NSW Health has issued a closure order for CTC Sturt Mall in Wagga, which won’t be allowed to re-open until 14 July. Photo: Supplied.
Some 18 stores have been closed across the Riverina by NSW Health over the alleged sale of illicit tobacco and vaping goods – more than any other region in the state.
Temora’s SPF Supermarket at 236 Hoskins Street was the latest to be shut down on Thursday (21 May), following the closure of two shops on Griffith’s Banna Avenue earlier that week.
Four Wagga stores are currently closed – CTC Sturt Mall, Mount Austin’s Hometown Store, Kooringal’s Haliqi Market and the premises at 403C Lake Albert Road.
Shops in Leeton, Cootamundra, West Wyalong, Barooga, Gundagai, Tumut, Finley and Albury have been forced to stop trading, according to a published register maintained by NSW Health.
The Minns Government has been cracking down on illegal tobacco sales since November 2025, when tougher enforcement laws and closure powers came into effect.
NSW Health inspectors, often supported by NSW Police, conduct random inspections and raids to uncover alleged wrongdoing. The government can issue a short-term closure order of up to 90 days if it reasonably suspects illicit tobacco or illegal vaping goods have been or are likely to be sold from a premises, or if tobacco is being sold without a licence.
Griffith’s JK Supermarkets was forced to close last week. Photo: Supplied.
The closures have come amid nationwide debate over whether decades of cigarette tax increases have helped create what many now see as a thriving black market.
The average price of a legally bought 20-pack of cigarettes has risen from around $3 in 1990 to more than $50 in 2026. Illegal packs are reportedly sold for as little as $10.
“Australia’s aggressive policy of continuously hiking tobacco excise has created a multi-billion-dollar illicit market, inadvertently turning a public health initiative into a significant funding stream for criminal organisations,” the Centre for Independent Studies (CIS) argued in a submission to an ongoing Senate inquiry.
“Smokers may have access to cheaper cigarettes than before, excise revenue has fallen and criminal profits have risen. There is simply no way that combination of events can be described as anything other than a public policy disaster.”
Economist Chris Richardson agrees.
“If we are trying to gift billions to organised crime, then we’ve hit that KPI,” he said.
The premises at 403C Lake Albert Rd in Kooringal. Photo: supplied.
He has called for a highly restrictive national licensing scheme, initially limiting tobacco sales to supermarkets and a relatively small number of approved sellers.
The CIS has argued for stronger enforcement and a halt to further increases in tobacco excise.
Full list of stores closed in the Riverina:
SPF Supermarket (Temora) – closed 21 May 2026, reopens 18 August 2026
1st Convenience (Griffith) – closed 19 May 2026, reopens 16 August 2026
JK Supermarket (Griffith) – closed 19 May 2026, reopens 16 August 2026
Free Choice Tobacconist (West Wyalong) – closed 19 May 2026, reopens 16 August 2026
Freechoice Leeton (Leeton) – closed 13 May 2026, reopens 10 August 2026
Finley Tobacconist (Finley) – closed 12 May 2026, reopens 9 August 2026
CTC Sturt Mall (Wagga Wagga) – closed 16 April 2026, reopens 14 July 2026
Hometown Store (Mount Austin, Wagga Wagga) – closed 16 April 2026, reopens 14 July 2026
Sheridan Quick Stop (Gundagai) – closed 15 April 2026, reopens 13 July 2026
Tumut Tobacconist (Tumut) – closed 15 April 2026, reopens 13 July 2026
Premises at 178 Parker St (Cootamundra) – closed 9 April 2026, reopens 7 July 2026
Cootamundra Convenience (Cootamundra) – closed 9 April 2026, reopens 7 July 2026
Haliqi Market (Kooringal, Wagga Wagga) – closed 8 April 2026, reopens 6 July 2026
Premises at 403C Lake Albert Rd (Kooringal, Wagga Wagga) – closed 8 April 2026, reopens 6 July 2026
Volt General (Albury) – closed 12 March 2026, reopens 9 June 2026
American Convenience Store (Albury) – closed 12 March 2026, reopens 9 June 2026
Smoke Station (Albury) – closed 12 March 2026, reopens 9 June 2026
Quick Trip (Barooga) – closed 11 March 2026, reopens 8 June 2026.
