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ASDA Press Centre Wednesday 19th July, 2006=First Supermarket To Extend 'Challenge 21' Policy To These Products


ASDA today (19 July 06) announced that it would be the first retailer in the UK to voluntarily raise the minimum age for customers buying knives and cigarettes* from 16 to 18.

The Challenge 21 scheme, that ASDA participates in, will also be extended.

Customers who are lucky enough not to look 21, will be asked to provide proof of age to show that they are 18 or over when buying cigarettes and knives at ASDA stores.

This widens the scheme, which currently includes the sale of alcohol, fireworks and 18 rated dvd’s and computer games.

ASDA’s decision, which comes into force from 1 September 2006, happens at a time when knife crime is on the increase and laws around smoking are being scrutinised.

The move falls during the Government’s consultation on proposals to crack down on teenage smoking (1).





At the same time The Violent Crime Reduction Bill (2), is going through the House of Lords, which includes measures to increase the age at which a person can be sold a knife from 16 to 18.

“Public opinion is changing in these areas and as a responsible retailer we felt we should do something,” said ASDA’s retail director, Andy Clarke,

“By raising the age limit to 18 for the sale of cigarettes and knives, not only are we helping discourage teenage smoking, but also helping our colleagues who sometimes find it hard to judge how old customers are,” added Andy.

ASDA is calling for other large retailers, newsagents and small stores to follow its lead as well as adopt the Challenge 21 policy.





The call to action follows Government research (3) which showed that nearly 70 per cent of 11 to 15 year old smokers say they buy their cigarettes from small retailers such as newsagents and corner shops.

Raising the age limit to 18 and adopting Challenge 21 also protects ASDA’s colleagues who are often faced with the responsibility of accurately identifying if the customer is 16, 17 or 18.

I've quoted it in full but in case anyone thinks I made it up, here's the link to that page:-

Asda Press Centre