Authorities in South Korea referred 11 people to prosecutors after uncovering a smuggling ring that shipped 900,000 packs of genuine and counterfeit cigarettes to high-price markets, including Australia and New Zealand. According to Incheon Regional Customs, the group exploited price gaps between countries, buying cigarettes domestically for around 4,500 won ($3.06) per pack and reselling them abroad, where prices can exceed 41,000 won ($27.88). The operation allegedly generated about ₩1 billion ($680,000) in profit from more than 70 shipments between March 2024 and March 2025. Investigators say the ring recruited convenience store owners to source legitimate cigarettes and also purchased large quantities of counterfeit products through illegal channels, disguising shipments as items such as rubber mats before sending them overseas by courier.
Tag: New Zealand
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Stores in Stores Finds Loophole in NZ Vape Regs
Many general retailers in New Zealand have found a loophole to flavored vape restrictions by setting up stores within stores, research from Massey University has found. Regulations permit only specialist vape retailers to sell the full range of vape flavors if vaping products make up at least 70% of their sales, while general retailers are limited to mint, menthol, and tobacco flavors. The study found that 44% of 160 specialist vape outlets surveyed operated within larger stores, such as dairies and gas stations.
Casey Costello said specialist retailers are not allowed to display products outside their stores or allow under-18s to enter, adding that enforcement activity has increased and youth vaping rates are reportedly declining. Meanwhile, the Vaping Industry Association of New Zealand (VIANZ) acknowledged the store-within-a-store model as an unintended loophole and expressed support for closing it, stating specialist vape retailers should operate as standalone premises with strict age-verification and compliance standards while preserving adult access to regulated smoke-free alternatives.
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CAPHRA Urges Review of FCTC Following U.S. WHO Exit
The Coalition of Asia Pacific Tobacco Harm Reduction Advocates (CAPHRA) is calling on governments across the region to reassess the World Health Organization’s Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) following the United States’ withdrawal from the WHO and criticism of the agency from New Zealand Foreign Minister Winston Peters. CAPHRA argues that while the FCTC formally recognizes harm reduction under Article 1(d), current policy implementation has not consistently supported reduced-risk alternatives such as vaping and nicotine pouches.
CAPHRA representatives say restrictions on safer nicotine products risk slowing smoking decline and expanding illicit markets. The group pointed to New Zealand’s smoking rate, which has fallen to 6.8%, as evidence that regulated harm reduction strategies can accelerate public health gains. CAPHRA is also urging greater transparency in FCTC Conference of the Parties proceedings and broader engagement with independent scientists and consumer groups, arguing that future tobacco control policy should be measured by reductions in smoking prevalence and disease outcomes rather than product bans.
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New Zealand Approves First Product to Help Quit Vaping
The New Zealand Medicines and Medical Devices Safety Authority (Medsafe) approved the country’s first nicotine replacement therapy product specifically indicated to help people quit vaping. Medsafe is recommending Nicorette QuickMist for vapers looking to quit, a product that has been on the market for years for cigarette smokers. Asthma and Respiratory Foundation chief executive Letitia Harding said the approval recognizes vaping addiction as a growing issue and cited 2024 survey data showing 20% of Year 12 and 26% of Year 13 students reported vaping in the previous week. The Foundation is also calling for tighter vaping regulations, including halting new specialist vape retailers and restricting general retail sales.
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CAPHRA Tells Aussie Senate to Look at New Zealand
In response to recent announcements across Australia about increasing enforcement in its battle against illicit tobacco and nicotine products, the Coalition of Asia Pacific Tobacco Harm Reduction Advocates (CAPHRA) submitted evidence to Australia’s Senate directly comparing New Zealand and the Philippines—both with regulated vaping markets and declining smoking rates—to India and Thailand, where total bans have created underground markets with zero safeguards and rampant youth access.
CAPHRA said Australia and New Zealand are taking sharply different approaches to tobacco control, with contrasting outcomes reflected in recent data. New Zealand, which allows regulated access to vaping products alongside smoking-cessation support, has reduced adult daily smoking to 6.8%, among the lowest rates globally, while youth smoking has fallen to 3.2%, down from 19.2% a decade ago. Australia, by contrast, has maintained strict prohibitions on nicotine vaping products and focused heavily on enforcement against illicit tobacco, spending about A$157 million ($105 million) on policing and regulatory measures, including appointing a national illicit tobacco coordinator. Despite these efforts, authorities estimate Australia lost A$6.7 billion ($4.5 billion) in tobacco excise revenue in 2023–24, and the illicit tobacco market is valued at roughly A$4 billion ($2.7 billion).
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NZ Retailer Accused of Hiding Text on Website
New Zealand’s largest vape retailer, Shosha, has been accused of using hidden text on its website to promote vape products in ways that may breach strict advertising rules, according to The Press. Vape-Free Kids NZ co-founders say Shosha ran Christmas promotions featuring a cartoon Santa and embedded white text on white backgrounds in product pages that is only visible to humans when highlighted, but can be read by search engines, potentially circumventing regulations that limit online product information.
An academic expert said the hidden text can influence search rankings despite advertising bans, while the report also raises concerns about alleged discounting through free shipping offers and an international website mirroring New Zealand product descriptions. Shosha did not respond to media questions, and the Health Ministry said it is assessing the matter and continues to monitor digital advertising for possible legal breaches.
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New Zealand’s Conflicting Awards Panned by CAPHRA
Last week, Ben Youdan of New Zealand’s Action for Smokefree 2025 (ASH NZ) received the Orchid Award at the 2025 E-Cigarette Summit in the UK for promoting evidence-based public health policy and a regulated vaping approach that has led to the country’s 60% reduction in adult smoking—down to 6.8%—negligible youth smoking, declining youth vaping, and sharp reductions in smoking among Māori women. In a press release today (December 15), the Coalition of Asia Pacific Tobacco Harm Reduction Advocates (CAPHRA) pointed to the striking contrast in recent recognition as New Zealand’s tobacco control work was given a “Dirty Ashtray” slight in November by the WHO FCTC at COP11.
