Retailer Compliance Research Articles

Retailer licensing and tobacco display compliance: are some retailers more likely to flout regulations?

ObjectivesTo assess retailer compliance with a licensing scheme requiring tobacco retailers to list their business details with the government, to examine whether listed retailers are more likely to comply with...

Has Boston's 2011 cigar packaging and pricing regulation reduced availability of single-flavoured cigars popular with youth?

ObjectiveWe evaluated retailer compliance with a cigar packaging and pricing regulation in Boston, Massachusetts, enacted in February 2012, and the regulation's impact on availability of single cigars.MethodsGrape-flavoured Dutch Masters (DM)...

Retailer compliance with tobacco control laws in New York City before and after raising the minimum legal purchase age to 21

ObjectivesNew York City (NYC) is the first large city to increase the legal minimum age for possessing tobacco products from 18 to 21 (Tobacco 21) and establish a minimum price...

The nutritional value of food: A retailer's view on McCance and Widdowson's The Composition of Foods Data

AbstractClear, concise, up‐to‐date food composition data are essential to the food retail sector. Legislation requires nutrition information on food labels to be accurate and provided in a format that consumers can read and understand. A product's nutrition panel enables consumers to make informed decisions at point of sale or purchase and choose products best suited to their dietary needs. This is particularly important in light of current public health concerns regarding energy (kcal), fat, saturated fat, sugar and salt intakes within the UK diet and also for increasing intake of nutrients conducive to health. In this regard, the Seventh Summary Edition of McCance and Widdowson's The Composition of Foods is an invaluable set of reference tables for the food industry. Its data, particularly on vitamins and minerals, allow consistent labels to be produced even when small seasonal variations occur. In such circumstances, changing the information on the label would be unnecessary and incur cost. Nutritional data are particularly useful for single‐ingredient foods such as eggs, cheese, bread and fruit, but the tables do lack some accuracy for composite recipe dishes because of the pace of reformulation. Overall, the validated data provided by McCance and Widdowson's The Composition of Foods are critical to the integrity of nutritional information provided on food labels and facilitates food retailer compliance with legislation, though there is a need for better management of new/revised ‘real‐time’ data.

Compliance with minimum price and legal age for cigarette purchase laws: evidence from NYC in advance of raising purchase age to 21

BackgroundNew York City (NYC) raised the minimum purchase age for cigarettes from 18 to 21 on 1 August 2014. The new law is intended to decrease current smoking rates and...

Evaluating stakeholder awareness and involvement in risk prevention of aquatic invasive plant species by a national code of conduct

In 2010, Dutch stakeholders signed a code of conduct to prevent the introduction and spread of aquatic invasive plant species. This voluntary agreement between the government and horticulture sector (i.e. plant nurseries and retailers) has the objective to ban the sale of invasive species and to increase public awareness and stakeholder involvement in measures to prevent new introductions of potential invaders. Public outreach campaigns included flyers and posters displayed in stores and labelling of non-native plant species with warning logos and messages on harmful effects and appropriate disposal. We evaluated several measures issued in the Dutch code of conduct by performing ex ante a n d ex posterior surveys and interviews with relevant stakeholder groups. Compliance of retailers and producers concerning species on sale and proper labelling was monitored annually by the Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority. Interviews with aquarists and water gardeners provided the first quantitative evidence in the Netherlands that 2–3% of these hobbyists deliberately introduced non-native aquatic plants in surface water. A survey of retail professionals identified limited availability of information and lack of salesman’s knowledge on the species lists issued in the code of conduct as major impediments for their engagement. Furthermore, low frequency of meetings and lack of guidance were major obstacles identified by the partners assembled in the code of conduct. Overall, compliance to species bans showed promising results, however, problems were identified with correct labelling of species. We conclude by listing opportunities to improve voluntary regulations for preventing non-native species introductions.

