponsorship of tobacco products became illegal. A follow up Ministerial Decree No 7437, issued in January 2012 [7], allowed retailers to display one sign inside their stores stating that tobacco products are sold on the premises, but places the following restrictions: (1) the sign can be no more than A5 in size (14.8 cm × 21 cm); (2) the text of the sign shall only read “Tobacco products are sold here”; and (3) no other logo and/or trademark is allowed except for that of the Lebanese Régie, the government authority with exclusive rights to import and export local tobacco products and issue licenses to tobacco growers
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