Shisha smoking is a popular social activity in Australia, with many people enjoying the flavors and ambiance of smoking hookah with friends. However, the shisha industry is facing a significant challenge due to the increasing popularity of illicit tobacco. In this blog post, we'll explore the impact of illicit tobacco on the Australian shisha market and why it's crucial as a shisha smoker or shisha enthusiast to support the fight against Illicit tobacco.

What is Illicit Tobacco?

Illicit tobacco refers to tobacco products that are sold or distributed illegally. These products are not subject to the same quality control and safety standards as legal tobacco products. Illicit tobacco can include products that are smuggled into the country, counterfeit products, or products that are sold without paying the appropriate taxes.

Impact of Illicit Tobacco on the Shisha Market:

The increasing availability of illicit tobacco is having a detrimental impact on the Australian shisha market.

Despite the differences on the increasing tax and duty on tobacco products, the sale of black market for illegally imported or manufactured products have found their way to profit from the increasing tax and shipping, without paying any duty.

That's right, if you are purchasing overseas tobacco products, the likelyhood of you paying for the increased duty on the products without any duty being paid on the product is quite high.

And to top it off, did you know the likelyhood of smoking the original known cheaper brands such as Al-Fahkeh and Adayla is quite low? Black market vendors have been mass producing tobacco on Australian soil with low-grade tobacco and manufacturing the products with molasses to replicate the original products and re-packaging the tobacco into the packaging you've seen instore.

Only recently, in April 2023, NSW police has seized $28 Million dollars worth of illegal tobacco, making it one of the biggest busts in NSW History.

You can read all about here from News.

Why Support Legal Compliant Shisha Tobacco Companies like Crown Hookah?

Did you know, the European Commission has launched a public legislative framework to BAN Shisha?

Not only the public health concerns that have brought to attention, but the illicit market has become out of control, where the goverment have decided to launch a new regulation to ban shisha, which will not only stop the purchasing of Illicit tobacco, but the purchase of Shisha tobacco from compliant companies in over 44 Countries.

You can save our shisha and support the fight against it by following the guide in this link from the European Shisha Community Alliance.

If we lose the fight in Europe, not only does this ban shisha in Europe, but this will also cause a movement for the Australian Government to ban smoking shisha in all of Australia.

By supporting legal compliant shisha tobacco companies like Crown Hookah, you're helping to ensure the shisha products you're smoking are safe and meet quality and health regulatory standards.

Legal compliant shisha tobacco companies are also subject to strict regulations, which helps to prevent the sale of counterfeit or contaminated products.

Additionally, legal compliant shisha tobacco companies contribute to the Australian economy through the payment of taxes and employment opportunities. The increasing popularity of illicit tobacco is a significant challenge facing the Australian shisha market.

Shisha smokers should be aware of the risks associated with using illicit tobacco and the importance of supporting legal compliant shisha tobacco companies like Crown Hookah. By choosing legal compliant shisha products, you can help to ensure that you're smoking safe, high-quality tobacco and supporting a thriving and legal industry.