Crackdown on Unlawful E-cigarette Trade in South Australia

According to a report by Australian media outlet 9news, the state of South Australia conducted an eight-week crackdown on illegal e-cigarette operations, which involved inspecting a total of 180 businesses and seizing nearly 5000 e-cigarettes. The estimated market value of these seized products is believed to exceed $100,000 AUD.

The vast majority of e-cigarettes confiscated were found to contain nicotine. One company was found to be hoarding over 2000 e-cigarettes, with one of them containing the equivalent nicotine amount of three packs of cigarettes.

Nicola Spurrier, the Chief Health Officer of South Australia, stated,"Some parents claim that their children even hide e-cigarettes under their pillows, and when they are unable to fall asleep at night, they wake up and have to take a puff of the e-cigarette because they are addicted to it."

In this operation, 12 companies were fined, with a maximum penalty of $1,000 for each. Enforcement officials discovered that convenience stores were the most frequent violators.

The South Australian government is currently considering imposing stricter penalties on offenders. Chris Picton, the Minister for Health of the South Australian government, has stated that new laws will be introduced this year to increase the penalties for a range of violations under the Tobacco and e-cigarette Act. The government also hopes that the upcoming federal law, which prohibits the importation of non-prescription e-cigarettes, will help eradicate this issue.