CATEGORY ADVICE FIGHTING ILLICIT TOBACCO

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Ian Howell, fiscal and regulatory affairs manager at JTI UK

“WE recognise it can be difficult to identify an illegal vape at first glance, meaning educating and training staff plays an important part in preventing illicit sales. We’ve mapped out guidance on what to look out for:

E-cigarette tanks should have a capacity of no more than 2ml and refill containers are restricted to 10ml.

The e-liquids themselves can’t exceed a nicotine strength of 20mg/ml and all packaging must be child-resistant and tamper evident.

Disposable vapes claiming more than 600 puffs are likely to be illegal.

Colourings, caffeine and taurine are banned.

“We encourage retailers to visit JTI Advance to access information that helps empower and educate staff and, of course, JTI’s business advisers can assist and offer advice.”

What Retailers Can Do

THE fight against illicit tobacco requires coordination and cooperation between people reporting crimes when they see them, and the authorities taking immediate action against wrongdoers.

While there are several avenues open for retailers to turn to, there is still more that could be done by authorities.

“The illicit tobacco trade causes significant harm to local shops and the communities they serve, both in terms of posing health risks and undermining legitimate retailers,” says ACS chief executive James Lowman.

“We have urged the government to tackle the illicit market by making use of the existing systems, such as track and trace, which tracks the movement of tobacco throughout the supply chain and the location of all retailers of tobacco products in the UK.

“The government should commit to providing additional funding for illicit tobacco enforcement, as set out in the Khan Review, and direct this funding to enforcement teams and local authorities to ensure that they have the staffing and resources they need to tackle illicit traders.”

When it comes to illicit vaping, retailers need to ensure they are doing everything they can to educate themselves and staff about what the guidelines, legislation and regulations are within this category to ensure they are not caught out.

“We recommend convenience retailers dealdirectly with legitimate manufacturers with a solid track-record in smokefree products. This includes, but certainly isn’t limited to, building strong relationships with field reps and ordering stock via a manufacturers’ trade engagement platform,” advises a PML spokesperson.

Top success

Success stores in the fight against illicit tobacco

“In November, HMRC uncovered an illegal cigarette factory in Leicester that could have led to a £130m annual revenue loss. In the first nine months of 2022, Border Force seized 690 million cigarettes and 31 tonnes of handrolling tobacco at the UK’s ports and airports,” says Howell.

“JTI’s Project Talon, which focuses on identifying social media posts that illegally advertise tobacco products, has led to the removal of thousands of such posts from platforms such as Facebook. The project continues to evolve as we develop and implement new review methods to further improve its effectiveness, including Telegram and TikTok,” adds Howell.

“We recently asked MPs to back our calls for stronger powers and additional funding for trading standards to tackle the issue of illegal tobacco,” says Howell. “The government has committed to extending some of HMRC’s powers to trading standards this year.”

“Our internal data in the north-west shows that a focus on enforcement activity has reduced the number of retailers who sell to children during test-purchasing operations, which is definitely a step in the right direction. We would encourage people to continue to report to us when they have concerns,” says Trading Standards’ Kate Pike.