Parental and retail supply of tobacco to minors: Findings from a community-based social supply intervention study

AimWe report on findings from a quasi-experimental community trial of a complex intervention aimed at reducing social and commercial supply of cigarettes to young people. Materials and methodsThe intervention comprised a package of school, community and home-based smokefree strategies implemented over three years from 2007 to 2009 in a low-income area of Auckland, New Zealand, with another area serving as the control population. The main outcome measures were relative change in parental and retailer behaviour and in attitudes to the provision of tobacco to youth. We analysed baseline and follow-up data from questionnaires administered to parents and children living in the intervention and control areas using PASW Statistics 18. ResultsNo difference was found between groups in parents’ permissiveness of smoking and in retailer compliance to the tobacco sale legislation over the course of the study, either because our intervention had no or only a limited effect, or alternatively because limitations in the study design diluted any effect. ConclusionsNevertheless, a key finding was that parents and retailers persisted as important sources of cigarettes for young people. Further study is required to identify effective interventions to address this issue.

Marketing cigarettes when all else is unavailable: evidence of discounting in price-sensitive neighbourhoods

ObjectiveSince price is both a key determinant of smoking and one of the few remaining marketing strategies available in countries without point-of-sale tobacco display, this study examines cigarette price variations...

Influence of Retail Cigarette Advertising, Price Promotions, and Retailer Compliance on Youth Smoking-Related Attitudes and Behaviors

Exposure to retail tobacco marketing is associated with youth smoking, but most studies have relied on self-reported measures of exposure, which are prone to recall bias. To examine whether exposure to retail cigarette advertising, promotions, and retailer compliance is associated with youth smoking-related outcomes using observational estimates of exposure. Data on retail cigarette advertising and promotions were collected from a representative sample of licensed tobacco retailers in New York annually since 2004. County-level estimates of retail cigarette advertising and promotions and retailer compliance with youth access laws were calculated and linked to the New York Youth Tobacco Survey, administered to 54,671 middle and high school students in 2004, 2006, and 2008. Regression models examined whether cigarette advertising, promotions, and retailer compliance were associated with youth's awareness of retail cigarette advertising, attitudes about smoking, susceptibility to smoking, cigarette purchasing behaviors, and smoking behaviors. Living in counties with more retail cigarette advertisements is associated with youth having positive attitudes about smoking (odds ratio [OR] = 1.10, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.03-1.19, P < .01). Living in counties with more retail cigarette promotions is associated with youth current smoking (OR = 1.57, 95% CI = 1.01-2.44, P < .05). Living in counties with higher retailer compliance with youth access laws is associated with higher odds of youth being refused cigarettes when attempting to buy in stores (OR = 1.12, 95% CI = 1.01-1.25, P < .05) and lower odds of retail stores being youth's usual source of cigarettes (OR = 0.88, 95% CI = 0.80-0.97, P < .01). Strong retailer compliance programs and policies that eliminate cigarette advertising and promotions may help reduce youth smoking.

The tobacco-free generation proposal

The tobacco-free generation proposal advocates legislation precluding the sale and supply of tobacco to individuals born after a certain year. The measure is aimed at overcoming defects with current youth...

A Comprehensive Examination of the Influence of State Tobacco Control Programs and Policies on Youth Smoking

We examined the influence of tobacco control policies (tobacco control program expenditures, smoke-free air laws, youth access law compliance, and cigarette prices) on youth smoking outcomes (smoking susceptibility, past-year initiation, current smoking, and established smoking). We combined data from the 2002 to 2008 National Surveys on Drug Use and Health with state and municipality population data from the US Census Bureau to assess the associations between state tobacco control policy variables and youth smoking outcomes, focusing on youths aged 12 to 17 years. We also examined the influence of policy variables on youth access when these variables were held at 2002 levels. Per capita funding for state tobacco control programs was negatively associated with all 4 smoking outcomes. Smoke-free air laws were negatively associated with all outcomes except past-year initiation, and cigarette prices were associated only with current smoking. We found no association between these outcomes and retailer compliance with youth access laws. Smoke-free air laws and state tobacco control programs are effective strategies for curbing youth smoking.

The density of tobacco retailers and its association with attitudes toward smoking, exposure to point-of-sale tobacco advertising, cigarette purchasing, and smoking among New York youth

