Superdrug is to stop buying single-use vapes from today and will halt sales as soon as stocks clear, the personal and beauty products chain said today.
Nearly five million disposable vapes, which contain lithium-ion batteries, are thrown away every week in Britain, according to Material Focus and YouGov.
Products that will no longer be sold include Flavaah and BAT's Vuse Go.
Superdrug said it currently sells 1,300 single-use vapes per week but gave no indication of any impact on revenue.
Ministers are said to be considering a ban by 2024 on both environmental and health grounds, the Telegraph reported last week.
"We need to be responsible about the growing trend in disposable vapes among young people, and the lasting effect on the environment," Superdrug's healthcare director Ghada Beal said in a statement.
Boots, Britain's biggest pharmacy chain, did not immediately reply to a request for comment on its single-use vape policy, Reuters reported.
Waitrose stopped sales of disposable vapes in January.