San Francisco Flavor Ban Confirmed to Be Effective

A new study by researchers from RTI International, Stanford University School of Medicine, and the California Tobacco Control Program, published in the journal Tobacco Control[1], measured the change in tobacco sales before and after the law banning flavored tobacco and nicotine (tobacco + vaping) products in San Francisco.

In June 2017, the San Francisco City Council passed a comprehensive ban on flavored tobacco and nicotine products (including menthol) which was signed into law in July 2018 and implemented in January 2019.[2]San Francisco was the first major Californian city to implement such a measure. Using weekly retail sales data (from July 2015 to December 2019), the study authors calculated the sales volume, in equivalent units, for each product category and the proportion of flavored products. The authors then estimated the change in sales by product for San Francisco and control cities for comparison: San Jose and San Diego.

A protective ban for young people

The journal Tobacco Control reports that the availability of flavored tobacco products is linked to tobacco initiation, experimentation, and regular use among adolescents and young adults.[3]. Among California high school students who currently use tobacco and other nicotine products, 86.4% of them use flavored products.[4]. Additionally, nearly half of California high school students believed that people their age would not use tobacco/vaping products if they were not flavored. Several recent studies demonstrate youth preference for flavored products and show that these products are often perceived as less harmful than unflavored products.[5].

No consumption transfers to non-flavored products

The study authors found that sales of all flavored tobacco and nicotine products were virtually nonexistent in San Francisco after the law was implemented in early 2019. Within 7 months, sales of all flavored products, including menthol, declined by 96.1% from the pre- to post-implementation period, from 34.5% of total product sales to less than 2.1%. Flavored product sales in San Jose and San Diego remained relatively stable during the same period.

The study indicates that total sales of tobacco and nicotine products (Tobacco + flavored or non-flavored vaping) were approximately 125,000 units per week before the policy came into effect and rapidly declined in the weeks leading up to the policy's effective date, to approximately 85,000 units per week in 2019, a decrease of nearly 30%.

In San Jose, total tobacco and nicotine product sales decreased throughout the study period (8% decrease in sales), but this decrease was due to a decrease in cigarette sales while an increase in cigar and vaping product sales was recorded (all flavors combined). Total tobacco sales in San Diego followed a downward trend throughout the study period (17%), due to the decrease in cigarette and cigar sales but vaping product sales (all flavors combined) increased.

The study concludes: "A reduction in total tobacco sales in San Francisco suggests that there has been no direct substitution of flavored tobacco and nicotine products for unflavored products."

Keywords: San Francisco, California, United States, Flavors, Regulation

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[1] Gammon DG, Rogers T, Gaber J, et al Implementation of a comprehensive flavor tobacco product sales restriction and retail tobacco sales Tobacco Control Published Online First: 04 June 2021. doi: 10.1136/tobaccocontrol-2021-056494

[2] Truth Initiative. Local flavored tobacco-policies as of September 30, 2020, 2020.Available: https://truthinitiative.org/sites/default/files/media/files/2020/12/Local-flavored-tobacco-policies-Sept-30-FINAL.pdf

[3] Kowitt SD, Meernik C, Baker HM, et al. Perceptions and experiences with flavored non-menthol tobacco products: a systematic review of qualitative studies. Int J Environ Res Public Health 2017;14. doi:doi:10.3390/ijerph14040338

[4] Zhu SH, Zhuang YL, Braden K. Results of the statewide 2017-18 California student tobacco survey. San Diego, California.: Center for Research and Intervention in Tobacco Control (CRITC), University of California, San Diego, 2019.

[5] Harrell MB, Loukas A, Jackson CD, et al. Flavored tobacco product use among youth and young adults: what if flavors didn't exist? Tob Regul Sci 2017;3:168–73.doi:10.18001/TRS.3.2.4