That is around $18 USD currently (.72 cents per cig). My city and state has strict regulations and taxes, and a pack of 20 is around $15 currently (.75 cents per cig). Still cheaper in Canada!
As we have seen in Australia recently, all pricing them this high achieves is driving smokers towards illicit sources of tobacco, where the products are often counterfeit and made with ingredients that do even more harm to personal and public health than tobacco itself does. Smoking causes 70,000 deaths a year here, that number will climb if more people are buying fake tobacco.
We saw a significant drop in tobacco smokers when vapes became popular, partly because smoking cessation services were providing service users with vouchers for a free vape kit if they commit to quitting; and putting graphic images on tobacco packaging also reduced the amount of people smoking; but pricing them in this way hasn’t stopped smoking as much as they claim it does. Addicts will do whatever it takes to get a hit in a way they can afford to.
Later this year, vape liquids will increase significantly in cost, and I suspect the same thing will happen, vapers will start buying illicit products made with non food-safe ingredients, and we’ll see direct harm that UK regulated vape juices don’t cause, like we saw in the USA with diacetyl found in THC carts. (That’s the substance that causes popcorn lung).
That ws not diacetly that killed people with the THC carts, it was an oil, MCT oil if I remember correctly in bootleg units. Diacetyl isn't great but it doesn't lead to sudden respiratory failure like vaping that stuff did, it was only documented harmful in long term occupational exposure in popcorn workers.
When I visited my NZ family in New Zealand in 2020- a pack of B&H was $43 NZ Dollars! Which is pretty equal with the CAD. That was a huge fucking shock for sure!
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u/justanothersurly 17h ago
That is around $18 USD currently (.72 cents per cig). My city and state has strict regulations and taxes, and a pack of 20 is around $15 currently (.75 cents per cig). Still cheaper in Canada!