Convenience store group says possible menthol cig ban could hurt business, create black market

Trade group pushes against menthol cig ban

RICHMOND, Va. — A possible federal ban on menthol cigarettes could hurt convenience store business and create a black market for the minty smokes, a still-growing part of the shrinking cigarette market, the National Association of Convenience Stores said Thursday.

The group is urging a Food and Drug Administration scientific panel examining menthol cigarettes to consider the unintended consequences of a “hasty decision,” said Lyle Beckwith, senior vice president of government relations for the group representing more than 2,100 retail and 1,500 suppliers mostly in the U.S.

“Fanning the flames on a black market economy is something we’re very concerned about, not only from a viability of the store perspective, but also from a public health perspective,” said Beckwith, who likened a ban on menthol to prohibition of alcohol in the 1920s.

The Alexandria, Va., group also warned that a large black market could make it easier for children to get cigarettes because those involved in criminal activity won’t check identification to verify someone’s age.

Beckwith also said a potential ban could impact retailer’s profits.

The about 145,000 convenience stores across the U.S. post about $624 billion in total sales each year, with tobacco as their top-selling item, according to the trade group.

“Tobacco customers bring in foot traffic. They don’t just buy cigarettes, they buy other things,” Beckwith said. “We will lose a significant number of customers.”

The panel appointed by the FDA’s Center for Tobacco Products is meeting next week to discuss the public health impacts of menthol cigarettes and how to regulate them. It is required to make recommendations to the federal agency by March.

The nation’s top three cigarette makers, Philip Morris USA parent Altria Group Inc., Reynolds American Inc., and Lorillard Inc. have gone on the offensive amid the menthol review, saying scientific evidence does not show that menthol cigarettes create greater health risk than non-menthol cigarettes.

The share of smokers using menthol cigarettes increased from 31 percent in 2004 to 33.9 percent in 2008, with more pronounced increases among young smokers, according to a study released by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.

It also showed that among black smokers, 82.6 percent used menthol cigarettes, compared with 32.3 percent for Hispanic smokers and 23.8 percent for white smokers.

But studies vary on menthol’s health impacts and whether it plays a large role in enticing people to start smoking.