ObjectiveEstimate the association between the density of licensed tobacco retailers (LTRs) and smoking-related attitudes and behaviors among middle and high school students in New York. MethodsThe 2000–2008 New York Youth Tobacco Surveys were pooled (N=70,427) and linked with county-level density of LTRs and retailer compliance with laws restricting youth access to cigarettes. Logistic regressions tested for associations with attitudes toward smoking exposure to point-of-sale tobacco advertising, cigarette purchasing, and smoking prevalence. ResultsLTR density is associated with self-reported exposure to point-of-sale advertising in New York City (NYC) among all youth (OR=1.15; 95% CI: 1.02, 1.30) and nonsmokers (OR=1.14; 95% CI: 1.01, 1.30); youth believing that smoking makes them look cool, overall (OR=1.75; 95% CI: 1.22, 2.52) and among nonsmokers (OR=1.68; 95% CI: 1.11, 2.55); and a counter-intuitive negative relationship with frequent smoking in NYC (OR=0.50; 95% CI: 0.29, 0.84). Retailer compliance was negatively associated with youth reporting that a retail store is their usual source for cigarettes (OR=0.93; 95% CI: 0.88, 0.98). ConclusionsRestricting tobacco licenses and enforcing youth access laws are reasonable policy approaches for influencing youth smoking outcomes.

Out of sight, out of mind? Removal of point-of-sale tobacco displays in Norway

AimTo evaluate retailer's compliance and consumer's perceptions of and experiences with the point-of-sale (POS) tobacco display ban in Norway, implemented 1 January 2010.MethodsRetailer compliance was measured using audit surveys. Consumer's...

Compliance of off-premise alcohol retailers with the minimum purchase age law.

In Thailand, the 2008 Alcoholic Beverages Control Act set the minimum purchase age (MPA) at 20 years old in order to limit new drinkers as part of the overall alcohol control effort. This study aims to assess the compliance of off-premise alcohol retailers with MPA restrictions and to identify factors affecting sales to adolescents. A decoy protocol was used to quantify compliance of 417 alcohol retailers from three categories, namely grocers, modern minimarts and department stores. Multi-stage sampling was applied to obtain the samples in four provinces: Bangkok, Nakorn Sawan, Songkhla and Surin. Each alcohol retailer was visited twice by 17-19 year-old male and female adolescents who tried to buy alcohol. Information collected from focus groups and in-depth interviews with vendors and management officers were analysed for the qualitative methodology. Of all 834 buying attempts undertaken by the underage adolescent, 98.7% were successful in buying alcohol. Only 0.9% were asked for age and 0.1% were requested to show an ID card. Age and ID verifications were statistically significant to buying success as well as province, while number of vendors, gender and age of vendors and buyers, type of outlet, law cautions and advertisement signs in the outlet demonstrated no significant association. The results showed that vendors fail to comply with the law despite the fact that they know the law. Enforcement needs to be strengthened to effectively limit new drinkers.

Tobacco Advertising and Sales Practices in Licensed Retail Outlets After the Food and Drug Administration Regulations

To assess retailer compliance with Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulations on tobacco sales and advertising practices, including point-of-sale advertisements, in two distinct Columbus, Ohio neighborhood groups by income. Data were gathered from a random sample of 129 licensed tobacco retailers, which included data on both exterior and interior advertisements as well as sales practices. Descriptive analyses compared retail outlets by high and low income neighborhood locations. Compliance with FDA regulations was high in the random sample of urban tobacco retail outlets. None of the retail outlets sold loose cigarettes or offered free items with purchase. Less than 10% of the outlets surveyed offered self-service access to cigarettes or smokeless tobacco products. From all surveyed retail outlets 95% had cigarette, 57% had smokeless, and 57% had cigar advertisements at the point-of-sale. There were no significant differences in compliance by income, but the mean number of advertisements on the building and self-service access to cigars was significantly different by neighborhood income. There was a high degree of compliance with the new FDA regulation on tobacco marketing and sales practices in urban retail tobacco outlets in Columbus, Ohio. Tobacco advertising and marketing remain highly prevalent in retail outlets, with some significant differences between high and low income neighborhoods.

Enforcement of regional bans on tobacco sales to minors in Switzerland--Example of missed opportunity?

Tobacco control policies, aiming at reducing youth's access to tobacco, revealed positive outcomes and were implemented in most of the European countries. A naturalistic field study was conducted to assess retailer compliance with a regional ban forbidding selling tobacco products to youths under the age of 18 in a Swiss canton. Results revealed that, 20 months after implementation, the ban was respected by about one out of seven retailers and compliance did not improve significantly over the following 24-month period. Potentials for concrete improvements were observed and a call for stronger implementation at the regional and local levels was made.

