London, ON – A new campaign in place at many local retailers is in violation of the Smoke-Free Ontario Act. The campaign uses in-store graphics and electronic tablets, which allow consumers to send letters to Ontario Minister of Finance Charles Sousa and Premier Kathleen Wynne, to call for the control of contraband tobacco.

While contraband cigarettes continue to be a major concern for the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care as well as health units across Ontario, the goal of the current in-store campaign is not to encourage consumers to quit smoking, but rather to influence them to purchase legal cigarettes at retail locations. Promoting the sale of tobacco products in the places they are sold is in violation of the Act.

“This campaign is not about jobs, this is not about business, this is about profit - and tobacco profits come with a death count,” says Dr. Christopher Mackie, Medical Officer of Health and CEO with the Middlesex-London Health Unit.

Since May 31st, 2008, the display of tobacco products in retail locations, or of materials that could influence an individual’s decision to purchase tobacco products, has been prohibited under the Smoke-Free Ontario Act.

In recent days, Health Unit Tobacco Enforcement Officers have been making educational visits to local tobacco retailers to inform them that the new campaign and associated promotional materials violate the Act. To date, all of the convenience store operators have been very cooperative in the effort to gain ongoing compliance with the provincial legislation.

“We need to remember the facts. Legally manufactured cigarettes sold through convenience stores are no safer than contraband cigarettes or any other type of tobacco product,” says Linda Stobo, Manager of Chronic Disease Prevention and Tobacco Control at the Middlesex-London Health Unit. “That’s why our Tobacco Enforcement Officers work closely with retailers on an on-going basis, ensuring they know their obligations under the Act.”

Research has shown that displaying and promoting the sale of tobacco at the point-of-sale can boost the sale of cigarettes through impulse buying and can influence young people to start smoking. It also makes it more difficult for smokers to quit, and for those who have quit smoking to remain smoke-free.

Media Contact:
Dan Flaherty, Communications Manager, Middlesex-London Health Unit, 519-663-5317 ext.2469 or 519-617-0570 (cell.)

Spokesperson:
Linda Stobo, Program Manager, Chronic Disease Prevention and Tobacco Control, Middlesex-London Health Unit