New Zealand increases tobacco exports to Australia

AAP
Herald Sun
March 26, 2012

AN anti-smoking group has criticised a New Zealand factory for taking on a contract to supply more cigarettes to Australia.

Imperial Tobacco’s Petone factory is quadrupling its exports to Australia, adding 50 manufacturing jobs and completing a two-year, $35 million upgrade.

Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) director Ben Youdan said New Zealanders could be taking responsibility for a considerable number of deaths in Australia.

The cigarettes would be smoked by about 100,000 Australians, about half of whom would die prematurely from tobacco, he said.

It was a “real shame” the expansion had come at a time when the government had a goal to make New Zealand smoke-free by 2025, Mr Youdan said.

“What we would have hoped … is that we should be getting the tobacco industry out from the country, not expanding it.”
The cigarettes would be smoked by about 100,000 Australians, about half of whom would die prematurely from tobacco
The move put workers in a difficult situation in a tough economic time, he said.

He hoped New Zealanders’ moral compass would stay pointing in the right direction and Imperial would not be “overwhelmed with people who want to be part of the death industry”.

The cigarettes were previously made by British American Tobacco in Sydney, but that contract runs out in June.

Imperial’s Petone factory manager Michael McInnarney told the Dominion Post that staff had worked hard to prove they were capable of dealing with the increased work to get the contract.

“A variety of other sites were looked at, but it was decided logistically and for transport costs that it made very good sense to have it in New Zealand.”