Energy sales targets: An alternative to White Certificate schemes

White Certificate schemes are currently being implemented or proposed in a growing number of jurisdictions as a means to drive greater energy efficiency uptake. After briefly discussing some of the strengths and weaknesses of such schemes, this paper outlines a proposed alternative approach—the use of Energy Sales Targets. This approach essentially involves the imposition of a cap on the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions associated with annual energy sales and, in its simplest version, requires no tradeable certificates or permits. The proposed approach creates a clear measurable link between how compliance is enforced (the retailers’ targets) and the desired outcomes of the scheme (measurable reductions in GHG emissions). This drives physical additionality of the scheme, including negation of any rebound effect within the covered sectors. It also avoids the need to define the activities eligible to create certificates, and likewise, no deeming, auditing, monitoring or verification would be required by government beyond ensuring retailer compliance—significantly reducing administration costs. There does not appear to be a clear precedent for this type of scheme anywhere in the world, and so this paper should be seen as a preliminary scoping of options that are deserving of more in-depth assessment.

In sight, in mind: Retailer compliance with legislation on limiting retail tobacco displays

We investigated retailer compliance with point-of-sale display legislation, using a New Zealand region as a case study. An observational survey was conducted of nonspecialist tobacco retailers in the lower North Island of New Zealand during 2006. Compliance was assessed in relation to store type (dairies, convenience stores, supermarkets, and service stations) and by characteristics of the population of the census area unit in which the store was situated. These characteristics include the level of socioeconomic deprivation and proportions of Maori (indigenous New Zealanders), Pacific Islanders, and children aged less than 19 years. Out of the 288 stores surveyed, 185 (64%) had at least one breach of the point-of-sale regulations. The most common breaches were a failure to display a "Smoking Kills" sign, visibility of tobacco from outside the premises, and displaying tobacco less than 1 m from children's products. Compliance was significantly worse in dairies (small local general stores) and convenience stores. Stores situated in areas in the top quartile for the proportion of children were much more likely to have high levels of noncompliance (> or =3 breaches) and to display tobacco products close to children's products. This study is one of very few to systematically investigate retailer compliance with point-of-sale display regulations for tobacco products. The results suggest that the implementation of legislation to partly limit retail displays of tobacco products can be difficult. A ban on retail displays of tobacco products is likely to be a more effective and enforceable policy.

Tobacco compliance check in Hong Kong

We examined tobacco retailers' rates of compliance to the law forbidding the sale of tobacco products to persons under 18 years of age in Hong Kong. The overall compliance rate was only 18.9%. The low compliance rate may be attributed to poor enforcement of the youth access law. Overseas experiences show that regular checking is an effective way to evaluate the compliance of tobacco retailers to restrictions on youth access to tobacco. Periodic tobacco compliance checks should be adopted in Hong Kong to exert pressure on law enforcement bodies and tobacco retailers.

Inertia or Change? Try Continuous Renewal!

<h3>Objectives</h3> To assess retailer compliance with a licensing scheme requiring tobacco retailers to list their business details with the government, to examine whether listed retailers are more likely to comply with a point-of-sale (POS) display ban and other in-store retailing laws and to explore variations in compliance between different retailer types and locations. <h3>Method</h3> An audit of 1739 retailers in New South Wales, Australia, was used to assess compliance with tobacco retailing legislation. Auditors actively searched for and audited unlisted retailers and all listed retailers in 122 metropolitan and regional postcodes. Multivariate generalised linear regression models were used to examine associations between compliance and retailer type, remoteness and demographic characteristics (socioeconomic level, proportion of population under 18 years and proportion born in Australia). <h3>Results</h3> One unlisted tobacco retailer was identified for every 12.6 listed tobacco retailers. Unlisted retailers were significantly more likely than listed retailers to breach in-store retailing laws (p&lt;0.001). Compliance with the POS display ban was observed in 91.3% of tobacco retailers, but compliance with all retailing laws was only 73.4%. Retailers in socioeconomically disadvantaged areas had lower compliance than those in high socioeconomic areas. <h3>Conclusions</h3> Some tobacco retailers did not list their business details with the government as required, even though there was no financial cost to do so. Unlisted retailers were more likely to violate in-store regulations. The results suggest licensing schemes can be useful for providing a list of retailers, thus facilitating enforcement, but require a system to search for, and respond to, unlisted/unlicensed retailers.