Saudi Gazette report

RIYADH — The Saudi Ministry of Municipalities and Housing has banned the sale of tobacco products in kiosks and grocery stores across the Kingdom.

This is part of an update to the requirements for grocery stores, supermarkets and hypermarkets, introduced by the ministry, as part of its efforts to promote the business environment and raise food safety standards to protect consumers.

According to the requirements published by the ministry on Monday, these products include all manufactured and packaged tobacco products licensed by the Saudi Food and Drug Authority. These include regular and electronic cigarettes, shisha, and similar tobacco products. Their sale is prohibited in grocery stores, which are stores licensed to sell packaged food products, personal care products, detergents, disinfectants, and related products, as well as plastic and paper products, provided that the facility would have a minimum space of 24 square meters.

A kiosk is a small, stand-alone facility, which may be without walls, with a special design consistent with the city's urban identity, where grocery store activities are carried out.

The ministry stressed the need for tobacco products to comply with approved standard specifications, such as 100 percent invisibility to facility visitors, and stocking them in closed drawers. It is prohibited to sell them to anyone under the age of 18 or as determined by the Anti-smoking Law. The seller has the right to ask buyers to provide proof of reaching the age of 18.

The requirements set a minimum area of 4 square meters for kiosks located in shopping malls, 10 square meters for kiosks located on land with commercial or mixed use, 24 square meters for grocery stores, 100 square meters for supermarkets, and 500 square meters for hypermarkets.

The updates also clarified licensing requirements, which include Civil Defense approval before issuance of license and the submission of a valid commercial registration detailing the activity to be licensed. Regarding spatial requirements, the updates stipulate that the site must be located on a commercial street in accordance with regulations and instructions, and within commercial buildings or within sites designated for commercial use.

A number of requirements have been set for kiosks, most notably that the distance from the entrance to any building must be at least 6 meters while the minimum distance for pedestrians must be 1.8 meters. There should be a dedicated lane for car service for kiosks located on land with commercial or mixed use.

The new amendments in the regulations allow kiosks to be installed in parking lots in commercial complexes after obtaining approval from the mayoralty or municipality provided that the parking capacity is not affected.

The ministry also allows additional activities for kiosks and that are subject to several conditions, including that the total area of the added activities must not exceed 50 percent of the total area, and that the minimum area of the main activity must be maintained. The additional activity area must not be less than 6 square meters, excluding kiosks and self-service machines.

The requirements allow the addition of a number of other activities to supermarkets and hyper markets, excluding grocery stores. These include nuts, coffee, unpackaged spices, vegetables, fruits, dates, cheeses, pickles, unpackaged salads, fresh and chilled meat, fresh seafood, tobacco products, and regular, semi-automated, and automated bakeries. The operation of pharmaceuticals, mobile phones, and restaurants are limited to hypermarkets only.

According to the requirements, all brand colors, logos, and any other written texts are determined according to specifications necessary to demonstrate a unified commercial identity, including the color used, the type, size, and color of the font, and all its constituent visual elements. Only four colors are allowed to use and they are yellow, and green with its three derivatives.

The amendments aim to promote public health, improve food safety, reduce visual distortion, minimize environmental and structural violations, and ensure the smooth flow of shoppers.

The updated requirements include location and space requirements, as well as requirements for storing, displaying, and preparing food products, as well as requirements for commercial signs and workers in the sector.

The requirements also include basic equipment for grocery stores, supermarkets, including food safety management requirements, the distribution of additional activities within the facility, provisions for displaying goods within the facility, and refrigeration and freezing units.