Lung Foundation Pushes for Supermarket Tobacco Ban
The Lung Foundation Australia has reignited the national conversation around smoking, calling for cigarettes and tobacco products to be banned from sale in major supermarkets. The move, it says, is necessary to curb the temptation that smokers face when they shop for groceries and to reinforce that tobacco products are not just another everyday item.
The Lung Foundation Australia has revived the national debate on smoking by urging a ban on the sale of cigarettes and tobacco products in major supermarkets. [Image: Lung Foundation Australia]
Mark Brooke, the Foundation’s chief executive, said the accessibility of cigarettes in supermarkets is a public health failure and a moral concern.
“We need everyone from government to big corporations to put the lung health of Australians ahead of profits from a product that kills 66 Australians daily,” he said.
Brooke pointed to previous media reports that highlighted Coles’ internal estimates, indicating their annual cigarette sales could lead to more than 1,600 Australian deaths and generate over $300 million in medical costs related to tobacco use.
Mark Brooke, the Lung Foundation Australia’s chief executive [Image source: LinkedIn]
A Personal Story of Struggle and Support
Former smoker Sarah Waters, who picked up her first cigarette at age 11 and smoked regularly from the age of 13, is among those backing the push. She believes that removing cigarettes from supermarkets could have helped her quit earlier.
“It isn’t easy to quit but not being able to buy cigarettes so easily would have made a big difference,” Waters said.
“If you are at the shops and they are there you can just say, ‘It will be my last packet.’ If it is not there, then I think it would be the extra barrier to help someone quit.”
Waters tried everything from patches to hypnosis during her 27-year smoking addiction before finally succeeding with prescribed medication. Her story is a reminder that easy access can reinforce addiction and stall recovery.
Sarah Waters says she backs any measure that could assist Australians in quitting smoking or prevent them from taking it up. [Credit: ABC News/Michael Lloyd]
Expert Backing for the Ban
The proposal to ban tobacco sales in supermarkets has gained the backing of medical professionals, including Dr Henry Marshall, a thoracic physician at Prince Charles Hospital, who likened nicotine’s addictiveness to heroin.
“The difference is you can’t buy heroin with your weekly shopping,” he said.
Marshall strongly supports the Foundation’s call and urges Australians to demand action from tobacco companies who, he says, have knowingly profited off a deadly product for decades.
“People who smoke deserve more help from health professionals and the government,” he added.
“It is time we said, ‘enough is enough’.”
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Accessibility Fuels Addiction
The Lung Foundation argues that easy accessibility to tobacco is a core issue in continuing tobacco addiction. Brooke said reducing points of sale is an essential — though not standalone — measure in the broader fight against smoking.
“By removing as many of those points of sale or limiting those points of sale, is a really important part of the solution,” he said.
While smoking rates in Australia have declined significantly — currently sitting around 10% of the population — the presence of cigarettes in everyday retail spaces remains a problem. Brooke urged corporations to stop putting profit ahead of public health.
The Black Market Dilemma
One challenge facing the crackdown is the rise of the illegal tobacco trade. In Queensland this month, authorities seized illegal cigarettes and vapes with an estimated street value of $20.8 million — the largest bust in state history.
James Durl, a marketing research fellow at Griffith University, acknowledged the concerns around illegal sales but supported the proposal from a preventative standpoint.
“The idea of a tactic like this is to keep it out of sight and out of hands of people who haven’t started smoking,” he said.
Durl said existing smokers might initially be inconvenienced but would not necessarily turn to black market alternatives, provided tobacco remained legally available through designated outlets such as tobacconists.
James Durl says limiting access is a modest move in the ongoing decades-long battle to eliminate tobacco use. [Credit: ABC News/Michael Lloyd]
Legislation and Retailer Responses
Federal Health Minister Mark Butler noted that the government passed laws in 2023 to “reignite the fight” against tobacco, including new packaging regulations and more impactful health warnings.
However, Butler has not committed to supporting a ban on supermarket tobacco sales. Supermarkets themselves have responded cautiously. A Coles spokesperson said:
“Coles complies with all Commonwealth, State and Territory laws aimed at minimising the negative health effects of tobacco use, however we recognise the need to provide choice to those customers who wish to purchase these products legally.”
Woolworths was contacted but did not respond before publication.
Meanwhile, IGA reported a $150 million revenue loss over three years due to the booming black market, illustrating the unintended consequences of current regulations and price hikes.
Tobacco Taxes Down, Smoking Rates Falling
While taxes on cigarettes have increased significantly, creating a pricing deterrent for many smokers, the unintended consequence has been a rise in illicit trade. Federal tobacco tax revenues have halved in five years — from $16.3 billion to $7.4 billion — as smokers either quit or turn to illegal suppliers.
Still, smoking rates have dropped from 20% of Australians in 2001 to just 8% today, according to government data. Public health advocates see this as a victory — but not the end of the war.
A Message of Hope
Sarah Waters, now 11 years smoke-free, said giving up cigarettes changed her life.
“I couldn’t enjoy life, like every time I laughed, I’d go into a coughing fit. It became anti-social, and it got really expensive as well.”
Today, she uses the money she once spent on cigarettes to travel. Her message to others is one of persistence and resilience.
“Use whatever resource you can, just to keep going. And surround yourself with people who want you to give up as well.”
The Bigger Picture
The Lung Foundation’s call to ban cigarette sales in supermarkets may seem drastic, but it’s part of a larger push to treat smoking for what it is — a life-threatening addiction that thrives on accessibility and social normalisation.
By limiting how and where tobacco can be bought, advocates hope to create a society where the decision to smoke is not constantly reinforced by convenience. As Mark Brooke said:
“Putting profit ahead of the community’s health is something that the foundation is asking all good corporate citizens to reconsider.”
