After five years of significant growth, Australia’s illicit tobacco trade has declined for the first time as authorities step up efforts to crack down on it.
Australian media report that the volume of smuggled products circulating on the market fell by 24% during the last financial year. Meanwhile, seizures of cigarettes and other illicit products reached record levels.
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Estimates from the Illicit Tobacco and E-cigarette Commission suggest that the smuggled tobacco market may have shrunk by as much as 1,438 tonnes. Authorities stress, however, that measuring the exact scale of this activity remains difficult.
Meanwhile, Australian Border Force data show that more than 730 tonnes of illicit tobacco were seized in the first quarter of the current financial year. Seizures had never previously been this high for that period.
Operations also led to the seizure of 3.75 million e-cigarettes, or vapes, up 18% from the same period a year earlier.
Australia’s Assistant Minister for Customs, Julian Hill, said the results demonstrate that government action against smuggling networks is having a tangible impact.
Hill said every seizure of illicit cigarettes, shop closure or operation against a smuggling network sends criminals a clear warning: authorities know who they are, understand how they operate and are pursuing both them and their profits.
He said government funding for stronger enforcement, alongside public health measures aimed at reducing demand for illicit products, had contributed to the result.
Although the black market has shrunk, the volume of seizures shows that tobacco and e-cigarette trafficking remains a significant challenge for Australian authorities.
