http://www.tobacco.org/newsfeed/country/new_zealand.rss Latest top tobacco news headlines en-us http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/GE0807/S00093.htm http://tobacco.org/news/268882.html Public Health and the Lakes Smokefree Coalition are once again congratulating an Okere Falls store owner who refuses to sell cigarettes. Sarah Uhl who owns the Okere Falls Store won’t sell a product that is both expensive and lethal. “To put the health of her community first and not sell cigarettes is a courageous stand” says Graeme Savage, Regional Manager, Toi Te Ora – Public Health, “obviously it’s not about revenue for Sarah and her commitment to not sell tobacco is an asset to the Okere community” he said. . . . In recognition of Ms Uhl’s decision to not sell tobacco in her store she has been invited to be a guest speaker at the Cancer Societies documentary launch “Out of Sight, Out of Mind” in Rotorua next Wednesday, 23 July, at the Rotorua District Council. “Out of Sight, Out of Mind: Protect our children from tobacco marketing”. This is a first of its kind for New Zealand Scoop New Zealand Fri, 18 Jul 2008 04:00:00 GMT http://www.3news.co.nz/News/National/Cigaretteflavouringoutragesantismokinggroup/tabid/423/articleID/62341/Default.aspx?ArticleID=62341 http://tobacco.org/news/268491.html Anti-smoking campaigners are fighting to ban cigarette flavouring which could make the nicotine habit more tempting for youngsters. The product comes in a range of fruit flavours and is poured on tobacco, masking the taste of smoke and raising fears it could make the habit easier to swallow. With flavours like silly strawberry, punched up pineapple and spiffy spearmint, anti-smoke campaigners say the tobacco additives are the latest bid by the tobacco companies to lure young people into addiction. TV3 New Zealand Tue, 08 Jul 2008 04:00:00 GMT http://www.stuff.co.nz/4610849a11.html http://tobacco.org/news/268412.html The Health Ministry has been ordered to investigate urgently flavoured tobacco and products to make cigarettes taste of fruit. Action on Smoking and Health and health officials say additives such as Tasty Puff drops - which come in Awesome Apple, Blueberry Thrill and Joosy Froot flavours and are designed to be added to cigarettes - should be banned because they mask the taste of tobacco and entice youngsters to smoke. The Dominion New Zealand Tue, 08 Jul 2008 04:00:00 GMT http://www.stuff.co.nz/4609688a19716.html http://tobacco.org/news/268363.html Banning smoking in bars and restaurants has saved the lives of more than 75,000 Kiwis, the Health Ministry says. Since the introduction of the legislation in December 2004, there are now 150,000 fewer smokers - bringing the total smoking population down to less than 20 per cent. Ministry national director of tobacco control Ashley Bloomfield said half of the smokers who had quit in the past three-and-a-half years would have died as a result of their smoking. "Those smokers who die from a smoking-related illness lose of average 15 years of life compared to non-smokers," said Dr Bloomfield. But Hospitality Association chief executive Bruce Robertson is disputing that where there is smoke there is fire - saying most New Zealanders would look at the statistics and think: "Really?" Mr Robertson, whose organisation represents the bar industry, said the 75,000 figure had "little credibility" and it was hard to establish such outcomes from "very small surveys". Independent Newspapers Ltd. / STUFF New Zealand Mon, 07 Jul 2008 04:00:00 GMT http://www.stuff.co.nz/4610539a11.html http://tobacco.org/news/268361.html A North Canterbury man must pay $500 to a policeman for burning him on the arm with a cigarette during a traffic stop. Shane Martin Waterman, of Waikari, 70km north of Christchurch, North Canterbury, was stopped at nearby Balcairn, at 10am on May 7. . . . He was given a ticket and at one point the officer reached through the car window for the keys. That was when Waterman pushed a burning cigarette into his forearm causing a burn 10mm across. Independent Newspapers Ltd. / STUFF New Zealand Mon, 07 Jul 2008 04:00:00 GMT http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/latest/200807051749/26d7a99 http://tobacco.org/news/268290.html An organisation representing convenience stores is being accused of not disclosing that it is backed by tobacco companies. The Association of Convenience Stores, which counts two large tobacco companies among its members, has made submissions to a select committee against banning tobacco displays. Its chairman Bryce Taylor says it is not providing a front and that tobacco companies are entitled to be members of its organisation. Radio New Zealand - Te Reo Irirangi o Aoteoroa New Zealand Sat, 05 Jul 2008 04:00:00 GMT http://tvnz.co.nz/view/page/536641/1889068 http://tobacco.org/news/268281.html The Ministry of Health is investigating whether tobacco companies are breaking the law by offering special payments and rebates to retailers. Some retail outlets say they have been offered rebates and expensive overseas trips if they sell large quantities of tobacco. Most retailers would not comment about the incentives to sell cigarettes because they were worried that they would lose them. But one said that before the cash rebates started he used to be offered things like free holidays to the Olympic games, Americas Cup races and even new TVs. ONE News has obtained the incentive criteria of one tobacco company. Reuters New Zealand Fri, 04 Jul 2008 04:00:00 GMT http://www.nzherald.co.nz/category/story.cfm?c_id=204&objectid=10519947 http://tobacco.org/news/268234.html A call was made today for Maori women to quit smoking during pregnancy. The Public Health Association's conference in Waitangi was told 50 per cent of Maori women still smoke and 80 per cent of this group continued to smoke during pregnancy. Te Hotu Manawa Maori manager Irene Walker said the rate of Maori smoking during pregnancy must reduce. New Zealand Herald New