Te Whatu Ora Issues Warning To Taranaki Vape Retailers

Public health staff in Taranaki are urging retailers to
comply with vaping regulations after five premises were
caught selling vaping products to minors.

In September
Te Whatu Ora National Public Health Service Taranaki ran
controlled purchase operations (CPOs) on 16
retailers.

Carly Stevenson, Taranaki Smokefree
Enforcement Officer says five of the retailers breached the
Smokefree Environments and Regulated Products Act by selling
vaping products to a child aged under 18 years of
age.

“This is the second time that two of the five
retailers who sold to minors have failed a CPO since 1 July
2022,” said Stevenson.

“Every time a retailer breaches
the regulations they are referred to the Ministry of Health
who issue an infringement notice and a $500 fine. Retailers
who breach for a third time could face
prosecution.”

The five retailers who failed during the
September operation were Vogeltown Vape Lounge, Sweet
Temptations, Nolantown Dairy, Sunshine Dairy’s Vape2Go,
and High Street Vape.

Stevenson said a total of 56
premises in Taranaki have been visited as part of CPOs since
July.

“Te Whatu Ora would like to thank the retailers
who continue to comply with the legislation. For those that
are ignoring the rules the message is simple.

“We will
continue to enforce the regulations and we will continue to
refer you to the Ministry of Health for further
action.”

“Vaping products are for people who smoke as
way to quit. Young people and others who don’t smoke
should not vape. Most vaping products contain nicotine which
is addictive, and people can become addicted to vaping
because of this.

“For smokers, switching to vaping is
less harmful than continuing to smoke, non-smokers who take
up vaping are risk harming their health.”

For more
information on compliance with the Smokefree Environments
and Regulated Products Act 1990 or to discuss concerns about
retailers selling tobacco or vape products to minors (under
18’s), please contact Te Whatu Ora National Public Health
Service Taranaki on 06 753 7798. Alternatively, you can
lodge a complaint regarding vaping with the Vaping
Regulatory Authority on the Ministry of Health
website.

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