Supermarkets are considering a once-unthinkable move to ditch tobacco from their shelves, as the illegal trade makes stocking cigarettes almost unviable.

The immense scale of the loss of legal sales and retailers revenue is clear from financial reports issued this season.

Quarterly data posted by Woolworths on Wednesday showed sales down 51 per cent compared with the same three months in 2024, while Coles sold 30 per cent less tobacco across the past financial year.

Sales at wholesalers Metcash are down almost half compared with four years ago, a drop of $1.3 billion that now has tobacco representing just 17 per cent of sales.

Viva Energy, which operates 1000 petrol stations nationwide, revealed this week sales had plunged 12.5 per cent in the last quarter, blaming the latest set of pa

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