Resources Library – Hot Topic – Contraband Tobacco

Hot Topic – Contraband Tobacco

According to the Government of New Brunswick, reducing New Brunswick’s illicit tobacco trade by 1 percentage point would increase taxes collected by an estimated $1 million annually. This revenue could be used to help fund essential services such as health care, social programs, and provincial highways. (Source: Illegal Tobacco: It Hurts Us All -Government of New Brunswick)

However, it is essential to understand that the issue of contraband tobacco goes far beyond just lost tax revenue. Contraband tobacco has many negative impacts on the well-being of our communities. For example, it encourages smoking initiation and undermines smoking cessation efforts, particularly among vulnerable populations like youth/young adults and low-income individuals. Some resources to help New Brunswickers better understand the complex issues surrounding contraband tobacco are listed on this page.

It should be noted that New Brunswick had a Contraband Enforcement Unit in place from 2016 t0 2019. The unit also sent a representative to sit on the New Brunswick Anti-Tobacco Coalition (NBATC) Steering Committee during this time. This helped many of our stakeholders and partners realize the impacts of contraband tobacco and start to look at working collaboratively on the issue. The Contraband Enforcement Unit was unfortunately eliminated in 2019.

Information on the Repercussions of Contraband Tobacco