Earnings still going up. Industry leaders say contraband has stolen one-third of legitimate cigarette market
Jump to full article: Montreal Gazette (ca), 2007-11-09
Author: WILLIAM MARSDEN, The Gazette
Intro: Despite tobacco industry claims that one-third of its market in Ontario and Quebec has been grabbed by smugglers, the cigarette companies' financial reports don't show much impact on their performance.
Healthy results reported by all three major tobacco producers indicate the contraband problem has not been as damaging as the industry is making it out to be. . . .
Most of the illegal tobacco producers are located on the U.S. side of the Akwesasne reserve.
Jerry Montour, chief executive officer of Grand River Enterprises, a federally licensed tobacco producer on the Six Nations reserve near Brantford, Ont., said the simplest way to stop the smuggling is to lay charges against companies that supply tobacco, paper, filters and machines to illegal producers.
"Why are (the suppliers) not held accountable?" he asked. "You know why they aren't? Because they are white."
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