Meiyijia Store Locations Exposed for Selling Counterfeit Cigarettes

Special Topic: Improving Consumer Quality — Focus on the 2026 “315 Gala”

Reprinted from: Sing Tao Daily

On March 14, the “Guangdong 3.15 Gala” exposed widespread sales of counterfeit cigarettes at Meiyijia convenience stores.

Recently, many netizens reported purchasing “fake cigarettes” at Meiyijia stores, with some even directly accusing Meiyijia of being a “consolidation point for fake cigarettes,” joking that it has its “own cigarette factory.”

To verify whether the cigarettes purchased from Meiyijia are genuine, the investigation team reported the issue to the Tobacco Monopoly Bureau. Staff from the Tobacco Monopoly Bureau inspected the relevant stores. Law enforcement officers from the Haizhu Branch in Guangzhou first visited Meiyijia Store No. 18880 at 307 Dunhe Road. This store was found to have 8 types of problematic cigarettes totaling 38 packs. The tobacco authorities sealed these and sent them for further testing. Meanwhile, another group of law enforcement officers from the Haizhu Branch also found multiple problematic cigarette types at Meiyijia Store No. 21801 near Dunhe Road.

The investigation team conducted undercover visits in Guangzhou, Foshan, and Dongguan, purchasing problematic cigarettes from 10 Meiyijia stores. Among these, the Tobacco Monopoly Bureau identified at least 854 packs of problematic cigarettes. Four types of problematic cigarettes purchased from Meiyijia were sent to a third-party lab for testing. The results showed that the main smoke indicators of the tested cigarettes all had issues, indicating higher carcinogenic risks and stronger addictive potential, seriously threatening consumer health. However, days after law enforcement actions in Guangzhou, Foshan, and Dongguan, the investigation team revisited the stores involved and found that at least half of the 10 stores were still selling problematic cigarettes.

According to data from the China Chain Store & Franchise Association, by the end of 2024, Meiyijia chain stores totaled 37,943 locations, ranking first nationwide, and surpassed 40,000 stores by July 2025.

Source | Guangdong Radio and Television, Guangdong Economic TV

Editor | Yang Zhou

Chief Editor | Pan Lingyan

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责任编辑：杨赐