Zealand Fri, 04 Jul 2008 04:00:00 GMT http://www.nzdoctor.co.nz/news?article=63b904ed-56fd-48f3-a357-24a4f4ee5c42 http://tobacco.org/news/268229.html New research from New Zealand confirms international evidence that tobacco displays encourage children to start smoking. Researchers found that the more times teens visit retail outlets which display tobacco products or report noticing tobacco displays in shops, the more likely they are to be susceptible to smoking, have experimented with smoking or be a regular smoker. That's the conclusion of four researchers with Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) after they examined the results of a survey conducted among 27,000 Year 10 (4th form) students from 238 schools last year. New Zealand Doctor New Zealand Thu, 03 Jul 2008 04:00:00 GMT http://www.stuff.co.nz/northland/4602423a1927.html http://tobacco.org/news/268206.html Smokefree campaigners are concerned tasty smoking additives are making the habit attractive again Smoking among teenagers in Northland is down compared to 10 years ago but smokefree campaigners are concerned tasty smoking additives are making the habit attractive again. "Products like Tasty Puff make tobacco more attractive to young people who are experimenting with smoking, as it masks the taste of the cigarette with exotic flavours like Mango Tango, Joosy Froot and Crumpy Chocolate," says Northland District Health Board’s smokefree coordinator Bridget Rowse. Independent Newspapers Ltd. / STUFF New Zealand Tue, 01 Jul 2008 04:00:00 GMT http://www.nzherald.co.nz/topic/story.cfm?c_id=294&objectid=10519842 http://tobacco.org/news/268178.html The Ministry of Health is investigating the rebates tobacco companies pay retailers to stock their products. The ministry told the Herald yesterday it would investigate "the issue of tobacco companies providing incentives to retailers to sell and display tobacco". At Wednesday's meeting of Parliament's health select committee, the Association of Convenience Stores told MPs retailers received "standard trade rebates" from tobacco companies. The ministry said: "Section 28 (2) of the Smoke-free Environments Act (1990) bans any gift or cash rebate as an inducement or reward to any retailer for the purchase, sale, advertising or placement of tobacco products." New Zealand Herald New Zealand Fri, 04 Jul 2008 04:00:00 GMT http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/1/story.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10519786 http://tobacco.org/news/268103.html The more teenagers visit shops where cigarettes are on display, the more likely they are to start smoking, new research by anti-smoking organisation ASH says. A survey has been conducted among thousands of students around the country each year since 1999. New Zealand Herald New Zealand Thu, 03 Jul 2008 04:00:00 GMT http://www.stuff.co.nz/4599871a11.html http://tobacco.org/news/267732.html Cigarettes could soon be kept under shop counters, with huge support having been expressed for a ban on tobacco displays. A Health Ministry report on public consultation on tobacco displays shows 453 out of 557 submissions received - more than 80 per cent - were in favour of a total ban. It is estimated that 10,000 dairies, supermarkets and petrol stations sell tobacco products. They are at present allowed to display 100 cigarette packets per cash register and must have a "smoking kills" sign nearby. British American Tobacco New Zealand warns that a ban on displays could drive sales underground and put retailers at risk. . . . The survey was presented yesterday on the final day of the National Tobacco Control Hui in Wellington. Independent Newspapers Ltd. / STUFF New Zealand Sat, 28 Jun 2008 04:00:00 GMT http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA0806/S00374.htm http://tobacco.org/news/267562.html Illegal drugs cost our society a lot, but their harm is dwarfed by that caused by legal drugs - alcohol and tobacco, Associate Health Minister Jim Anderton said today. "I made that clear when I released the BERL research showing illegal drugs caused $1.3 billion of social harm at the beginning of May. New Zealand as a society needs to act to reduce harm caused by drugs - legal and illegal." Jim Anderton said alcohol was "far and away" our most destructive drug. . . . He said tobacco caused about 4700 deaths each year, also extremely damaging to our society. "If any other drug caused that number of deaths, there would be rioting in the streets Scoop New Zealand Tue, 24 Jun 2008 04:00:00 GMT http://www.otago.ac.nz/news/news/2008/19-06-08_press_release.html http://tobacco.org/news/267531.html Tobacco wall displays in convenience stores and other retailers should be banned because New Zealand and international evidence shows they are an unhealthy influence on children and people trying to quit smoking, according to latest research from the University of Otago, Wellington. "This is a serious issue affecting children who are considering starting to smoke, or smokers struggling to quit," says lead research Dr George Thomson. "Tobacco companies use these wall displays and pay retailers to keep them up because they work; in essence, they normalise smoking." . . . However the study, 'Evidence and arguments on tobacco retail displays: marketing an addictive drug to children', just published in the New Zealand Medical Journal, indicates that in countries which have imposed a ban on tobacco 'power walls', there is little financial effect on retailers. Professor Janet Hoek and Dr Heather Gifford, two of the study co-researchers, say interviews with former smokers and lapsed quitters show that tobacco displays are highly visible and tempt people struggling to give up a dangerous and unhealthy habit that costs 4500 lives annually in New Zealand. "Despite the ban on tobacco advertising, wall displays are de facto advertising in over 5000 retail outlets across the country," researchers say. University of Otago New Zealand Thu, 19 Jun 2008 04:00:00 GMT