Insights into why dairies sell tobacco – Cancer Society and Canterbury District Health Board

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A recent survey by the Cancer Society and Canterbury District Health Board of 62 dairies and convenience stores in Christchurch provides new insight into how important tobacco is perceived to be to their business, and whether they would be prepared to stop selling tobacco altogether.

Addressing the supply of tobacco is one of the key strategies of Smokefree Aoteaora 2025 but there is currently no national strategy in place.

With the deadline for Smokefree New Zealand rapidly approaching, there are calls from some health advocates for a renewed focus on reducing the supply of tobacco in communities.

“We know where there are high number of tobacco outlets people are more likely to smoke, and find it more difficult to quit. The Cancer Society would like to see the majority of tobacco retailers transition out of selling tobacco products, however to do so, dairies and other retailers will need support,” says Shayne Nahu, Health Promotions Manager of Cancer Society New Zealand.

The Cancer Society and Canterbury DHB say the research strengthens the case for tighter restrictions on tobacco availability through regulations such as a compulsory licensing scheme.

Nearly one third of stores surveyed said they would consider not selling tobacco with support from their local council and with seeing other dairies making the change to quit selling tobacco.

“Understanding what drives dairies to keep selling tobacco is an important step towards working with them and other suppliers on a national approach to achieve Smokefree Aotearoa 2025,” says Heather Kimber, Health Promoter at Community & Public Health, Canterbury DHB.

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More than half of the dairies surveyed agreed that selling tobacco was important to their business, however more than half also agreed that tobacco sales contributed to less than 10 percent of their profits.

More than 64 percent also expressed security concerns about selling tobacco.

The study also revealed that owners and managers of dairies are well aware of the harms of smoking with nearly 90 percent of them believing that smoking tobacco is harmful to children and adults.

The Cancer Society says that while New Zealand has a goal to have fewer than 5% of the public smoking by 2025, we’re not going to get there unless there is a focus on decreasing availability of tobacco.

The Canterbury Cancer Society and Canterbury DHB worked together to produce the research – the latest output from a decade long partnership. The two organisations successfully launched The Fresh Air Project aimed at promoting smokefree outdoor eating areas in cafes and restaurants, which gained momentum as part of the Canterbury rebuild.

This latest research was conducted in March 2016 and has been published today in the New Zealand Medical Journal.