“This shows the world is splitting into two camps: those pursuing public health outcomes, and those pursuing pharmaceutical and billionaire interests,” said CAPHRA executive coordinator of Nancy Loucas. “This juxtaposition is perfect. The FCTC punishes New Zealand for achieving 6.8% smoking rates through harm reduction. Meanwhile, international public health leaders recognize our advocates for defending evidence-based policy against ideological capture.”
CAPHRA accused FCTC institutions of ideological capture that are skewing policy against vaping and other harm reduction tools. The group questioned the value of FCTC membership for countries like New Zealand that are achieving strong results, warning that continued opposition to harm reduction risks undermining the treaty’s credibility and its original mandate to improve public health outcomes.
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NZ Minister Grilled Over Oral Nicotine Plan
Associate Health Minister Casey Costello faced sharp questioning at a select committee over the government’s proposal to allow oral nicotine products such as snus and pouches. Costello, who, according to Radio New Zealand, has had to repeatedly deny allegations of an overly cozy relationship with the tobacco industry, said the move is part of a harm-reduction approach and is still subject to safety controls and measures to prevent youth access.
Labour’s Dr. Ayesha Verrall warned the products could fuel new addiction among young people, pressing Costello to accept expert advice to introduce them only if proven safer and effective at reducing smoking. Costello said the recommendations are still being considered. Public health researcher Dr. Jude Ball said there is no evidence oral nicotine products help smokers quit and warned that tobacco companies are aggressively pushing them to expand youth uptake.
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NZ Survey Shows Teen Vaping Falling, Smoking Near Zero
A new Action on Smoking and Health survey of more than 30,000 “year 10 students” shows New Zealand’s youth vaping rates have dropped significantly, with regular vaping halving since its 2021 peak of 20.2%. Daily vaping has also fallen to 7.1%, down from the 2022 high of 10.1%, while fewer than one-third of teens have ever tried vaping. Chairperson professor Robert Beaglehole says vaping is “not as cool as it used to be” and credits regulation and shifting perceptions.
Youth smoking, meanwhile, has nearly disappeared. Daily smoking sits at just 1%, a level Beaglehole calls a “major global success” and evidence that New Zealand is “raising a smoke-free generation.” He warns, however, that excessive regulation could undermine progress by pushing people back toward cigarettes.
Some experts remain concerned about inequities and product substitution. Associate Professor Andrew Waa cautions that some teens may be turning to oral nicotine products and argues for a “nicotine-free future.”
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GATC Awards at COP11 Draw Criticism
As predicted, New Zealand was given a “Dirty Ashtray Award” by the Global Alliance for Tobacco Control (GATC) at the World Health Organization’s FCTC COP11. The “award” is a symbolic dishonor given to countries or delegations that “are seen as obstructing progress on tobacco control or aligning too closely with tobacco industry interests.” Even though New Zealand has one of the world’s lowest smoking rates and some of the strictest tobacco controls, Copwatch correctly predicted it would receive the slight because the nation openly promotes harm reduction.
The GATC said New Zealand’s citation is “for trying to portray their current tobacco control plan as a success when in reality, since COP10, they’ve reversed world-leading reforms, sabotaged Indigenous tobacco-free aspirations, have alarming vaping rates among young people, and have plummeted from 2nd to 53rd on the global index for tobacco industry interference.
New Zealand’s legislative reversal is being used by tobacco industry interests globally to push bad policy.”
New Zealand has a 6.8% smoking rate (the fifth-lowest in the world), with a pack of cigarettes costing just under NZ$50 ($28), plain packaging requirements, and a strict smoking policy that pretty much bans smoking in all public places. Conversely, Mexico’s smoking rate is 15.4% and the average cost for a pack of cigarettes is $0.70, and yet it was awarded the “Orchid Award” by GATC for “powerful and uncompromising statements against the tobacco industry.”
The seemingly nonsensical awards drew sharp criticism.
“The (Bloomberg-funded) Global Alliance for Tobacco Control has given the Dirty Ashtray award to New Zealand for having one of the world’s lowest smoking rates but doing it in a way that Bloomberg disapproves,” Institute of Economic Affairs head Chris Snowden wrote on his X account. The global Tobacco Industry Interference Index, for which New Zealand was criticized for having dropped on, is financed by Bloomberg Philanthropies.
“Prohibitionist campaigners are annoyed that New Zealand has embraced harm reduction, pointing to ‘alarming vaping rates among young people,’” Alastair Cohen wrote for Clearing the Air. “Youth vaping rates have fallen for three successive years in New Zealand. Mexico was awarded at COP11. Mexico’s smoking rates are more than double those of New Zealand.”
The Coalition of Asia Pacific Tobacco Harm Reduction Advocates (CAPHRA) was also quick to condemn the awards. “Awarding the Dirty Ashtray to a country that is reducing smoking through harm reduction is not public health advocacy,” said CAPHRA Executive Coordinator Nancy Loucas. “It is ideological obstruction.”
“Prohibition-driven NGOs have placed ideology ahead of public health outcomes,” CAPHRA said in a statement. “The FCTC Secretariat has permitted well-funded NGOs to dominate proceedings, pressure delegations, and exclude voices with lived experience, many of whom were denied access to COP11.
“This decision reflects how the COP process has been driven by prohibitionist ideology rather than evidence and demonstrated public health success. These results are driven by harm reduction and regulated vaping, yet GATC dismisses the progress as ‘tobacco industry interference,’ ignoring the substantial health gains achieved.”